Hope is a habit that renews energy

How often have you heard people talking about exhaustion and burnout in the last year? In the last month?

Stepping away and slowing down as a result of the global COVID pandemic has shown us just how low of an energy reserve we were working with on a regular basis. And people are looking for ways to maintain a better balance and energy reserve.

When you search burnout or exhaustion, you will see a multitude of self-help tips, self-care suggestions and encouragement to just take a break! But what is the role of organizations, leaders and managers in ensuring that their employees are able to sustain energy to tackle problems and contribute to the business? What about the fear that employees will just take time off that they don’t need?

In order to understand how to help teams recharge, we need to understand the relationship of energy levels to HOPE. Now, hope is typically thought of as an emotion, but there is a body of research that shows that hope is actually a cognitive habit or process. This research shows that HOPE consists of 3 main elements: 1) Meaningful Goals 2) Waypower (I know how to move forward) and 3) Willpower (the energy and capacity to act).

In understanding how our habits in these 3 areas contribute to hope, or the lack of it, we need to recognize that our American society has operated with a cultural belief that is disconnected from reality: We should always be on, be a superhero, or always be the star performer. This “always on” mentality doesn’t allow for the natural ebb and flow of performance and recovery, of flow and learning gaps that exists. (See the concept of flow for why this optimal state does not constantly exist). Just as coaches try to manage hitting peak performance at the right time, leaders and managers need to acknowledge that their teams will not always be superheros, and that they are human.

In doing so, they will set themselves up to learn to foster employee hope as a habit rather than expecting all-out engagement in every moment. And, just maybe, practicing a habit of hope will prove more impactful than current approaches to employee engagement as we seek solutions in the pendulum of the Great Resignation and the Great Regret.

So let’s look at each of these elements of hope to understand how they impact engagement and performance. These elements align with a recent discussion in the Harvard Business Review on re-energizing a depleted team.

Meaningful Goals are about being holistically purpose driven. Our goals have to align with our values and strengths across our lives. Step away from asking employees if they have clear goals and step into conversations about what goals are meaningful to them and how their role and growth in the organization aligns with their life goals. Some questions to ask:

  • How is your current role supporting your life goals?
  • How is your current role an obstacle to your priorities in life?
  • What adjustments would be most important to you?
  • How can we work together to achieve business objectives and your goals?

Waypower is about saying “I know how to move forward”.  A major part of a manager’s role is to minimize obstacles or point teams to needed tools. Ask more about whether employees feel supported in current and future development. People development processes impact nothing without robust and honest conversations with employees. In fact, you will find that a focus on people will drive effective processes. But process will not drive a focus on people where the culture does not value it. Some questions to ask:

  • What support is most meaningful to you from your manager?
  • Do you feel alone in your development?
  • What tools or people might help you figure out how to move forward?

Willpower is the energy and capacity to do.  In our attempt to treat workforces as closed systems, we have historically ascribed energy levels to intrinsic motivation. And then used extrinsic motivation to try to move the needle.  We must recognize that, as humans, our energy levels are influenced as much or more by our lives outside of work than in the proverbial “office”.  So how can organizations possibly influence energy levels?  It starts with trusting your people and giving managers the skills and flexibility to foster recharges while still managing the  (very) small percentage of workers who may try to abuse the system.

Encourage managers to observe energy levels and behaviors among staff. Help them to understand the red flags that indicate energy may be low, well-being may be at risk or boundaries may be being crossed. These include but are not limited to:

  • Anger
  • Being a superhero always
  • Reluctance to engage
  • Changes in behavior or performance

Like all habits, sometimes we fall away from them in times of stress and overwhelm. But as you keep trying, you will find that implementing a habit of fostering hope will allow your teams to get through the challenges that come with resilience and growth.