If you’ve read my blog before, you know that neuroplasticity is a topic I revisit a lot. It refers to the ability of our brain and nervous system to reprogram themselves based on the repetition of new experiences and thoughts.
What if I told you organizations can adapt their culture in the same way? Just like individuals, organizations wire themselves through repetition—habits, beliefs, communication patterns.
This newsletter explores the plasticity of culture, guiding leaders toward changing their team’s thoughts to change their collective behavior.
Effectively Communicating the “Why”
It’s tough for teams to get on the same page, let alone change their culture, when they don’t know why they’re doing what they’re doing.
Before you even bring your team into the mix, reflect on why your team needs to transform its culture. Is your goal to boost innovation to keep up with rapidly evolving technology? Is it to foster a more empathetic culture to improve retention?
As you chisel out your “why,” pay attention to the language you use. Ask yourself questions like:
- What recurring words or phrases come up when I talk about my team’s culture? Could these patterns indicate a theme I should explore more?
- What emotions are these words evoking? Are these emotions something I want my team members to feel?
- Am I emphasizing the most important takeaways, or could my explanation be more focused?
Coming up with clear, concise, maybe even catchy ways of communicating the purpose of change can be helpful on a neuroscience level. When sentiments are repeated, our brain becomes familiar with them, making it more likely that we’ll think the same sentiment on our own.
Motivating Your Team from Within
It’s one thing to communicate to your team plans for transformation; it’s another to get them on board.
In a paper published in strategy + business: a pwc publication, leadership experts David Rock and Jeffrey Schwartz argue that behaviorism (also known as “the carrot and the stick” approach) is not effective for organizational change, because it is rooted in external (or extrinsic) motivation.
When employees put in effort for the sake of earning rewards and avoiding punishment, they don’t stay motivated in the long-term. Further, this could lead to unhealthy competitiveness among team members.
Employees who are motivated intrinsically, on the other hand, are more invested in the success of transformation rather than their individual success.
Accept that Change Is Uncomfortable
Think of the everyday tasks you can perform on autopilot, like driving home from work. Since you don’t have to consciously focus on the route, you can focus more on singing along to the radio, following the plot of an audiobook, or getting lost in a daydream. Meanwhile, operating the car and navigating home activates the part of your brain called the basal ganglia. But when the route is unfamiliar, the conscious part of your brain, the prefrontal cortex, is occupied, making it harder to have a relaxing car drive.
That’s why, even if you are introducing change for the benefit of your team, the disruption could cause discomfort in the short term. But with consistency and practice, the new “route” will become more familiar and lead to acceptance and adoption of the change. Along the way, expect that team members will make the occasional wrong turn. It’s best to view these missteps as opportunities for growth and learning and provide consistent support and encouragement throughout the process.
The Art of Focused Consistency
Long-term change isn’t possible without intentional repetition. In their paper, Rock and Schwartz highlight the neuroscience of this phenomenon, noting that, “Over time, paying enough attention to any specific brain connection keeps the relevant circuitry open and dynamically alive.” Eventually, these circuits can become more than just chemical connections but stable, physical changes in the brain’s wiring.
In other words, consciously and repeatedly focusing on something like cultural transformation can rewire your team’s mindset, ultimately leading to positive cultural changes.
As a leader, you can encourage this long-term change through repeated communication about your cultural goals. Find ways to restate them in each team meeting, each email and direct message, each LinkedIn post. By weaving the right messaging into your team’s operations, you can slowly change its collective mindset, making positive change more possible.
Conclusion
With focused, consistent communication, leaders can empower positive long-term changes within their team’s culture.
