Team Morale Low? 3 High-Impact Ways to Rebuild Trust and Motivation

We are living and working in unprecedented times. We are being called to work hard in order to keep our jobs. We are losing our jobs. We are told that it’s a gift to have children, and then we are in a society that actively makes it challenging to navigate the world of having and raising children. 

We are deeply engrossed in minute-by-minute updates about what is happening in our country and maybe 25 other countries right now (and we all know that’s just the tip of the iceberg), then we face the deluge of social media where we watch friends, family, influencers, and a lot of marketing show us what they are up to on a minute-by-minute basis—including everything we “need” to buy to achieve the ultimate goals. 

We are surrounded by stimulation, to-do lists, interpersonal dynamics, and ever-changing environments (each meeting, each project) around us.

We have never been exactly here before. And yet, even amidst the complexity and challenges, there is a lot to be said for what we do know. Thankfully, we have decades of research in human psychology, organizational behavior, and team dynamics that point to practical strategies to support individuals and teams during times like these.

Team morale is such an interesting area to measure because it’s about collective attitudes. Morale reflects employee satisfaction and emotional outlook—not just on what’s happening now, but also on what’s possible. It’s also closely tied to whether teams feel connected to a shared purpose. When morale is strong, so is cohesion, and teams become aligned in a way that propels the organization's mission and vision forward.

Here are three practical ways leaders can support and elevate team morale during turbulent times:

1. Increase Autonomy and Flexibility

Research consistently shows that giving employees more control over how, when, and where they do their work boosts morale, productivity, and engagement. A 2023 Gallup study found that employees who have flexible work arrangements are significantly less likely to experience burnout and more likely to feel a sense of well-being (Gallup, 2023).

Workplace practices for autonomy and flexibility:

• Let employees set their own core working hours.
  Working with your team, find out what people's ideal core working hours are. Core working hours are the hours each person agrees they are more available for shared meetings, to respond in shared communication spaces, etc. Outside of those core hours, everyone is still working, but there are fewer expectations for responses to emails, chats, and meetings. Core working hours are built into the day to allow employees to focus on being available to their colleagues while also accommodating caregiving and other needs. This enables them to have focused project time later in the evening, if preferred, when more people are offline, providing the ideal time for employees to focus. Core working hours may be something that are set on a weekly or monthly basis.

• Hybrid or remote work options where possible.
  In our increasingly digital and remote work world, there are also benefits to in-person work, which is why a hybrid schedule could be ideal for supporting employee wellbeing. Giving staff the autonomy to build a hybrid schedule offers individuals the flexibility they need to build work-life balance, and it enables them to put their best foot forward at work. Hybrid work is not only something that many people prefer, but the lack of it  can cause people to look for other jobs. Disproportionately, those who will leave to find new work are BIPOC, LGBTQ+. women, nonbinary people, and employees with disabilities. By offering hybrid work, data suggests that it can help build a more diverse and inclusive work culture (Indeed.com 2024).

• Provide clarity on deliverables but flexibility in how they’re achieved.
  There are many ways to arrive at the same destination. Make clear the deliverables and give employees the ability to navigate how they get there. Yes, it can be helpful to include examples, or past knowledge that can be shared, connect them with people who could support them, and share their own experience, but when it comes down to it, let your employees navigate how they get to the same outcome that you might have done differently. If we create a culture where there is only one right way, we contribute to a culture that prevents our employees from truly flourishing. Give your employees the tools they need to embark on the journey they require, and establish goalposts and connection points along the way to ensure success.
  
  

2. Make Mental Health Resources Visible and Normalize Using Them

It's not enough to have benefits. People need to be reminded, encouraged, and supported to use them. A 2022 McKinsey report found that while 71% of employers increased mental health benefits, only a fraction of employees were aware of or utilizing them (McKinsey & Company, 2022).

A few ways to put ideas into practice:

• Highlight mental health resources regularly in team meetings or internal newsletters

• Normalize conversations about signs of burnout, access to or utilization of therapy, and ways of tending to our emotional and physical well-being. If you’re interested in workshops that support human-centered healing and growth for staff, I highly encourage you to check out Lumos Transforms.

• Partner with HR and staff to build a culture where the resources are known and easy to access. Sometimes we don’t know what’s working and what’s not working with our internal communication. In this case, it could involve bringing a small task force together to identify communication and knowledge gaps and ways to improve communication so people are getting what they need or know how to access it. One person conduct some informational interviews across sections of the company to better understand staff members’ current experiences accessing resources. Someone else might audit the website to better understand how someone would find or access the resources and what might be missing or identify areas that could use attention. Another person might examine the data to gain a better understanding of which services are being accessed and how often. All of this information can then be used to create a road map for addressing gaps, improving communication, and increasing the relevance and use of the services provided.
  

3. Create Micro-Moments of Connection

Harvard Business Review has written extensively about the power of psychological safety and belonging in the workplace (HBR, 2020). During uncertain times, leaders can nurture these conditions by creating consistent, small opportunities for check-ins and recognition.

A few ways to put ideas into practice:

• Begin meetings with a brief “pulse check” or well-being round.

• Offer spontaneous praise and recognition for effort, not just outcomes.

• Encourage peer-to-peer appreciation channels (like Slack shout-outs or Kudos boards).

Team morale isn’t a one-and-done initiative, but rather something that requires ongoing commitment and reflection. If you'd like help designing strategies to support your team, implementing mental wellness programs, or rethinking employee engagement during these uncertain times, I’d love to support you.

Reach out to me directly or connect with me on LinkedIn or schedule an appointment directly with me

Together, let’s build more human-centered workplaces.