Are You Moving the Door?
A question worth asking before your next move.
This morning I was at HorseSpeak — an equine therapy property I’m currently working with — redoing their whiteboards. Reorganising, clarifying, making things more functional. In my mind, it was obvious work. Good work.
But as I stepped back and looked at what I’d done, a story came back to me. One I’ve carried for years.
The Door
A good friend of mine — Alex — is Ukrainian. If you didn’t know him, you might find him a little intimidating. Big guy. Quiet intensity. He served as a machine gunner in the Red Army. Not someone you’d naturally expect to have one of the driest, most deadpan senses of humour you’ve ever encountered.
When Alex came to New Zealand, he needed work. He’s an accountant by trade, but he started at a rental car company while he found his footing. It was fine. It was a job.
Then a new manager arrived.
Before talking to anyone on the team. Before learning the systems, the rhythms, the unspoken dynamics of the place — this manager moved his office door from one side of the wall to the other.
No reason given. No conversation. Just… moved the door.
The team never quite forgave him for it. Not because the door mattered. But because of what it communicated: I’m here now, and things are going to change — on my terms, without asking.
I’ve thought about that story more times than I can count. In every organisation I’ve worked with, in every system I’ve helped untangle, it keeps coming back.
Back to the Whiteboards
I was asked to redo the whiteboards at HorseSpeak. I had a clear brief, and I thought carefully about how to make them genuinely useful. I asked for feedback on the first board — from the leader I’m working with, and from a staff member.
But when I finished the second board this morning, I hadn’t asked the wider team. They didn’t know I’d been asked to do this. And people here have their routines. Their ways of doing things. The boards are part of that.
So I had to ask myself: did I just move the door?
I’d like to think not. There’s a difference between change that is imposed and change that is considered. But the line between the two isn’t always obvious — especially from the inside.
The Question Underneath the Question
When I shared this story with Joan, one of the therapists at HorseSpeak, we got into a real conversation about change in organisations. About how the same action — moving a door, reorganising a board, updating a process — can land completely differently depending on how it’s done.
There’s no universal answer to when you ask for feedback. Before, during, or after a change — it depends on the organisation, the relationships, the stakes, the trust already in the room.
But there is a universal question worth asking:
“Am I moving the door?”
Not as an act of self-doubt. But as an act of leadership.
Am I making this change because it genuinely serves the people and the work? Or am I making it because I can? Because it’s easier than having the conversation first? Because I’m in a hurry, or frustrated, or certain I’m right?
Sometimes the answer is yes, and the change is still the right call. But asking the question changes how you make it.
What I’ve Noticed Across Organisations
I’ve worked inside a lot of organisations — retail, hospitality, medical practices, nonprofits. In each one, I’ve helped build or simplify the systems that hold daily work together: the tools, the processes, the digital foundations people rely on.
The organisations that navigate change well aren’t necessarily the ones with the best strategy or the clearest roadmap.
They’re the ones where people feel considered. Where change doesn’t arrive as a surprise imposed from above, but as something that’s been thought about with care.
That doesn’t mean asking permission for everything. It means knowing the difference between leading and just… moving the door.
So — what change are you about to make?
And have you asked yourself whether you’re moving the door?
Further Reading
- Why Calm Systems Rely on Trust, Not Control — the natural next step from this article; moves from how change lands into what makes systems hold
- When Success Isn’t the Problem — Drift Is — picks up the thread of unnoticed shifts in organisations
- Why Foundations Are Not the Place to “Figure It Out as You Go” — extends the considered vs. imposed thinking into how systems get built
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What does “moving the door” mean in leadership?
“Moving the door” means making a change — however small — without considering how it will land for the people it affects. It’s not about the action itself. It’s about what it communicates: that decisions happen without conversation. That signal often does more damage than the change ever would.
Q: How do I know if I’m making a change thoughtfully or just imposing it?
Ask yourself honestly: am I doing this because it serves the work and the people, or because it’s easier than having the conversation first? There’s no formula. But pausing to ask — before you act — is usually enough to shift how you approach it.
Q: Does this mean I need to ask permission before every change?
No. This isn’t about consensus or slowing everything down. It’s about discernment — knowing which changes carry enough weight to warrant a conversation, and which don’t. The door story isn’t about asking permission. It’s about reading the room before you act.
Q: Why do small changes sometimes cause the biggest reactions in teams?
Because the reaction is rarely about the change itself. It’s about what the change signals — about respect, trust, and whether people feel considered. A team that trusts its leadership can absorb big changes. A team that doesn’t will notice every small one.
Q: Is this relevant to digital systems and tools, not just physical workplaces?
Āe — completely. The same dynamic plays out when a tool gets changed, a process gets updated, or a system gets rebuilt without involving the people who use it daily. The technology changes. The human response doesn’t.
