Why organizations that chase the absence of threat end up manufacturing more of it — and what to aim at instead.
The modern West has removed more violence from ordinary life than any society in recorded history. Safer cars, safer factories, safer food, safer streets, safer childhoods. By the standard of “how likely is something bad to happen to me today,” we are the most fortunate people who have ever lived.
For years, corporate wellness programs and leadership seminars have fundamentally misunderstood human motivation. The prevailing narrative treats dopamine as a dual-edged sword—a chemical that must be constantly triggered through gamification, high-stakes deadlines, and financial incentives to keep employees productive. When those employees inevitably burn out, dopamine is blamed as the culprit behind their lack of focus or their retreat into the mindless distraction of doomscrolling.
Dopamine is often treated as the cure for all things motivational in the internet influencer sphere.