Resistance to Change: The Five Monkeys Syndrome

Even if you are a cadet in high school JROTC or in Sea Cadet, Young Marines, etc. you may have come across this syndrome. If you are an adult, you most definitely have come across this. Please watch this short video before reading on and it will explain. Image courtesy of Sharon Browning and Associates.

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-PvBo75PDo[/embedyt]

Now, we are not talking about “Change for change’s sake” that’s just plain useless. Many organizations have tools in place for use by their members to afford the opportunity to review processes and then implement better ideas.

When we come to the Military Drill World, there is plenty to learn that has not been taught and ways of teaching that have not been used. But we encounter the mindset of, “The military (collectively) has been around for over 200 years! We are doing just fine, thank you.” The fact is that many soloists, JROTC, ROTC and even CAP, Sea Cadets and other units are not “just fine” and need differing levels of help in the form of education and guidance. Still, many are too stubborn to accept constructive criticism or seek help.

Service and Military Bias is quite prevalent as well. Service Bias is when a member of one service will not budge on any issue if it comes from outside his/her scope of training. Military Bias is when a service member does not accept any form of training that was not developed or used by the military in general. The education and training of cadets could be advanced quite a bit if only some would understand.

I am not equating anyone or any group to being monkeys. The video only shows the progress and results of a scientific study.

The military, at the end of WWII, fostered the pageantry arts, drum and bugle corps and marching bands, which led to indoor color guard as well and other arts. An issue arose in the early 1970s regarding the control that the military (veteran organizations) had over competitions and judging. You see, those involved in the pageantry arts who did not have that military background- and even a few who did- began to take their groups into new levels of performance which left the rigid rules of the military behind – though the foundational training remained and was added to. For decades the foundation was laid by the military men and women and they needed to let these organizations grow and learn on their own and even grow and learn with them, but the veterans didn’t grow and learn. Eventually, those who were staffing the groups in the pageantry arts did not deal with the military men and women. The military roots are still held in high regard and many lessons are still taught today, but they are mixed with the higher-level education and training that is seen in high school marching bands and drum corps across the USA and even around the world as the education and training began spreading in the early 1980s.

The point is, being open to new ideas- or at least ideas that are new to you- is a good thing. If these ideas work well, everyone wins. If these ideas do not seem to work for your organization, then there is nothing lost as you at least tried.

“That’s the way we’ve always done it,” is such a horrible statement to hear, don’t be the one to say it.