The gift of the so called 'whinger'

Now this may not be a term used world wide, but in Australia a 'whinger' is someone who will complain about something endlessly. In the world of change, a whinger can be your best asset.

Someone who objects to the change provides a number of opportunities to anyone willing to listen:

1) They challenge your 'why'. Sometimes we try to 'sell' a change into the business and sometimes the 'why' isn't hitting the mark. You want your 'why' to engage hearts and minds. You soon know if that isn't the case when there is a 'tough crowd'. Your 'why' just needs to be better.

2) They tell you whether your detailed impact assessment is accurate. If you listen well enough to someone who is objecting to the change you will realise that you may not have assessed all of the impacts accurately. You may even want to engage the most vocal person in the room to better understand those impacts.

3) Often they can also be your biggest advocate. I can't tell you how many times the so called 'trouble maker' ended up being a positive and supportive project person. Just take some time to engage 1:1 and see how they can add value to the process.

4) They make you work a little harder. Who does't appreciate someone who presents a challenge? Often time the 'whinger' will respect you when you respond with more effort and acknowledge that not everyone needs to fully embrace the change.

So rather than shut a 'whinger' out of the conversation it is best to welcome them in and value their contributions.