By Petra Matern Russell, Executive Coach & Co-Founder, PricklyPear Consulting
Some of the brightest minds on your team might be quietly unraveling—not because they lack talent or drive, but because their internal wiring doesn’t respond to motivation the way most systems are built.
As an executive coach working with gifted and neurodivergent professionals across tech, aerospace, and automotive, I’ve learned that motivation isn’t a matter of pushing harder. It’s a matter of tuning in more intelligently. And often, that starts by unlearning what we think we know about performance.
The people I work with aren’t unmotivated. They’re misaligned. And when managers miss that, it’s not just productivity that suffers—it’s trust, innovation, and retention.
Here’s what I’ve learned by listening to the people most systems overlook.
Motivation Doesn’t Always Look Motivated
Time and again, my clients describe feeling judged, exhausted, or misunderstood. They’re not opposed to hard work—they’re just reacting to environments that reward the wrong things.
“I care deeply about the work—but they keep rewarding visibility, not outcomes.” “Public praise actually raises my anxiety. It makes me want to do less, not more.” “If I’m constantly masking, I’m spending a lot of energy on appearing okay—instead of actually being okay.”
The challenge? Most of them don’t have a formal diagnosis. They’re flying under the radar while holding up entire projects, quietly burning out behind high-performance facades.
What we call “motivation problems” are often unmet needs in disguise – frustrations about not being seen, not being heard for who they really are.
Motivation Isn’t a Mindset — It’s a Signal
Motivation is less about effort and more about access. If your reward system doesn’t register the incentives being offered, no amount of coaching, goal-setting, or feedback will move the needle.
Across coaching conversations, I’ve noticed five internal reward systems that show up frequently in neurodivergent and highly gifted individuals. Each offers a clue for how to better engage, support, and retain exceptional talent.
1. The Social Reward System
This is the dominant system in most workplaces. But many autistic professionals don’t find social bonding or public praise energizing—in fact, they often find it draining.
Instead of assuming praise motivates, ask how they prefer to be acknowledged. Many will prefer thoughtful, one-on-one recognition tied to results.
2. The “Rightness” Reward System
Doing something with integrity, elegance, or precision is deeply rewarding to many gifted and autistic thinkers.
Invite them into complex challenges. Let them raise the bar. Trust that their drive comes from alignment, not applause.
3. The Curiosity System
Especially common in ADHD profiles, this system thrives on novelty, discovery, and stimulation. Routine tasks can feel like motivational dead zones.
Give autonomy. Offer variety. Let them rotate, experiment, and energize their own work cycles.
4. The Self-Preservation System
Many neurodivergent professionals are skilled at performing through exhaustion. But burnout isn’t a future risk—it’s often a current state.
Support recovery. Build in pacing. Ask what recharges them—and respect the answer.
5. The Justice & Meaning System
Values-driven individuals are motivated by fairness, purpose, and impact. When work feels hollow or misaligned, disengagement is swift.
Connect their role to something bigger. Invite their perspective on how the system could improve. They’re not being difficult—they’re holding the compass.
Emotional Safety Isn’t Fluff — It’s Infrastructure
What unlocks these reward systems isn’t charisma or charisma. It’s emotional safety.
Without it, even the most engaging work feels unsafe. With it, everything from intrinsic motivation to innovative thinking becomes accessible.
Here’s what emotional safety does:
- Reduces cognitive load by easing social vigilance and sensory overwhelm
- Validates autonomy and encourages authentic communication
- Enables deep focus on areas of natural interest
- Encourages experimentation without fear of judgment
- Heals the wear-and-tear of masking and micro-misunderstandings
If you want sustainable motivation, you don’t start with a performance plan—you start with permission to be real.
No Diagnosis Required
Here’s the part we miss most often: Many neurodivergent employees don’t know they’re neurodivergent. Or they do, and they’re afraid to say it.
But you don’t need a formal label to start a better conversation. Try this:
“What kind of work energizes you most?” “When do you feel most supported—or most drained?” “How do you like to receive feedback, and how can I best help you thrive here?”
You won’t just get a better answer. You’ll get a better relationship.
Motivation Isn’t Missing. It’s Mismatched.
The idea that some people just “aren’t motivated” is outdated. More often, they’re motivated by something your system wasn’t designed to see.
When you align reward with how someone actually experiences meaning, you don’t have to force performance. You just have to get out of its way.
That’s not just inclusive leadership. That’s the leadership that builds cultures people never want to leave.
At PricklyPear Consulting, we help organizations unlock the full contribution of gifted and neurodiverse talent—by listening first, and designing better second. If you’re ready to rethink how reward works on your team, let’s connect.
