The Red Light, Green Light Rule for Leading Change

Change at work often feels like the first game in Squid Game: Red Light, Green Light. Everyone’s frozen, waiting for the right moment to move. Step too soon, and you’re punished. Stay still too long, and you never reach the goal.  

For many employees, this is exactly what change at work feels like. It isn’t that people hate change because most of the time, they want to move forward, adapt, and succeed, but when leaders send unclear or mixed signals, people are unsure of when it’s safe to act. Should they start using the new system now, or wait until it’s officially rolled out? Should they follow their direct manager’s instructions, or the memo that came from headquarters? Faced with uncertainty, most people do what the players do: they freeze. 

This freezing is one of the most common reasons change efforts stall. Leaders often assume resistance is about laziness or stubbornness, but studies show otherwise. Research from McKinsey highlights that people struggle most when they lack clarity, not when they dislike the change itself. And in psychology, there’s evidence that mixed messages cause people to disengage altogether rather than risk making the wrong move. In short, confusion kills momentum faster than the opposition does. 

The Red Light, Green Light metaphor gives us a simple rule for leading change. Leaders must send signals that are clear, consistent, and predictable.  

• Green light should always mean go. Be specific about the immediate next steps rather than giving vague promises about the future. 

• Red light should always mean pause. Create intentional stops after announcements so people can ask questions and process what’s happening. 

• Consistency is non-negotiable. Align managers so everyone sends the same message at the same time. 

Without this rhythm, people either rush ahead recklessly or stay frozen in place. 

Leaders who apply this rule create trust, and trust is what allows teams to move together. Imagine telling your people, “This week, your only task is to migrate your files into the new system. Next week, we’ll focus on training.” That’s a green light they can act on. Then, imagine scheduling a Q&A session where people can bring concerns without fear of judgment. That’s a red light that reassures them it’s okay to stop, reflect, and reset. Over time, this steady rhythm turns hesitation into momentum. 

In Squid Game, players didn’t lose because they couldn’t move, they lost because they misread the signals. At work, the lesson is the same: eople aren’t afraid of progress, they’re afraid of stepping at the wrong time therefore the leader’s job is to make sure they never have to guess. 

Don’t wait for your people to guess the next move. Give them the green light today, and watch momentum take over.