Have you ever had a person on your team who just seems to “phone it in?” He or she does the basic work that is required, but nothing more. Chances are, the person has lost motivation.
As a supervisor or even a peer, this can be very frustrating. You may think that person should snap out of it and start to care about delivering better work. However, it’s not that easy because there are often physiological reasons behind the problem.
According to Dan Cable, a professor at the London School of Economics who has conducted research on this effect on businesses, as humans we want to feel motivated and find meaning in the things we do. He says there’s a part of our brains called the seeking system that creates the natural impulses to learn new skills and take on challenging but meaningful tasks. And when our seeking systems are activated, we feel more motivated and purposeful.
Exploring, experimenting, learning—this is the way we’re supposed to live and work. The problem is, too many workers can’t partake in these activities because the way organizations are run prevents them from doing so.
According to Cable, the key for leaders is to find ways to activate the employee’s seeking systems, which we’ll explain in this issue of Promotional Consultant Today.
Allow self-expression. In today’s companies, we push for the need for creativity and innovation, yet organizations are filled with bureaucratic job titles, inflexible roles and standardized evaluation systems that generate anxiety instead of excitement and self-expression.
None of us wants to just perform pre-programmed behaviors again and again. Employees want to be valued for the unique skills and perspectives they bring to the table, and the more you can reinforce this and remind them of their role in the company at large, the better. Leaders can help employees be their best selves without changing the frames of their jobs by giving them room to express themselves. Cable gives the example of Novant Health, a company that allows employees to create their own job titles. This small step allows for self-expression and can create a sense of motivation.
Create an experimental “safe zone.” Cable suggests creating an experimental space that allows for play and supportive social bonding. This type of environment stimulates peoples’ seeking systems and alleviates anxiety and fear.
By allowing employees to have some fun and flexibility, they are able to think up new approaches and try them out. Research shows that framing change and innovation as a chance to experiment and learn is better than framing it as a performance situation, which makes people anxious, risk-averse and less willing to persist through difficulty.
Ignite a feeling of purpose. Cable says that a feeling of purpose doesn’t always have to be a grand revelation; it can be a result of the cause and effect between our inputs and our team’s progress. A sense of purpose can come from offering recommendations to the team that improves a process, or when our own contribution makes a difference to the team’s result.
Purpose comes from a personal connection. As Cable points out, it can’t just be a speech by a senior leader about why their products help customers. Purpose works best when employees get to interact directly with the people they are affecting with their work. For example, employees at Microsoft are encouraged to spend time with clients, understanding their problems and issues firsthand.
As a leader, motivate your employees by allowing self-expression, encouraging experimentation and creating a sense of purpose.
Source: Dan Cable is professor of organizational behavior at London Business School. His new book is Alive at Work: The Neuroscience of Helping Your People Love What They Do. He is also a contributor to HBR.org, including “Why People Lose Motivation — and What Managers Can Do to Help.”
