> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://blog.knack4business.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Hidden Cost of Resisting Change | What's Beneath the Surface - URL: https://blog.knack4business.com/hidden-cost-of-resisting-change-whats-beneath-the-surface/ - Published: 2026-07-27T22:00:42.000Z - Updated: 2026-07-27T22:00:41.000Z - Description: Paige Harazin-Masi on why change stalls, what the SCARF framework reveals about resistance, and how to build a team that actually adapts. - Author: Bernie Franzgrote - Tags: Leadership and Ops, Authentic Leadership, leadership, change management, organizational health, change fitness, framework, leadership coaching, team alignment, business strategy, Paige Harazin-Masi, Executive coaching, Knack 4 Business **Host: Bernie Franzgrote** Organizational coach Paige Harazin-Masi on why change management fails, how the SCARF framework explains resistance, and what change fitness looks like for SMB leaders. ### **GROWTH CATEGORY:** **Leadership & Ops** --- **Brought to you by** [*Canada Growth Network*](https://tinyurl.com/3s5d3ayv?ref=blog.knack4business.com)*,* [*WebIndexer*](https://tinyurl.com/yav4edf5?ref=blog.knack4business.com)*, and* [*Profit10™*](https://tinyurl.com/58she8w6?ref=blog.knack4business.com)*.* --- ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/c2/71/c271bbbd-7656-42a5-bca8-28e3520864c6/content/images/2026/07/Web-Indexer-LOGO-1-1.png) #### Web Indexer It turns your website into a client-facing assistant that works around the clock. Fast to set up, smart features, and it answers questions your visitors actually have. You can see it live on our own site right now Knack4Business.com [CHECK IT OUT](https://tinyurl.com/yav4edf5?ref=blog.knack4business.com) --- Most change initiatives fail quietly. Not because the strategy was wrong. Because nobody dealt with what was happening underneath the surface. Paige Harazin-Masi is an organizational consultant and executive coach who has worked inside Goldman Sachs, McKinsey, and several high-growth startups. She now helps senior leaders figure out what is really driving behavior inside their teams — and what to actually do about it. In Season 4 Episode 132 of Knack 4 Business, she shares a framework for understanding why change stalls, what leaders consistently miss, and how to build a team that actually adapts. --- ### Watch the full conversation here: --- ### **WHO THIS IS FOR** SMB owners navigating growth or transition. Team leads who sense their people are not fully on board. Leaders who have launched change initiatives and watched them quietly stall. Anyone who suspects the real problem is beneath the surface. --- ### **Key Lessons** **1\. Resistance to change is neurological — not personal** The SCARF framework — status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness, fairness — maps five core human needs that, when threatened, trigger a stress response in the brain. Performance drops. Creativity drops. Collaboration drops. When a team member pushes back on a new process or a strategic shift, they are not being difficult. Their brain is treating the change as a threat. Understanding this changes how you communicate, how you roll out decisions, and how much runway you give people to adapt. A leader who knows SCARF can read the room in a completely different way. **2\. Change fitness beats change management** Change management treats adaptability like a project. There is a plan, a rollout, a finish line — and then everyone goes back to normal. Paige compares it to Dry January. You check the box, and then February 1st arrives. Change fitness is different. It is an ongoing practice — like going to the gym — that builds the real capacity to keep adapting as conditions keep shifting. Organizations that invest in change fitness do not just survive one disruption. They build the muscle to handle the next one, and the one after that. **3\. What you see is only 20 percent of the story** The iceberg model is intentional for Paige. What leaders can see — behavior, output, friction — is the surface. The real drivers of organizational health are underneath: unspoken assumptions, unmet needs, misaligned expectations, and the stories people are telling themselves about what the change means for them. The more senior a leader becomes, the less raw truth tends to reach them. People filter. They soften. Staying genuinely curious — asking what you do not know rather than assuming you have the full picture — is one of the most underrated leadership skills in a fast-changing environment. --- ### **Practical Steps** **1\. Run your team through the SCARF lens before the next change announcement** Before you roll out a new initiative, ask yourself: which of the five SCARF triggers — status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness, fairness — does this threaten for my team? Build your communication around what you know will activate fear, and address it directly. Do not wait for the resistance to show up and then try to manage it. **2\. Replace the finish line with a practice** Pick one behavior that signals change fitness in your team — asking questions without defensiveness, flagging