The research-backed way to go from powerless to proactive at work

New research from the University of Florida suggests that people who feel powerless at work can overcome their tendency to remain passive by simply reframing their situation as an opportunity rather than a constraint.

According to the study, employees who feel powerless often get trapped in a self-reinforcing cycle: lacking power makes them less likely to take initiative, which prevents them from gaining more influence and power in their organization.

“Powerlessness is usually associated with being submissive and diminutive, and this is a problem because it creates a self-reinforcing cycle for powerless people,” explained Trevor Foulk, Associate Professor at the Warrington College of Business and co-author of the study. “In other words, powerless people often don’t engage in agentic behaviors, but it’s agentic behaviors that help you become more powerful, so this is kind of a problem.”