The Key To Knowing What’s Important

Sound, science-based ways for us to understand motives and to lead accordingly

In order to achieve their team’s or company’s overall vision, leaders must have the buy-in of every employee. Their motivation (one of the pillars of emotional intelligence) cannot be merely external, carrot-and-stick incentives, as Daniel Pink so ably pointed out in his book, Drive. In most situations, motivation must be intrinsic, connected to each person’s hopes and aspirations. To put it another way, people do things for their reasons, not yours.

This is not only a key aspect of emotional intelligence (theirs and yours), but also a key to effective leadership, getting the buy-in necessary for sustained progress towards an ideal outcome. As simple as this may sound, however, it is not easy to discover an employee’s hopes and dreams, much less discover ways to help them support your own.

As human animals, we have evolved specific mechanisms that control how we react to stimulus. Hormones in particular are the chemical compounds our bodies produce that, among other things, have effects on our moods and behaviors. Knowing how these affect responses can help us better understand the reactions of those around us and become more aware of what motivates them.

Of the three major hormones we are considering, cortisol, at relatively low levels, promotes a sense of normalcy and engagement.1 However, when levels are elevated, it heightens our sense of readiness for action and resistance. The cause of stress may be a physically dangerous situation but is probably not. The problem is our bodies can’t tell the difference. When our cortisol level rises, we’re on alert, hormonally speaking, our focus narrows, and we’re less likely to process things that don’t relate to the stress we feel. Only when our brains send the all-clear signal will we feel open to new information and those who bring it.

The second hormone, oxytocin, is produced in response to stimuli such as words or gestures interpreted as friendliness, interest, or support.2 We feel a sense of closeness, trust, or connection and are more likely to respond in kind. Our distant ancestors developed this response when it came to successful procreation as well as connecting with fellow tribe members. The resulting, more pro-social behavior fostered cooperation, trust, and a greater chance of survival.

The third hormone, dopamine, is a built-in reward system for activities or actions that satisfy our needs.3 Besides the pleasure reward, dopamine boosts our mood, motivation, and attention, as well as regulating our movement, our learning capacity, and our emotional responses.

While there is much more to say on these and other evolutionary traits of our fellow humans, an awareness of these three hormones, in particular, is invaluable when it comes to understanding what’s important to our employees—and what motivates them.

As a case in point, some years ago, a line supervisor at one of my client’s plants was infuriated by a worker’s constant mobile phone use while on the job as a welder. An important project had been delayed and, in the supervisor’s mind, the only answer was to apply increasing pressure to “get off the damn phone!” As with many such cases before and since, I knew that the employee’s response to the supervisor was a cortisol-fueled, fight-or-flight reaction. Both parties had narrowed their focus, and neither was able to imagine, much less process a creative solution.

After conducting a simple role-playing exercise with the supervisor, he approached the employee with questions about his long-term goals—which were to earn a master welder certification. The de-escalation very likely lowered everyone’s cortisol levels and the supervisor’s interest in the employee’s future undoubtedly raised oxytocin levels to the point of engendering some trust. The conversation turned to ways of achieving master welder certification, including working more efficiently on assigned projects. The subject of cell phone use never came up.

All too often, executives and managers strive for mental agreement with the tasks to be accomplished and the goals to be met—the how part of the equation. Very often, this ignores why people do what they do, their motivations, their heart, if you will. This lack of context results in tasks without purpose and speed without direction.

As leaders, if we aspire to influence others, our responsibility is to make sure the mental environment is conducive to conversation. That means having an awareness of cortisol reactions and finding ways of communicating that don’t trigger them. Instead, we seek to know what motivates the other and, in so doing, enlist the natural responses of connection and genuine reward. The object is not to control or manipulate others’ hormonal responses, but to understand what is going on inside, and to change our behavior—in order to help everyone find mutually beneficial solutions and buy in to them.

Notes