Book Buzz: How Neuroscience Can Improve Engagement

The fact that 52% of the U.S. workforce is not engaged, with 17% actively disengaged, keeps me up at night. As small business owners, how do we move the needle on this troubling statistic? We have to figure out how to engage our people more effectively.

I’ve poured over books, surveys, podcasts, and webinars, all in the hope of finding insights to help. It’s tough running a small business, and it’s only getting harder to keep our teams truly “happy” at work. Sometimes, we wonder if it’s even possible. Recently, I came across a book that might help a bit. While I wouldn’t follow it to the letter, it offers some nuggets worth considering. The book is "Alive at Work: The Neuroscience of Helping Your People Love What They Do" by Daniel Cable.

The premise is simple yet profound: The way we approach work today doesn’t align with how our brains are wired to function, leading to widespread disengagement. The book seeks to show us how to help our employees rediscover a love for their work. I’d like to highlight a few key points:

Seeking Systems

Cable explains that dopamine excites our “seeking systems,” the part of the brain that lights up when we explore, learn, and experiment. “These circuits appear to be major contributors to our feelings of engagement and excitement as we seek the material resources needed for bodily survival and also when we pursue the cognitive interests that bring positive existential meaning into our lives.” In other words, the modern workplace might not be activating the seeking systems in our employees' brains, causing them to disengage. When we work in environments that encourage exploration and experimentation, these systems fire up, keeping people engaged. However, with the rise of large corporations, management created rigid systems that most employees just follow—day in and day out. This doesn’t engage the part of the brain that brings true joy. Over time, employees become bored, unhappy, and disengaged, eventually seeking new opportunities.

Fear vs. Experimentation:

A standout lesson from the book is the contrast between fear and experimentation. Many leaders unknowingly use fear as a management tool (you may be thinking of someone who used fear on you). If asked, most would deny this, but what would your employees say? When someone makes a mistake, do they face harsh consequences? I know someone who works for a company where innovation is stifled because past attempts that failed resulted in people being let go or disciplined. Since most new ideas do fail, a fear-based culture kills innovation and engagement.

To counter this, we must create environments where failure is an option. Are you rewarding employees who just “do their jobs” while sidelining those who innovate? Are you setting such high targets that there’s no room for creativity? If experimentation is key to firing up the brain’s seeking systems, are you regularly encouraging your team to innovate, learn, and experiment? Cable provides examples of companies that foster this environment across all levels, leading to higher engagement.

Humility in Leadership

Activating the seeking systems also requires humility in leadership. When leaders ask frontline employees to help solve problems, those employees become fully invested. However, many leaders hesitate, fearing they’ll appear weak if they ask for help from those beneath them. Humble leaders, on the other hand, ask, “What can I do to help you deliver excellent work?” This approach stimulates the seeking systems and engages employees more deeply. Are you and your leadership team humble enough to ask for help? Do your employees feel valued and heard?

Why Pay Attention to This Book?

Here’s what we know: 56% of the U.S. workforce is actively looking for a new job, and 69% are not engaged.

Something is clearly wrong. We may be creating work environments that fail to engage our people. Rote tasks, fear of failure, and stifled innovation may have worked in the past, but today’s workforce—particularly Millennials and Gen Z—won’t tolerate it.

Why do younger employees leave jobs so quickly? The seeking system is naturally engaged in the first year of a new job because everything is novel. But once the work becomes routine and the dopamine stops firing, they start looking for something new. If we can learn from this, we might retain our employees longer by keeping their brains engaged.

Let’s take a chance on change. We can’t afford the high turnover and disengagement plaguing our workforce. According to Gallup, engaged employees are 20% more productive and 59% less likely to leave. Isn’t that worth the effort?

How we can help:

Introducing HR Compass: We meet so many small businesses who have their CFO or COO or their Office Manager handle their HR. Although they probably do a great job, we know that there are probably some HR items that need to be checked on or help is needed.

We designed HR Compass to be affordable, high-level HR Advisory and Execution for 3-10 hours per month.