How to cure demotivation

I’m the operations manager of a multinational. After working for five years, I am no longer as motivated as I was. At times I’d like to quit and do something else, including starting a business or applying for another job. Please advise. — Night Heron. 

​Wait a bit longer. Don’t be trigger-happy. But first, find out why you’re “no longer as motivated as before.” Otherwise, you could be jumping from the frying pan into the fire. In other words, you may be moving into a worse situation than before. 

​First things first. Being demotivated and being burned out are related but are two different things. The World Health Organization defines burnout as a recognized occupational phenomenon. It happens when there’s chronic workplace stress.

​You’ll need relief from what’s bugging you at work. As an unapologetic Kaizen advocate, I suggest you do a systematic self-reflection by using a practical tool like the Fishbone Diagram with the help of your spouse, objective work colleague, or best friend.

​While commonly used to detect process issues, the Fishbone or Ishikawa Diagram can help give you a clear picture of your situation. This weekend, draw a simple fishbone that contains six categories like Manpower, Method, Machine, Material, Measurement, and Milieu. Come up with as many reasons as you can, then decide on the number one reason.

​For Manpower, this may include your relationship with your boss, work colleagues, or customers. For Method, define all processes that make your job difficult. Machine may include a defective computer or other office equipment. Examples of Material factors include policies that guide your work or things that adversely affect your health and safety.

​Measurement refers to poorly designed or misaligned performance management systems. It may also include an unreasonable, high production quota. Milieu can cover things as seemingly minor as poor air conditioning and ventilation.

SEVEN APPROACHES
Having a feeling that you’re demotivated or having a burnout is not automatically a motivation problem. Rather, it boils down to a system or situational issue. That’s why I recommended using the Fishbone Diagram. Solving burnout starts by looking hard at your work design and not resort to blaming management or other people.

​When you can review your purpose, seek autonomy, and pursue other interventions, you may recover your energy in due time. Address workloads and clarify priorities. A positive workplace doesn’t mean squeezing your energy. Here are some important points to help you bring your best every day:

​One, fix your workload before fixing your attitude. Most of the time, it’s a system and situational. You can’t be motivated if you’re already drowning in non-value-added things. Identify your top priorities. Balance them. Don’t attend or create low-value meetings and formal reports. Do all these with the consent of your boss.

​Two, ask management for a bit of autonomy. Independence is oxygen. Request your boss to empower you in certain things. Ideally, an operations manager is given a great amount of authority and responsibility. More importantly, this lightens the load of your boss. It also doesn’t cost money but gives you energy.

​Three, accept things that you can’t change. But don’t sugarcoat. Acknowledge reality.

Nothing demotivates faster than being forced to think there’s nothing wrong. Surely, there’s something wrong and it’s beyond your control. Just the same, listen without jumping to an instant solution. Sometimes, acceptance could be the motivation that you’re looking for.

​Four, make progress visible to you and others. Burnout happens right away if there’s no improvement. Try breaking down your work into short, winnable milestones. Celebrate completed work, not heroic effort. Show how your work connects to real progress. There’s nothing like momentum to prod motivation.

​Five, identify what work means to your life. As soon as you can discover this, it will help you find a reason to stick around. Most people don’t mind hard work. What they hate is meaningless work. Ask yourself: “If I stopped working, what would happen to me?” Nothing energizes like rediscovering your purpose.

​Six, try recovering or redefining your purpose. Sit back and relax. If necessary, ask for an extended vacation someplace. If you can afford it, go to a foreign country where you can learn the perspective of other cultures. Spend more time with your family. They could help you rediscover why you’re working.

​Seven, review your current pay and perks. If you’re underpaid and overworked, you’ll surely burn out quickly and become disengaged. But be professional in handling this issue with your boss. Identify what you can and cannot fix. Transparency builds trust while silence burns it down.

BOTTOM LINE
​Being demotivated or feeling burned out isn’t a personal failure. It’s a signal that you may be doing it wrong. Pause before looking at drastic options. Again, reset priorities, ask for support, delegate without guilt, and treat your health as a Key Performance Indicator.

​When a manager models recovery, clarity returns, decisions improve, and the team learns that sustainable performance beats heroic exhaustion every time. You can’t motivate yourself by wallowing in your current situation. You can only improve by identifying and removing what’s draining your energy at work.

​If you do that, you’ll bring energy back to life naturally.

Consult your workplace issues for free with Rey Elbo. E-mail [email protected] or DM him on Facebook, LinkedIn, X or via . Anonymity is guaranteed.