Is Organizational Change Like Changing Lanes on a Highway?

I often find myself thinking in terms of analogies. Analogies are useful because they let you connect something that you are trying to reason about with something that you already know. Of course, analogies are also dangerous. Even good analogies will break down at some point, so you don't want to mistake the analogy for the actual idea. ("The map is not the territory" -- Alfred Korzybski.)

Perhaps because I am, ahem, "lucky" enough to spend part of my daily commute on the Capital Beltway, I've started thinking about an analogy between multiple lanes of traffic and organizational change. On the Beltway, everyone is trying to go in the same direction, but things don't always flow smoothly.

One thing I've realized while driving is that the speed differential between lanes is probably more of a problem than speed per se. Though subsequent research has called it into question, this phenomenon has been represented by the Solomon curve.

In other words, if you have to slam on the brakes to slow down enough to merge without hitting the car in front of you, or if you have to floor it to enter the adjacent lane of travel without being rear-ended, things can get pretty hairy. Unless you are a very competent driver with a responsive vehicle, it may be tricky to change lanes if folks are moving at wildly different speeds.

From the point of view of  an individual driver, zooming down the road while weaving in and out of traffic may seem like the obvious way to make progress. Unfortunately, there would be absolute chaos if everyone tried to follow that model. 

Instead, if everyone is moving forward at roughly the same speed, paying attention to other around them, and slowing down slightly in anticipation of common merge areas, traffic will flow more smoothly. This pace may frustrate the speed demon, but it will ultimately be a better experience for the majority of the people on the road.

Perhaps pushing for organizational change is somewhat similar. For some, change cannot come soon enough. Like an impatient commuter in a sports car, they are determined to get to their destination as fast as possible, irrespective of the impact on others. They know exactly where they want to go and how to get there. In their mind, folks should keep up or get out of their way. The thought of slowing down to let others in is almost repulsive.

But not everyone is driving a sports car. Some people may be perfectly willing to change (move to a different lane), but aren't able to match the speed at which the other lane is currently moving. They would happily merge if traffic was moving just a little slower. Maybe they had a bad experience in the past, and drive much more cautiously now. Rather than risk another accident, they chose to remain in the "slow" lane. 

Organizational change requires forward progress, but not everyone can move at the same speed. Refusing to move and wanting to move but not feeling comfortable doing it quickly are not the same thing. Change may not happen on the time scale suits everyone. This can be frustrating for those who want to see change quickly, but sometimes slow and steady will indeed win the race.