Managing Team Dynamics When Everything Is Changing

Every organizational change activates anxiety. Sometimes it’s loud: tension in meetings, resistance, pushback. Other times, it’s quiet: missed deadlines, polite disengagement, a team that’s physically present but emotionally absent. And whether they realize it or not, leaders end up holding the system’s anxiety. Psychodynamic theory (Bion, 1961) calls this containment — the leader’s capacity to absorb collective fear, make sense of it, and return it to the group in a manageable form. But most leaders try to fix anxiety instead of holding it. They rush into action plans, over-control, or avoidance, mirroring the team’s unease instead of transforming it. Here’s what I coach my clients on containment: 1️⃣ Pause before reacting. Anxiety is contagious; calm is too. 2️⃣ Name what’s happening. “I sense we’re all feeling uncertain right now, that’s normal in this phase.” 3️⃣ Normalize the discomfort. Remind your team that turbulence means growth is happening. 4️⃣ Redirect the energy. Turn anxious rumination into problem-solving: “What can we influence today?” 5️⃣ Hold, don’t absorb. You can empathize without internalizing everyone’s fears. Leadership in transition is about emotional metabolism. Containment builds trust. Trust fuels clarity. Clarity enables change. ✨ If your team is navigating transition, I help leaders build emotional containment and resilience to lead through uncertainty - with depth, awareness, and balance.

Leading a team through change is never easy, but one priority should always remain: the customer experience. Throughout my career, I’ve found that keeping the customer at the heart of every decision helps the team stay grounded, especially when everything else is in flux. With a clear goal to improve the customer experience, your team gains the clarity and focus they need during uncertain times But here’s the other side of the coin: Empathy for your team is just as crucial. Change can be challenging, and acknowledging its impact on team members is key to providing genuine support. When you help your team see the bigger picture—how changes ultimately benefit both them and the customers—you create purpose and resilience. By focusing on the customer and practicing empathy, you turn periods of uncertainty into opportunities for growth Change may be complex, but with the right focus and steady guidance, it can make your team stronger, more adaptable, and ready to seize new opportunities. What strategies have helped your team stay resilient during change?

A few months ago, one of my clients found herself leading a much larger team after a round of layoffs. The number of her direct reports had almost doubled, and her calendar was busting at the seams with meetings. As she shared her feelings of overwhelm, I asked her what seemed most daunting and most permanent. She thought of her one-on-ones with her team as a permanent feature and also the most strenuous ones. She considered them a necessary evil so she could do justice to the other parts of her role. In our conversations, she realized that it was time to reset her approach to work and create new ways of working with her team, establishing clarity, RACI matrices, approval processes for decisions, meeting protocols, and approaches to convey risk. If you are in a similar situation, you may also need to co-create the ways of working with your team and start implementing them, so they become an integral part of the team’s everyday functioning. Your team members will look to you for clarity. When everything is important, nothing is important. You need to empower your team with categorical prioritization and clear communication. As my client defined what mattered the most for her role in the next 3 months, it became clear to her that she would need to focus her attention on her priorities, strategically delegate, and let go of what is no longer essential. As we speak, she is managing her attention with great zeal. Here are some steps she took to reengineer her meetings- ➡️Clubbing operational discussions with teams that work across a value chain to accelerate coordination and reinforce shared execution responsibilities. ➡️Clubbing discussions that are around the same challenge or decision, e.g., hybrid working, peak season delivery planning, etc., to ensure common understanding, alignment, and consistency of action. ➡️Her one-on-ones now focus on driving strategic outcomes, removing roadblocks for her team, and developing her next-level leaders. My client has adapted, performed, and grown through this journey, which initially seemed like a change forced on her. She has moved from being overwhelmed about managing a large team to intentional leadership and developing a team of trusted colleagues ready to take on more challenges. What are you currently feeling challenged by? What practices and mindsets do you need to reset?

