Energy Flows through Culture
Mar 08, 2026
Have you ever launched a development initiative with fanfare only to watch it fizzle six months later?
Were you surprised when your team's momentum stalled despite having all the right resources in place?
You have an energy crisis in your culture that drains talent development before it gains traction. There are two to three energy “sappers” for every energy “zapper” in most organizations.
The Power Grid in Your Culture Has Rolling Blackouts
Think about how deeply energy drain infiltrates your culture:
- You announce new programs that never build enough momentum to change anything.
- Your meetings leave people more exhausted than when they arrived.
- Your best ideas lose steam before they cross the finish line.
Chip Higgins, author of The Bizzics Way, told me on the Work Positive Podcast, "The power grid in a company is the culture. It is what carries that energy across, and you don't need a very big breakage for the thing to stop."
Shift from Draining to Fueling
The traditional approach to culture said, "Push harder when momentum stalls."
The L.E.A.R.N. framework says, "Culture powers talent development. Fix the energy flow first."
Tony O'Driscoll introduced me to the concept of "zappers" and "sappers" on his Work Positive Podcast episode. Zappers energize everyone around them. Sappers drain energy like a slow leak. As Tony's friend Jake Breeden puts it, "Some people walk into a room and light it up. And some people leave a room and light it up."
Chip explained that mass times velocity equals momentum. If you want to go twice as fast, you need four times the energy. The relationship is squared. That is why so many initiatives fail. The energy required to build real momentum gets underestimated.
Tap Individual Energy Sources as an Advantage
What does energy flow look like in practice? Chip told me, "Every person on your team is his or her own energy source that you have an opportunity to tap into for the benefit of the company."
Sara Schaefer shared a powerful question to check energy levels: "On a scale of 1 to 10, where is your energy today?" Then follow with, "What would it take to move you up one point?" This simple shift says: I see you as a whole person, not just a producer of results.
Your L.E.A.R.N. Challenge
Try these three actions this week:
- Check Energy Before Tasks: Before your next team meeting, ask each person where their energy is on a scale of 1 to 10. Then ask what would move them up one point.
- Identify Your Zappers: Notice who lights up the room when they enter. Find ways to amplify their influence across your culture.
- Align Purpose with Aspiration: Ask one team member how their personal goals connect to the organization's mission. Sappers become zappers when individual aspirations align with organizational purpose.
The Work Positive Bottom Line
The best leaders today cultivate energy as a resource rather than consuming it through endless demands and initiatives.
Stop pushing harder when momentum stalls. Start fixing your energy flow so everyone wins the race to develop talent and you L.E.A.R.N. @ Work.
Taken from Dr. Joey's newest book, L.E.A.R.N. @ Work: The Race to Develop Talent.
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