It’s easy to get caught up in the architecture of change — the workshops, the decks, the models, the launch comms.
All useful. All well-intentioned.
But you can do all that and still not change a thing.
Because transformation isn’t about what you build for people.
It’s about what you uncover with them.
The difference between the change you plan, and the change people actually want.
Why top-down change fizzles out
You can have the smartest strategy in the room. But if people don’t connect with it then it just won’t land.
People don’t resist change.
They resist irrelevant change.
They resist being done to.
Plans made in a room with the door closed rarely reflect the messiness of real working life.
What works better?
The best change I’ve seen didn’t start with a plan.
It started with a question.
- What’s getting in your way?
- What would make this better?
- What do you wish was different?
When people feel heard something shifts.
Engagement stops being something you have to “drive” and becomes something people offer up.
Try this: listen before you leap (or you have one mouth and two ears for a reason dummy)
- Listen like you mean it.
Not just to validate your plan, but to genuinely discover what matters. - Find the energy.
Who’s already doing something brilliant? How can you back it, not redesign it? - Get curious, not controlling.
Top-down control feels safe. But real change lives in the unknown — be ready to co-create it.
You can’t force it. But you can create the conditions.
The more you try to “deliver” change, the harder it gets.
But if you focus on creating the space, the trust, and the support then the change often comes from places you didn’t expect. And it lasts.
So next time you’re shaping a transformation:
Try asking more questions than you answer.
Spot what’s already working.
And be ready to flex.
You might not get the change you planned.
But you might just get the change people want.
And if you need a hand creating that kind of shift — we can help.
At Reforge Change, we work with leaders and teams to build the skills, confidence and mindset for real, lasting change.
Through practical training, workshops and coaching, we help you:
- Make change with people, not to them
- Build trust and ownership from the ground up
- Create spaces where ideas, feedback and performance can thrive
No jargon. No fluff. Just useful stuff that actually works.
👉 Get in touch if you’d like to chat.
