Book Buzz: Alive at Work
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 that number? We have to figure out how to engage our people more effectively.
I've poured over books, surveys, podcasts, and webinars looking for something that helps. It's tough running a small business, and it's only getting harder to keep teams genuinely happy at work. Sometimes we wonder if it's even possible.
Recently I came across a book that might help. I wouldn't follow it to the letter, but it has real nuggets: Alive at Work: The Neuroscience of Helping Your People Love What They Do by Daniel Cable.
The premise is simple and profound: the way we approach work today doesn't align with how our brains are wired, and that mismatch produces widespread disengagement.
Seeking Systems
Cable explains that dopamine excites our "seeking systems" — the part of the brain that lights up when we explore, learn, and experiment. Those circuits are major contributors to feeling engaged and excited, both when we chase the resources we need and when we pursue interests that give life meaning.
In other words: the modern workplace may simply not be activating that part of your employees' brains.
When people work in environments that encourage exploration and experimentation, those systems fire. But as companies grew, management built rigid systems that most employees just follow, day in and day out. That doesn't engage the part of the brain that produces real joy. Over time people get bored, unhappy, and disengaged — and then they go looking.
Fear vs. Experimentation
The standout lesson for me is the contrast between fear and experimentation.
Many leaders unknowingly use fear as a management tool. (You may be thinking right now of someone who used it on you.) Most would deny it if asked — but what would your employees say? When someone makes a mistake, do they face harsh consequences?
I know someone whose company has stifled innovation entirely, because past attempts that failed resulted in people being disciplined or let go. Since most new ideas do fail, a fear-based culture kills innovation and engagement at the same time.
The counter is to create an environment where failure is genuinely an option. Are you rewarding the people who just do their jobs while sidelining the ones who try things? Are your targets set so high there's no room for creativity? If experimentation is what fires the seeking system, are you actually encouraging your team to innovate, learn, and experiment?
Humility in Leadership
Activating those seeking systems also takes humility. When leaders ask frontline employees to help solve problems, those employees become fully invested.
But many leaders hesitate, worried they'll look weak asking for help from people below them on the org chart. Humble leaders ask a different question: what can I do to help you deliver excellent work?
Are you and your leadership team humble enough to ask? Do your employees feel heard?
Why This Matters Right Now
Here's what we know: a majority of the U.S. workforce is either actively looking or not engaged.
Something is clearly wrong. Rote tasks, fear of failure, and stifled innovation may have worked in the past. Today's workforce — particularly Millennials and Gen Z — won't tolerate it.
And here's a thought on why younger employees leave so quickly. The seeking system is naturally engaged in the first year of a new job, because everything is novel. Once the work becomes routine and the dopamine stops firing, they start looking. If we can learn from that, we might keep people longer simply by keeping their brains engaged.
Let's take a chance on change. According to Gallup, engaged employees are 20% more productive and 59% less likely to leave. Isn't that worth the effort?
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