Transforming Aggression into Creative Problem Solving [the broken link has been removed] by Margaret J. Wheatley and Geoff Crinean
With their intelligence awakened, people want to contribute, want to change things, want to make things happen. They will work with existing structures and processes, but they will be altering and adapting them as needed, almost without noticing. Too often, leaders fear a loss of control and attempt to rein in such groups. Their own fear pushes them back into aggressive patterns of command and control.
A previous post making this point: Managing Fear
I think, some can leap to the conclusion that managing fear means you must avoid doing anything that may bother some people. That is not the case. If things need to be changed, that still must happen; even though people may fear change.
But managers must understand the psychological effects of fear and seek to move forward in the most effective way possible. That means taking into account the effect of the change, and the way the change is brought about, on those affected by the change.
