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When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit the United States and there was talk about shutting down, my first thought was, “this will pass in a few weeks.”

Mid-March, my husband and I were in Florida when we first heard about the virus. We were leaning towards staying there until all the talk calmed down. But soon after, one Friday night while I was doing homework, my husband came to me and said, “we have to go.” Go where? “We have to go home. They are talking about closing the borders, we won’t be able to get in.” In less than 7 hours, the next morning we were packed and in the car, leaving Orlando and heading to Connecticut on I-95 North.

That moment feels like years ago. I remember the long, 20-hour drive. We didn’t talk much. I thought about how crazy this all sounded. I mean clearly, we have been through a lot as a nation – but a virus that was killing people felt too sci-fi to me.

We arrived at our home on Sunday night, March 22. Ever since then, life as we knew it has not been the same.

We all have similar stories: the late evening email from a boss with instructions to not return to the office; or being told to take only what can be packed within a few hours. Schools shut down. Children who knew nothing else, being told about a virus that was so dangerous we all had to stay home. What happened?

We would learn that the world was shutting down. Other countries were being hit hard and many of us were afraid for what was to come. I thought the world was coming to an end. Sadly, that was just the beginning.

November 2020 is now the eighth month. (So much for my initial prediction of a two-week thing that will pass.) In fact, no one knows how long it will last still. And it’s impacting every single one of us – or at least everyone I know. Personally, spiritually, emotionally, professionally.

I feel for leaders who have the difficult task of keeping organizations afloat, figuring out new service delivery options, taking care of staff – all while personally experiencing many of the same issues that our clients or program participants are facing. And yet, we must remain committed to serving those who need us. We are expected – and needed – to remain focused and motivated even when everything has changed (and is still changing).

But how do we stay motivated? How do leaders keep staff engaged while working remotely?

I’ve been studying these questions all year. I think a lot about the science of motivation, and how I relate to it personally, in my PhD studies, and in my own work.

In a recent conversation about it, a colleague helped me put things into context. We were discussing working remotely. I referred to a passage in a book by Charles Duhigg, Smarter Faster Better: “Motivation is having the enthusiasm and drive to do something.” It is essential to being productive; without it, we’re prone to procrastinate or blow things off.

She stopped me and said, “I’m sorry Cynthia, but you have to understand… we did not choose to work from home – our world was disrupted, and forced us to leave our workplaces.” She was right; I was talking about working remotely as if we all chose this option. I realized then that having our choice taken from us meant that our current circumstance is vastly different.

Only a few studies have been dedicated to the neurobiology of motivation, but scientists have found that motivation is rooted in our striatum, which relays information between our pre-frontal cortex (decision making) and our basal ganglia (movement and emotion). Other studies found that dopamine plays a role in motivation as well.

Simply put, our ability to make decisions ignites excitement in our brain. Decision-making or choice-making heightens our sense of control. When choices are taken from us, our sense of control is compromised; this is what impacts our motivation.

If staff are lacking motivation (or if I am, or if you are), it is likely because we feel our sense of control pulled out from under us. Imagine how our striatum feels now that it can’t choose where to go on a date, where we work, or who we go out with.

The good news is, there are ways to get some control back, even when our choices seem uninspiring or un-motivating:

  • Choose the most meaningful option. Imagine if your day included: checking email, finishing a report, having a difficult conversation with a staff person about performance, and food shopping. When choices are nothing to jump out of bed for, we need to find meaning in them. I would choose the difficult conversation. Why? The staff person may be struggling with something that is impacting their performance, and our conversation might help them. For me, that choice gives my work great meaning.
  • Allow others to make decisions on their own; give them choices, not orders. Let others choose how things get done. Let them decide the hours they work (given this does not impede on business), or choose a project they have wanted to work on. If you tend to be a micro-manager, this is the time to practice managing results and not process.
  • Break some rules. In The Power of Habit, author Charles Duhigg reminds us that we can feel more in control with unharmful, subversive choices. Imagine a two-year-old and their joy in learning to say no or running away. Breaking rules offers excitement and an enormous sense of control and freedom. To allow it, we can stop micro-managing (including ourselves!). Perhaps a detour is of consequence, perhaps it isn’t. If it is, we can acknowledge and talk about in a way that does not reprimand, but is compassionate and empathetic. If it isn’t, we can let go of the details. As a chronic rule-follower, I felt enormous discomfort the other day when I went grocery shopping in the middle of the day. I also felt free! I managed to get all the shopping done and unpacked in 1.5 hours; and then I was back at work.
  • Feel your feelings. If you or your staff are struggling, have a conversation about the loss and grief. Many of us do not resist change, we fear the feeling of loss. Acknowledge we are all grieving, and create space for processing it.

If this all seems difficult right now, try to channel that joyful two-year-old. Think about that little child grabbing something and running, and then envision the parent chasing behind, and the laughter when they catch up. Oh what joy, to show up, work, laugh, break rules, and still be loved.

Find out more about Cynthia at Fio Partners or on her weekly talk show “Coffee Time With Masterminds,” streaming live on her Facebook page.

To reach Cynthia directly: cynthiawrojas@gmail.com

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