Motivating a team isn’t always about bigger budgets, new perks, or benefits that feel out of reach—especially as practices face tighter resources and rising demands. In an interview with Eyecare Business following The Vision Council Executive Summit 2026 in Amelia Island, Florida, keynote speaker David Burkus, DSL, bestselling author and management professor, challenged leaders to focus on what they can control right now: reminding employees that their work matters—and that they matter.

Dr. Burkus also addressed burnout through the lens of capacity management, urging leaders to look beyond quick fixes and instead evaluate workload, role clarity, and team collaboration. From weekly huddles to clearer handoffs, his message was consistent: High-performing teams are built through clarity, care, and intentional leadership.

Here, EB shares key takeaways from the conversation.

Focus on Impact

Practice leaders may feel limited when they can’t offer significant raises because of tight budgets or provide flexible schedules due to the in-person nature of many roles in the eyecare business. While external factors do matter, Dr. Burkus noted that overemphasizing these types of incentives is a common misconception that can limit engagement and growth. He encouraged leaders to focus on prosocial purpose and creating an environment that strengthens internal motivation.

“People want to do work that matters and work for leaders who remind them that they matter,” said Dr. Burkus. “Every leader at every level can take responsibility for the ways in which we talk about and remind people why our work matters.”

Find Eustress Level

Across industries and especially in health care professions, burnout remains a concern. The key is to avoid viewing burnout as a self-care issue (or something employees can simply “bounce back” from) and framing it as a leadership and workload issue rooted in capacity management. Research, Dr. Burkus noted, shows that burnout often arises from a mismatch between demands and the time, skills, and energy available to employees. On the flip side, he highlighted the opposite risk: being “bored out,” or when work becomes too routine.

So, what’s the goal for practice leaders? Find the healthy, productive middle ground known as “eustress,” the level in which team members feel challenged but not overwhelmed.

“For a leader, it’s really about paying attention to our team’s capacity,” he said, urging leaders to take a realistic look at what is being added to staff workloads—and what can be removed. He also cautioned against flashy fixes that fail to address root causes. “'I know things are really, really hard, but I got you a meditation playlist on Spotify.’ That’s not going to work,” he shared.

Instead, Dr. Burkus encouraged leaders to focus on thoughtful workload balancing, so strong performance is not consistently rewarded with even more work.

Host Huddles

Regular team huddles can be a simple but powerful tool for improving clarity and collaboration within a practice. Dr. Burkus emphasized that alignment is not just about setting goals, but about coordinating the daily activities that move those goals forward. He described himself as a huge fan of structured huddles—consistent check-ins where team members share what they have accomplished, what they are prioritizing, and what might block their progress. Rather than functioning as a one-way update from leadership—“This isn’t just the leader reading out the announcements,” he warned—these meetings create space for every team member to report in, identify where support is needed, and better understand how their work connects to others. “You can get a lot of collaborative gains just from a simple, 30-minute huddle once a week,” Dr. Burkus shared, highlighting how even a modest, regularly scheduled sync can reduce confusion, prevent bottlenecks, and strengthen team performance.