The ELVO Flywheel — Cutting Through Polite Resistance

Polite resistance sounds harmless.

It looks like agreement. But it acts like friction - quietly slowing your mission, draining energy, and wearing down trust.

If you’ve seen deadlines slip, decisions stall, or nods in the room that don’t turn into action….you might be dealing with polite resistance.

It’s not open defiance - it’s subtle, everyday behaviours like:

• Filtered feedback — people softening their real thoughts to avoid tension.
  
  
• Deferred ownership — “That’s not really my area…”
  
  
• Surface agreement — nodding in meetings, then doing something else.
  
  
• Passive delay — tasks moving slower than promised, without obvious reason.
  
  
• Stalled energy — the room goes flat when difficult topics arise.
  
  

I’ve seen this first hand in the military and in local government and I’ve heard about different forms of this in other environments in my coaching conversations.

The cost of leaving it unchecked

Polite resistance wastes time, burns morale, and keeps you delivering less than you know is possible.

And the real danger is that over time, it just becomes part of the culture, making it even harder to shift.

The Flywheel: Oil for Your Team’s System

The ELVO Flywheel™ is a simple, human-centred leadership framework.

Think of it as oil in the machine - reducing the grit that slows things down, restoring trust, alignment, and forward motion.

In the diagram below, the X’s are polite resistance in action.

The Flywheel is what cuts through them.

How momentum builds

The Flywheel is made up of five connected parts. Progress in one naturally fuels progress in the next:

1. Psychological Safety - Removes fear and filters so people speak honestly. When people feel safe to raise concerns, you can spot and solve issues early.
   
   
2. Collective Leadership - Breaks silent deference so ownership is shared. When voices are heard, responsibility is distributed - and energy spreads.
   
   
3. Clarity & Confidence - Replaces second guessing with shared direction. Clear intent gives people confidence to act without waiting for permission.
   
   
4. Aligned Action - Turns talk into traction. With alignment, follow-through becomes the norm, not the exception.
   
   
5. Sustained Impact - Habits and rhythms protect trust and progress. Even under strain, the team knows how to keep moving forward together.
   
   

When resistance is a signal

Not all resistance is bad.

Sometimes what looks like polite resistance is a valid concern - an early warning sign about resourcing, feasibility, or unintended consequences.

The goal isn’t to crush all resistance - it’s to create conditions where concerns are voiced openly, tested constructively, and acted on with transparency.

How I use the Flywheel in coaching

In my 1:1 coaching, the Flywheel isn’t a checklist - it’s a reflection tool.

We use it to explore where friction is showing up, what might be causing it, and whether it’s resistance to overcome or a valid signal to respond to.

Because often the issue isn’t a person - it’s the environment we’ve built around them.

Together, we shape the conditions for progress you can feel - and that lasts.

Start removing the friction

If polite resistance is slowing your team down, the Flywheel is a good place to start.

• Take the Polite Resistance Scorecard to see where friction might be showing up.
• Explore coaching with me - I work with one client at a time, so spaces are limited.