By Isabelle St-Jean, RSW, ACC

In The Charge: Activating the 10 Human Drives That Make You Feel Alive, author Brandon Burchard brings an interesting focus on our five most basic drives —control, competence, congruence, caring and connection.  Grounding, these drives help us meet our basic needs.

However, the five forward drives—change, challenge, creative expression, contribution and consciousness—are the precursors to living with game-changing enthusiasm which in turn fosters creativity and innovation.

Burchard affirms that “creative expression is the grand driver and amplifier of satisfaction in life”.  Knowing this, can we counteract the tendency of some of our workplaces to inadvertently crowd out creativity by increasing standardization and conformity?

Indeed numerous workplace surveys indicate that employees often cry out for more channels through which they can contribute their unique insights and ideas.   What if award programs were to be developed among teams for innovative ideas of practical value?

Located in Vancouver, SAP Labs Canada is a good example of this kind of workplace.  Managing director Kirsten Sutton explained that as a global company in competitive marketplace, SAP Labs Canada has initiated numerous programs to stimulate and reward innovation among employees.

One such example is the quarterly Passion Award—presented to a manager who goes beyond in demonstrating one of the company’s six core passions: success, accountability, professionalism, integrity, teamwork and trust.  SAP also has a fellowship program that enables high-performers to take on a six month assignment in another discipline or department.  This generates new levels of enthusiasm, a stimulating sense of re-engagement, and a great deal of out-of-the-box thinking.

What’s more, SAP does its best to help employees counter stress while fostering the conditions conducive to innovation. Yoga classes, on-site wellness, fitness programs, “Lunch on Us” and flexible hours are among popular initiatives.  It may seem like a daunting challenge for some companies to emulate SAP’s forward-thinking workplace culture.  It might seem beyond the scope of the workplace to others. Such programs and thinking are increasingly available, and fundamentally effective in reducing workplace stressors.

However, our greatest ability to reduce stress in the workplace stems from within. The challenges that mindfulness presents are as real as the moment itself, but ultimately exponential in their rewards.

As Burchard would say, challenge is the most powerful drive for advancing our lives and for keeping ourselves inspired as we embrace compelling visions while taping new solutions at work, in life.

Professional speaker, author, life and business coach, Isabelle St-Jean, RSW, ACC, brings over 20 years of communication, leadership and personal effectiveness experience to her audiences, readers and clients.

(PeopleTalk Spring 2013)