At HR Optimisation, I’ve always advocated the role of personal responsibility and accountability when it comes to engagement.  In doing so, I am not in any way abdicating the role of the organisation – it’s a given that companies should remain focused on creating a culture where people can thrive.

But if all else is equal, and the company does all the right things, employees have to understand that their mindset will play a critical role in how they feel at work.

I believe people need to be open to being engaged, and ideally, they need to understand the mindset traits which are more likely to facilitate engagement at work.

A recent study by Leadership IQ has revealed exactly which traits we need to work on, to develop our ‘self-engagement’ and ensure we have the right mindset.

During the study of over 11,000 employees, insight on employees’ Self-Engagement was gathered (i.e. their optimism, resilience, proactivity, assertiveness, ambition, etc.). Their model of self-engagement involves what they call 18 Outlooks, and in summary, reflects the extent to which employees have personal control. The questions were “designed to understand the role that employees themselves play” and included items such as:

– “I expect that more good things will happen to me than bad things”.
– “The tough times I’ve had in my career have helped me to grow and improve”.
– “I find something interesting in every task/project I do”.

Predictably, the findings revealed that our mind-set at work plays a significant role in our personal levels of engagement. What was interesting though, was that the research found that often, self-engagement is more critical than other engagement enablers, such as the role of the line manager.

The research found the following elements all played a significant role in explaining engagement at work:

  1. Optimism– the study found that having an optimistic outlook explains 30% of an employee’s inspiration at work. This finding makes sense when viewed through the lens of positive psychology. We know that an optimistic mindset can protect against a downward spiral, as well as reduce levels of anxiety.
  2. Having an Internal Locus of Control – this is when an employee believes that they control their successes and failures, and it is not down to luck but hard work. The study found an internal locus of control explained 26% of an employee’s inspiration at work. Again, this result is not actually that surprising: studies have demonstrated time and again that people with a high internal locus of control experience more career success, better health, less anxiety and lower stress.
  3. Resilience– being resilient e.g. coping well when things get tough, explained 25% of an employee’s inspiration at work. We know that resilience is a key skill for overall wellbeing, so it makes sense that it would play a role here. Being resilient means being able to bounce-back from setbacks, and cope when things don’t go the way you had hoped.
  4. Assertiveness– high assertiveness was found to explain 23% of a worker’s employee engagement. Being high in assertiveness means being able communicate effectively, and clearly express needs, views, and boundaries. Research has found that assertiveness is often correlated with higher levels of self-esteem, and healthy assertiveness skills can even reduce conflicts and aggressiveness in the workplace.
  5. Meaning in your job – finding something interesting in the work you do, explains 24% of an employee’s inspiration at work. People who find meaning in their work are more inspired and more likely to stay with their employer, more likely to give their best effort at work, and more likely to recommend their employer to others.

Whilst the study found that managers play a significant role in engagement, the link was not as strong as the elements cited above, but it’s not a case of either/ or – both are required. We have always known that an individual’s mindset has a role to play, but the research has provided further clarity, indicating where to focus our efforts.

The elements outlined here can all be developed and taught. They are not fixed. In conclusion, we can support employees to develop their own self-engagement. This insight can be integrated into our engagement strategies and coaching practice via the inclusion of interventions which seek to build self-engagement.

If you are interested in developing the ‘engagement mindset’ of your employees or coaching to help improve your own engagement mindset I would love to hear from you

Hannah Powell

Credits to PeopleLab and Leadership IQ.