NBC News and The Washington Post reported on a cluster of side effects from GLP-1 drugs being called “Ozempic personality” — a reduction in drive and motivation to seek activities users once enjoyed. One in eight American adults is currently on a GLP-1 drug, according to a November 2025 KFF Health Tracking Poll. GLP-1 receptors are distributed throughout the brain’s emotional and motivational centers, including the dopamine pathways that drive effort and reward-seeking. Derek Daniels, PhD at the University at Buffalo, says in animal models these drugs “turn down almost any motivated behavior that we can imagine.”

Soren Kaplan breaks down the direct business implications: a meaningful share of the workforce is operating with a neurologically recalibrated motivation system, and the recognition programs, team rituals, and incentive structures most organizations rely on were designed without that in mind. University of Michigan neuroscientist Kent Berridge’s distinction between “liking” and “wanting” explains the mechanism: GLP-1 drugs appear to reduce the wanting signal — the dopamine-driven drive that makes a bonus feel worth competing for and a team celebration feel worth attending. Swiss chocolatier Lindt’s 2025 purchase data from GLP-1 households showed a “less is more” shift already appearing in consumer behavior.

The episode covers three leadership actions: auditing whether recognition programs rely on dopamine triggers or intrinsic motivators, redesigning team rituals to include non-food-centered alternatives that speak to meaning and purpose, and asking employees what actually resonates rather than running the same motivational playbook for everyone.

View original on Inc. Magazine: Ozempic Might Be Making Your Team Less Driven. Here’s the Science

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