Workplace Wellness that Works: 10 Steps to Infuse Well-Being and Vitality into Any Organization

Step 7Create Meaning(The Engagement Imperative)

When I taught history in an urban high school, my students used to ask, “Why do I need to know this stuff about history?” For a long time, I fired back, “So you can get a good grade.” Or, if I got really frustrated, “You need to pay attention or I'll send you to the principal's office.”

Then, one day, I stopped. I turned the question around. “Well,” I asked, “why do you think we're studying this?” Rather than simply giving the normal “do this—or else” response, I began to go deeper. By turning a one-way question into a collaborative quest for meaning, I discovered that my students started listening more and taking more ownership into looking at what history meant in their own lives.

My initial responses to my students, while understandable, focused on what the lesson in history would get them (or help them to avoid). My initial answers sometimes led to the desired short-term result, namely a student paying attention to what I thought was a brilliant history lecture. Usually, however, this didn't last. What I learned as a teacher is that grades and threats are only part of the motivation package. Encouraging long-lasting motivation has to stem from a place of inquiry and a search for meaning.

This brings us back to our original billion-dollar dilemma: How do we motivate employees to make healthy behavior changes? While many organizations ...