Experts in Strategyactivation
„Der Einsatz neurosozialer Führung zielt darauf ab, mehr Eigenverantwortung, Motivation, Ergebnisorientierung und Produktivität zu bewirken.“
There was once a new IT Director at a major firm, he joined as the new Head of IT. He had just arrived from another first and had to explain his strategy to all 2,500 employees in a virtual town hall. Casually, he mentioned that anyone working in his area for more than five years would probably be “operationally blind” and irrelevant in his plans.
What he, and the board, should have realised, is that employees hate two things more than almost anything else:
When people feel isolated or excluded, the same part of the brain, the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) activates as when in physical pain. In human history, isolation has often been related to hunger and existential distress.
In one sentence, that IT director gave 2,125 listeners a collective slap in the face.
Humans are social creatures. We have been used to living in clans since time immemorial. Our greatest need is to belong to a clan, a strong community, and to feel like a valuable member of that community.
If the mood is good and every person feels valued, the group is also motivated, conflicts are addressed openly, solutions are sought and implemented together.
If the mood is bad and there is concern or mistrust, the group is insecure, conflicts are swept under the table and the members behave in a wait-and-see and passive manner.
People in leadership roles have a prominent role in influencing such social dynamics. It has always been the leading figures at the top of the hierarchy who distributed the resources and tasks. That's why employees orient themselves strongly towards their managers - and that's why their behaviour has a direct influence on the well-being of employees.
Have you ever talked about neurotransmitters in the context of leadership or strategy implementation?
Typically, hormones are discussed when the conversation revolves around puberty or thyroid dysfunction. But hormones also play a central role if we want to win over people as active supporters of our ideas and goals.
The word ‘hormone’ itself comes from the ancient Greek hormān - meaning to drive orexcite. Hormones are biochemical signalling substances that initiate specific effects and regulatory functions. They not only control our bodies, but also our emotions, our perception and our thinking.
No leader can achieve their business goals alone. Those who want to form high-performance teams and achieve good results will benefit from developing a greater understanding of neurotransmitters and how they work. These chemicals ensure the transfer of information between brain cells, but they also depend on how people perceive and interpret their environment.
Four substances particularly influence the vitality and mental performance of individuals and, therefore, their teams:
Serotonin gives us the feelings of joy and serenity. It dampens negative feelings and reduces impulsive behaviour. Many antidepressant medications are designed to increase the concentration of serotonin between nerve cells. A healthy serotonin level makes us productive and has a positive effect on our social skills. Through targeted leadership behaviour in crucial situations, you can influence the serotonin levels of the people involved.
Dopamine is released when we have the impression that our actions are pursuing an important, overarching goal and that we have successfully mastered steps on this path. Dopamine triggers emotions such as motivation and confidence. It plays a big role in our reward system. Drugs also activate dopamine releases. The resulting artificial feeling can be addictive. Leadership can influence the dopamine levels of those involved through desirable goal setting, training and good work organisation.
Norepinephrine prepares our brain to act quickly and efficiently in acute situations. It activates the body's energy reserves in the short term, sharpens the senses, increases attention and helps people leave their comfort zone.
Cortisol is released when the body prepares for a long, difficult fight. High cortisol levels are reflected in conditions such as mild aggression, nervousness or reduced alertness. A persistently high cortisol level deprives the body of energy reserves and drains it. This leads to fatigue, premature aging and even cognitive decline. It also increases the risk of developing depression. Leaders can reduce the stress level of those affected by avoiding overwhelming demands, unclear objectives or unfavourable working conditions.
To do this, one must be aware of how neurotransmitters work. The Neurotraffic Light is a helpful management tool for this. You can use it in check-in or project meetings to understand what state a group is currently in.
The Neurotraffic Light highlights whether members of a team are currently in a green, yellow or red state.
Green stands for serotonin and dopamine. These two messenger substances create a state of permanent performance.
During a Neurotraffic Light check-in, team members are asked to rate their current well-being with regard to given statements on a scale from 0 (not at all) to 10 (completely).
A corresponding statement for serotonin might be: “I feel energised and valued right now”.
To determine the dopamine factor, a sentence like: “I just have the feeling that I am on the right track” might be suitable.
With regard to norepinephrine, the check-in question could be: “I am positively excited.”
When it comes to the long-term stress hormone cortisol, you can ask the question “I feel like I’m in fight and flight survival mode.”
First, you should let the members of the group vote anonymously, then invite each member to briefly comment on their status. This will give leaders important insight into what is currently affecting each individual and whether they are in good condition overall.
If these a reportedly high cortisol level, the motto should be: Disturbance takes priority. Nobody should be given a new topic when they are in survival mode. But the attention and compassion of colleagues alone is often a great support.
Two people in different cognitive states are pictured below. The person on the right is suffering from constant stress. They feel alone and afraid of failing. This person can solve some situations, but even simple tasks may now seem challenging to them.
The person on the left is in good, vital condition. They can concentrate on meaningful goals and activities. They can categorise their perceptions harmoniously and experience situations in their everyday working life that bring them joy. They have the impression that they are getting closer to a worthwhile goal step by step.
When change is announced, curiosity and fear will always be present for employees. As a manager, one should remember that these emotions represent two aspects of the same system. Since humans are creatures of habit, they tend to intuitively classify change as threatening. But if managers can arouse curiosity and point out opportunities, employees will be motivated.
Curiosity is the deciding factor: Dopamine – the reward hormone – is the neurotransmitter that is released when we are curious. Good leadership arouses curiosity because it helps ensure that employees are in a balanced mental state and therefore perform at their best, with joy and without burning out.
The perception and interpretation of environmental data determines our attitude to life and mental performance via neurochemistry. Over time, huge information highways emerge in people's minds. They ensure that not everything that flows into our minds is able to reach our consciousness. Unconscious behaviours allow us to complete routines efficiently. But they also require conscious change strategies.
In order to make employees curious about change and convince them to take new paths, managers must expand the metaphorical side roads. Where we direct our selective perception plays a crucial role in data processing. We can improve the interpretation of our sensory impressions by reflecting on our experiences, sorting out our thoughts and concentrating on those that will help us constructively.
Leadership also means being a role model in this direction. Managers should always be aware of what they stand for and what signals they send out when changes are imminent.
This results in different behaviour, especially in the way one interacts and communicates with other people. Brains are trainable. Supervisors can succeed in making employees think more flexibly and be more willing to take new paths.
Neurosocial leadership offers concrete tools to ensure a green, high-performance state in the team in the ‘moments of truth.’
The basics of Neurosocial Leadership are described in the following book: EXPEDITION FUTURE - How we can use chance to master uncertainty and complexity.
Inside readers will discover:
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