A knee-jerk reaction to team resistance might be: “Fire them all and start again.” But here’s the truth you probably don’t want to hear: Your team isn’t resisting change, they’re resisting you. That’s a tough pill to swallow, but let’s be honest, change rarely fails because the idea is bad. It fails because trust is broken and because you skipped the “why,” and fear filled the silence you left behind. When your team pushes back, here’s what they’re really saying: “I don’t trust where this is going.” “No one asked me.” “I’m scared, and I don’t feel safe saying that out loud.” “You’ve changed things before and left us to clean up the mess.” Change is emotional, human, and messy. So if you want real buy-in? Don’t start with a strategy deck, start with your people. Here’s how: 1️⃣ Ask Invite input early. Before rolling out a change, ask your team what they think. What are their worries? What would make this easier for them? Use open-ended questions like: “What do you see as the biggest challenge here?” “How do you think this change could help us?” 2️⃣ Listen Really listen. Don’t just nod along, take notes, ask clarifying questions, and reflect back what you’re hearing. Acknowledge the emotion: “It sounds like you’re worried about how this will impact your workload. That’s a valid concern.” 3️⃣ Validate Show you value their perspective. Even if you can’t act on every suggestion, let them know their voice matters. Be transparent about any constraints. Make the change with them, not to them. Co-create solutions. Let the team own parts of the process. When things get tough, solve problems together, not in isolation. And when things get bumpy? Because they will: ✅ Celebrate the tiny wins, because they matter more than you think. ✅ Talk about the challenges and fix them together. When leaders try to solve the bumpiness alone, they leave their team feeling lost at sea. And let’s be honest, that’s a tough place to be left alone. So bring your team into the journey, or at least keep them in the discussion. My rule is simple: If it impacts them, communicate, don’t hide. Want to drive change that actually sticks? Start with trust, not tactics.

We’re in a period of economic uncertainty—likely with many short-term ups and downs. As a leader, it’s easy to underestimate how much anxiety people feel. If you’re a manager, your team is looking to you to lead now more than ever. Here's the advice I gave our managers yesterday on how to support our people through stress, anxiety and distraction: 1. Acknowledge and Support – It’s important to explicitly acknowledge the situation, show that you’re there to support, and reinforce that we’re in this together. Your team will look to you to show up as the steady, grounded voice of reason. 2. Foster Connectivity – Be intentional about both individual check-ins, and bringing the team together to build relationships, deepen trust, and create a safe space during an uncertain time. Consider increasing meeting frequency, having informal Zoom meetings to connect and learn about each other, or bringing the team together in person if feasible for a day of team bonding. 3. Listen and Learn – Ensure you’re spending time with your team, both together and individually, to ask questions, understand unique concerns, and gain helpful insights. Address what you can directly, follow up where needed, and look for key themes that can potentially inform broader, more comprehensive efforts. 4. Communicate Upwards – Take time to summarize and share the themes you’re hearing with your manager to collaborate on addressing the issues. This will help you be more transparent with your team members on what items can be addressed immediately, and why others may need to be deprioritized. 5. Focus on Key Priorities – As managers, you should have a clear understanding of what our key priorities are, why they are important, and how best to focus your teams on them. 6. Seek Opportunity in Uncertainty – Yes, uncertain times can create angst, but they can often present unique opportunities. Rather than assuming the worst of the current situation, remind your teams to remain open to change, and seek out innovative ways to move their goals forward. Managers are the most direct point of contact a company has with every employee. They are critical in supporting employees in a time like this. We don’t know where the current situation is going. The only thing we can control is being proactive in leading our team.

Let’s talk about the elephant in the room. Right now, many companies are going through restructurings, budget cuts, or letting people go. And keeping morale high in the teams during this #uncertainty is all my clients are talking about. “How do I keep my team engaged when they’re seeing their colleagues being let go? We don’t even know what 2026 will look like…” And I always tell them: uncertainty won’t break your team, but silence and toxic positivity will. In uncertain times, psychological safety is crucial. Are you allowing people to talk about their emotions and are you doing the same? Amy Edmondson’s (you know how much I love her) research on psychological safety, from Harvard Business School, shows that teams handle uncertainty better when leaders create an environment where people can name concerns, ask questions, and admit when they’re unsure without fear of judgment. I always advise my clients: ❗️Say what you know. Say what you don’t know and say when you’ll know more. ❗️Be vulnerable and acknowledge the emotional impact, not to fix it, but to normalize it. ❗️Invite questions early, if you avoid them, you will create more anxiety. ❗️Create collective sense-making: what’s the new reality, what still holds, what changes next, what’s in our control. ❗️Stay consistent, don’t share contradict messages. #Leadership during layoffs or major transitions is not about delivering perfect answers or being delulu and pretending everything is ok (please don’t do that), but it’s about building a climate where people don’t have to navigate the unknown alone. Even only saying: “I don’t have the information, but we will go through it together” is better than saying nothing. 💌 My December newsletter will talk about this topic, how to prepare you for uncertain 2026 and how to manage this uncertainty in your team, subscribe now not to miss it https://lnkd.in/eF7pEiV5

Teams resist shifts. Leaders feel stuck. Many clients come to me to help them create a path forward for change, but often when it has already gone off the rails. Here's why that happens and how to move forward. Leaders often misunderstand the emotional stages of change, leading to ineffective management of team transitions. This resistance during organizational changes stems from: • Lack of awareness about change psychology. • Misinterpreting employee reactions. • Rushing the process. The result? ↳ Stalled progress and team discord. So, instead of intensifying opposition and slowing adaptation by: → Increasing communication. → Offering incentives. → Setting strict deadlines. Focus on these five steps: 1. Recognize the 9 stages of change. 2. Allow time for emotional processing. 3. Provide targeted support at each stage. 4. Create a safe space for concerns. 5. Lead by example, showing vulnerability. People won't back a change if they doubt they can handle it. As a leader, your role isn't to force them through the change, but to boost their confidence so they can navigate the change on their own. — P.S. Unlock 20 years' worth of leadership lessons sent straight to your inbox. Every Wednesday, I share exclusive insights and actionable tips on my newsletter. (Link in my bio to sign up).