problems early, experimenting on a small scale — and start rewarding it visibly. Change fitness builds when the culture rewards curiosity, not just execution. **3\. Ask what you do not know** Schedule a short conversation with someone two or three levels below you who will tell you the truth. Not a survey. A real conversation. Ask them what is not working, what people are worried about, and what they would change if they could. Then listen without defending. That is the below-the-iceberg work. --- ### **About the Guest** Paige Harazin-Masi helps senior leaders and teams navigate change, build alignment, and understand what is really driving behavior beneath the surface. She holds a degree in psychology from Yale and a master's in organizational change from Northwestern. Her career spans Goldman Sachs, McKinsey, a Sequoia-backed gaming startup, and a health tech company — before she built her own consulting practice. She works with executives and leadership teams going through growth, transition, restructuring, or any moment where the people side of the business needs real attention. [partnerwithpaige.com](https://www.partnerwithpaige.com/?ref=blog.knack4business.com) | [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/partnerwithpaige/?ref=blog.knack4business.com) | [Media](https://www.partnerwithpaige.com/media?ref=blog.knack4business.com) ### **Free offer:** [Organizational Health Assessment](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16vvS294%5FweRmbkKpHlYIVQIbPmM0GrvcGCA7UOs8c2Q/edit?gid=1483315145&ref=blog.knack4business.com#gid=1483315145) — a free 20-question self-guided tool based on the McKinsey Organizational Health Index. Make a copy and use it with your team. Free 45-minute coaching session available this month — email [paige@partnerwithpaige.com](mailto:paige@partnerwithpaige.com) or visit her website. --- ### **Listen on Audio** [Listen on Simplecast](https://tinyurl.com/yc8ed4wy?ref=blog.knack4business.com) [Browse all episodes](https://tinyurl.com/y8tctv4v?ref=blog.knack4business.com) — K4B / ETW / CGN --- ### **Supported by:** [Canada Growth Network](https://tinyurl.com/3s5d3ayv?ref=blog.knack4business.com) — Business connections and a done-for-you automation stack for SMBs. Real tools. Real people. $1 CAD first month, $47/month. [WebIndexer](https://tinyurl.com/yav4edf5?ref=blog.knack4business.com) — Turn your website into a 24/7 client-facing assistant. See it live on knack4business.com. [Profit10™](https://tinyurl.com/58she8w6?ref=blog.knack4business.com) — Find out what is really holding your business back. Take the free Profit Snapshot — ten questions, plain language, real clarity. --- ### **FAQ** **Q: What is the SCARF framework and how does it apply to business change?** SCARF stands for status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness, and fairness. These are five core human needs that, when threatened, trigger a stress response. In business, when a change initiative removes certainty or reduces autonomy, people push back — not out of stubbornness, but because the brain is responding to a perceived threat. Knowing this helps leaders communicate change in a way that reduces fear rather than amplifying it. **Q: What is the difference between change management and change fitness?** Change management treats change as a project with a start and a finish line. Change fitness treats adaptability as an ongoing skill — something you build over time through practice, mindset, and organizational culture. In a fast-moving environment, change fitness is what actually sustains a team through repeated disruption. **Q: How do I know when my organization needs outside help with change?** The early signals are subtle — a sense that something is off, a strategic initiative that keeps stalling, quiet disengagement on the team. The louder signals are staff turnover, visible anxiety, and decisions that seem to go nowhere. Paige recommends reaching out before the wheels come off if you can, but says both moments are valid entry points. The goal is not to wait until you are rebuilding from the ground up. --- ****Next Steps to Take** - [Join Canada Growth Network](https://tinyurl.com/3s5d3ayv?ref=blog.knack4business.com) \= Robust CRM + Community $47 CDN - [Web Indexer](https://tinyurl.com/yav4edf5?ref=blog.knack4business.com) quick install web bot for websites - [Browse all episodes — K4B / ETW / CGN](https://tinyurl.com/y8tctv4v?ref=blog.knack4business.com) - [Search K4B episodes by topic](https://knack4business.com/?ref=blog.knack4business.com) - [Want to be a guest? Register here](https://knack4business.com/?ref=blog.knack4business.com) [Web Indexer - quick install bot ](https://tinyurl.com/yav4edf5?ref=blog.knack4business.com) --- ### **K4B ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS** - [Carl Richards](https://www.linkedin.com/in/carl-richards-3a0a223/?ref=blog.knack4business.com) - [Fred Crouch](https://tinyurl.com/3psh5bdk?ref=blog.knack4business.com) - [Jovan Strika — @Hive](https://tinyurl.com/4dmcxah8?ref=blog.knack4business.com) - [Melanie Webber](https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-webber-879806128/?ref=blog.knack4business.com)