Overcoming Apathy

Do you get frustrated by apathy and complacency among your people or in yourself?

Several of my clients recently have struggled with a modern dilemma I call ‘21st Century Existentialism’ or ‘I can’t be bothered syndrome’.  What is it, where does it come from, how do we fix it?

The “I can’t be bothered syndrome” is found in many people in many jobs.  It tends to have symptoms similar in appearance to a mild depression.  You will notice it in people who:-

  • Seem bored by the job (or parts of it)
  • Tend to cruise through the day
  • Think ‘Near enough is good enough’
  • Under-achievers.  They have talent, they are good people but they just seem to not step up create the real success and leadership they are capable of.

The old timers would say it is because “they have had it too easy”.  That everything is just presented to them, they are too comfortable.  Well perhaps for some, but in my experience it goes a little deeper than that.

I wouldn’t call it depression, which is a serious and under diagnosed illness, but it is something akin to the existentialist dilemma which in one sense asks; why should I strive to achieve anything when nothing really matters anyway?  I am never going to achieve greatness so why should I strive for a slightly higher level of mediocrity?

I know this feeling well, for I have been striving to overcome it for the past 15 years or so.

So what can you do to create motivation and enthusiasm in these circumstances?

1.    Think and act local

If they don’t by into the big picture, create a series of smaller ones with rewards along the way.  People love the feeling of achievement.  Achievement is contagious and addictive.  Create incremental, line of sight, goals that tend toward the larger objective.

2.    Make it a sport/challenge

We will spend hours trying to improve our golf game or a score in solitaire: genuinely pointless activities.  I remember working at Sizzler Restaurants during Uni – one of the measures was a simple daily productivity measure (‘customers per labour hour’ for those who are interested).  We would get enormous personal satisfaction and motivation from incremental improvements in our productivity.   So keep it simple, make the rules clear and keep the score. 

3.    Train in personal leadership

This, for me, is the big one.  Get some help from a good quality leadership development process.

At Partnercorp our leadership programs, for example, focus on helping people identify what drives them? What gets them motivated?  How to implement simple strategies to help them break out of the cycle they are in.

Leadership is about more than the ability to manage others.  Really it is about the ability to manage the self.  By training people in leadership you can drastically improve their performance and, as importantly, their general happiness and wellbeing.

Furthermore, depending on your circumstances, there are government incentives that are easily available that can make the whole process cost neutral.   Win: Win: Win.

 

Help your people build your business with enthusiasm.