I start every day by reading a sticky note on my laptop: "Slow down to go far." In Q1, I needed that reminder more than ever! Things are moving incredibly fast – in our industry and at HubSpot. So in Q2, how can you execute with urgency without losing sight of the bigger picture? First, a confession: slowing down doesn’t come naturally to me. (That’s why I have needed a daily reminder for years 🙂) When I first moved from individual contributor to manager, the feedback from my team was clear: I was moving too fast. They felt like they were always playing catch-up and didn't have the context they needed. I’m still working on this years later (just ask my team – they’ll tell you my favorite phrase is "let’s go faster!"). But here are some things that have worked for me: 1. Prioritize conversations with customers and partners: Every Wednesday, I block my calendar, cut back on internal meetings, and snooze notifications to focus on conversations with customers and partners. When you’re moving fast, it’s easy to lose touch with what matters most – your customers. Protect regular time every week to reconnect directly with them. It helps you stay grounded in your mission and keeps the bigger picture clear. 2. Create space for constructive dialogue with your team: Don’t let every team meeting become a status update. Set aside dedicated time to discuss bigger topics like product strategy, go-to-market plans, and pricing decisions. Your team needs space to debate and align on the big issues. 3. Ask more questions: When something is on fire, it’s natural to jump straight into solutions or quick decisions. But I’ve learned the power of pausing. Remember to ask clarifying questions first: “What assumptions are we making?” “Who hasn’t weighed in yet?” “Is there context we’re missing?” You’ll get better alignment and save time in the long run. Slowing down isn’t natural for many leaders. You’re wired to move quickly, solve problems, and set the pace for your team. But during times of huge change, the most effective leaders I know don’t just execute with intensity, they bring people along. The best way to go far is to be intentional about slowing down – sticky notes optional 😉

"I don't understand why there's so much pushback. I've been at this company for years, I have a strong track record, and my reputation speaks for itself. But it feels like this new team just won't get onboard with the changes I know we need to make." When leaders take over new teams within their own company, they often make an assumption that their existing credibility and knowledge will make the transition seamless. This is a dangerous myth. Even if you've got years of tenure within your organization, to your new team, you're still "the new person." And while you might face pressure to drive change quickly, trying to lead before you truly understand can create resistance rather than results. When you're taking over a new team, you're in somewhat of a paradoxical position: you have organizational context but lack team context. This creates both advantages and blind spots. But there are steps you can take to make it go smoothly. 📚 Every team has its own "origin story" that shapes their identity. Learn the team's history and defining moments by discovering: ↳ The projects that defined them ↳ Their proudest achievements and toughest challenges ↳ Promises made by previous leadership ↳ Resources provided or withheld in the past 🌱 Balance quick wins with building long-term trust. So, rather than immediately implementing changes: ↳ Start with small, low-risk improvements based on team input ↳ Be transparent about what you're learning and how it's shaping your thinking ↳ Acknowledge what's working well before focusing on changes 🔄 Recognize the team dynamics and informal leaders that exist already by paying attention to: ↳ Who team members look to when difficult questions arise ↳ How information actually flows (not just how it's supposed to flow) ↳ The unspoken norms around meetings, decisions, and collaboration 🔍 Your unique "outside-insider" perspective can be powerful because: ↳ You can connect team challenges to broader organizational context ↳ You can identify assumptions the team takes for granted ↳ You can serve as a bridge between the team and the rest of the organization 👥 Create space and opportunities for the team to be the experts by: ↳ Asking them to educate you on their domain ↳ Involving them in creating your onboarding plan ↳ Having them lead discussions about current challenges ↳ Seeking their input on team rituals and communication patterns While it might feel like you should hit the ground running and prove yourself, remember that leadership is ultimately about influence, not authority. And influence comes from understanding before acting — through curiosity, humility, and empathy. #leadership #teambuilding #management #careerdevelopment -------- 👋 Hi, I'm Nathan Broslawsky. Follow me here and subscribe to my newsletter above for more insights on leadership, product, and technology. ♻️ If you found this useful and think others might as well, please repost for reach!