There is a silent phenomenon that eats away at organizations. A phenomenon that makes no noise, that does not create a visible crisis, but that gradually extinguishes teams’ energy, boldness and creativity.
This phenomenon is learned helplessness.
I came across this term in Philippe Silberzahn’s latest book, Tracer sa voie dans l’incertitude. I couldn’t understand how people could put up with the unbearable, why they no longer dared, why they accepted, tolerated or no longer rebelled.
- facing the absurd application of an approach,
- facing the stubborn will to apply at all costs an obscure process,
- facing the fatalistic acceptance of what is not a consensus,
- facing respect for appearances at the expense of substance,
- facing surface consensus despite deep disagreement.
Learned helplessness was the key I had been looking for. Everything stems from control’ or rather from the absence of control a person can exert. If someone believes they have no influence on the outcome, and that control lies outside them, then over the years they will internalize and normalize it. These people will no longer see it as a problem but as their reality, something they must accommodate.
Many managers experience this without naming it.
- They tried.
- They proposed.
- They led projects.
- They defended their teams.
And then, one day, they realized their efforts no longer changed anything.
So, they stopped trying.
Not out of weakness.
Out of adaptive intelligence.
When a manager gives up, it is never voluntary
Learned helplessness arises in environments where:
- decisions are made elsewhere,
- rules pile up without logic,
- silos become borders,
- processes matter more than meaning,
- appearance takes precedence over reality,
- façade consensus replaces sincere debate.
In these contexts, even the best eventually ask themselves: “What’s the point?”
And on that day, the organization loses far more than a gesture or an idea.
- It loses a voice.
- It loses a conscience.
- It loses a leader.
You are not alone
If you recognize yourself in these lines, know one essential thing:
what you are experiencing is not a personal flaw.
It is a human mechanism’ documented, predictable, and above all… reversible.
Many managers live this in silence. They think they are the only ones who doubt, who feel powerless, who have lost the desire to fight for decisions that already seem written.
Rekindling the flame: where to start
First: become curious again
My compass: curiosity transforms more than criticism.
It is so easy to judge. In reality, to survive and move quickly, we judge everything, all the time. It’s good or it’s bad. This constant categorization reduces our uncertainty: what we experience or see is immediately placed in one of those two boxes.
How to detect judgment?
Think about how many times in a day you tell yourself: “that’s good,” “that’s bad,” “good,” “bad.”
Each time those words appear, you are already in judgment.
At your next meeting, when you hear one of those words’ or catch yourself thinking it’ ask yourself:
What am I not hearing because I’m taking this shortcut?
Imagine: instead of explaining why something is “not good” or “not correct,” you ask an open question to explore and understand. Let yourself be surprised: you will discover a new angle, a new perspective.
When we stop judging, we begin to understand again. And when we understand, we can finally appreciate other points of view and, together, make better decisions.
Second: open the silos
Recognize where you make decisions and recognize where you don’t give others a chance to speak.
Very often, we see what we lack and forget what we have.
In strongly matrixed organizations, when we forget that we can influence others, we defend our silo. And sometimes that defense blinds us to others’ perspectives, which drastically reduce the group’s creativity.
By changing that,
- you open your silo.
- You encourage understanding of other viewpoints.
- You enrich your decision‑making.
With this posture, you naturally encourage others to seek your perspective.
You become a role model.
And this approach spreads peer to peer, without directives or injunctions.
It is a collective decision: a will to understand, to discover, so as to make better decisions together.
But for this to work, fear must be overcome.
- Fear of being judged.
- Fear of not understanding.
- Fear of being told you’re wrong.
And yet, there is a simple truth to remember: no one on earth understands everything.
We like to tell ourselves otherwise, to believe it, but no one has total understanding.
That is precisely why we need multidisciplinary groups: to build, together, a more complete understanding than any isolated individual can have.
Third: take back control
- Recognize your collective successes.
- Recognize your influence.
- Recognize how your contribution leads to a better solution.
Do it as a team.
Create rituals to acknowledge it.
Childish? No. Human.
We all need recognition.
This need differs for each of us, shaped by our history, culture and experiences.
It’s up to you to define what works for your team.
Recognizing collective successes reminds everyone that they matter.
It strengthens perceived influence, and therefore the desire to act.
It nourishes trust, engagement and the quality of decisions.
Fourth: be patient
Taking back influence does not happen in the snap of a finger.
But it always begins with an inner movement, tiny, almost imperceptible:
- rediscover the meaning of what you do,
- reclaim your power to influence, even where you thought you no longer had any,
- celebrate small win, those proofs that action still matters,
- relearn to choose, even within constrained frameworks,
- hear your own voice again and notice that it can still carry.
This is not a heroic path.
It is a human one.
A simple conviction
Learned helplessness is not a fatality.
It is a signal.
A call to reinvent how we work, decide and collaborate.
And you do not have to walk that path alone.
Complementary reading: Team Cohesion – having debate
Coaching or Mentoring: Your Choice, Your Growth
I’m Franck Dervault, drawing on years of professional experience and now advancing toward certification as a coach. I offer two distinct paths:
- Coaching to help you unlock your own potential through reflection, presence, and guided discovery.
- Mentoring to share lessons, strategies, and insights from my career so you can navigate challenges with confidence.
Whichever path you choose, my goal is the same: to help you realize that you are wiser than you think, with immense potential waiting to be unlocked.
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