Why do you keep not doing the thing you already know would help? Ross Ellenhorn's answer in How We Change is that staying the same makes sense: part of you is protecting you from something real. In this episode: the Ten Reasons Not to Change, the fear of hope that sits under all of them, why starting a change feels worse than ignoring the problem, and the one question to ask a team member who keeps not changing.

Timestamps (estimated at 150 wpm — adjust after your edit)

• 00:00 — Why staying the same makes sense
• 01:06 — "Why don't you just…" and why advice doesn't work
• 02:54 — Christy, the director who's been "about to delegate" for three years
• 05:10 — Ellenhorn's Ten Reasons Not to Change
• 08:02 — Fear of hope and playing possum
• 09:28 — Five things to do (four for you, one for your team)
• 11:11 — The question to ask yourself tonight

Get the book: How We Change (And Ten Reasons Why We Don't) by Ross Ellenhorn — https://amzn.to/47myrcv As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases — no extra cost to you.

Go deeper: jasonrigby.substack.com — free.

You've moved on to the next meeting, but your mind is still on the last problem.

That's attention residue: thoughts about previous work competing with what needs your attention now.

Jason Rigby explains research by Sophie Leroy and Theresa Glomb on task switching, unfinished work, and a simple "ready-to-resume" plan. Before switching tasks, briefly write down where you stopped and how you'll return.

Hear how to use this practice before a conversation, why checking email right before a meeting can leave you distracted, and how leaders can interrupt their teams more thoughtfully.

If you manage people, make decisions throughout the day, or struggle to listen while thinking about unfinished work, this episode gives you something practical to try.

More from Jason Rigby:
https://jasonrigby.substack.com

Most managers think they're coaching. What they're actually doing is
announcing numbers — and it's why the same person is behind again this
month.

You've had the conversation. Maybe three times. You told them to step
up, to be more accountable, to take more ownership. They said they'd
work on it. Nothing changed. So either they don't want it, or you're
coaching a mood instead of a skill.

In this episode I break down what coaching an employee actually looks
like when it works: how to find the one step in someone's work that's
breaking, why "be more accountable" is unfixable feedback, and the six
reasons people underperform — only one of which is a character problem.

You'll walk away with the four questions that do more work than any
advice you have, a weekly coaching cadence that takes 20 minutes per
person, and a three-question test to run on your team this week.

WHAT WE COVER

(1:15) Why coaching to the final number is coaching a corpse
(3:30) Dana and Kevin — the manager who "handled it" three times
(7:00) The six causes of underperformance, and which one is actually rare
(9:15) Ask first, tell second: the four questions
(10:30) One skill, thirty days — why fixing six things fixes none
(11:15) Practice off the customer: role-play done small
(12:00) The weekly, monthly, daily coaching rhythm
(13:00) Somebody has to coach the coaches

THE MONDAY MORNING TEST

1. Name your weakest performer's actual gap — the specific step where
their work breaks. Not "they need to step up."
2. What did you ask someone last week that you didn't already know the
answer to?
3. Pick anyone on your team. Can they tell you the one thing they're
working on this month? Their answer is your grade, not theirs.

Scripts, tools, and the deeper version of everything here:
https://jasonrigby.substack.com — free to subscribe.

The Self Aware Leader is for managers who feel like they're performing
the job instead of doing it. Burnout, imposter syndrome, the loneliness
of leadership, and the conversations nobody trained you for.