Motivation by Urgency, Fear, Unity and Hope
Constantine’s Conundrum
Constantine was standing on the rubble of large stones and marble, some of them already even overgrown into weed on the dirt around them. Cool Mediterranean wind on his face while he was overlooking the crowds gathering towards the rubble. The crowd was composed of ordinary people, civilians that yesterday were interested only in games, wine, and fights over who will win the next chariot race.
But this is all about to change. The year is 447 and Constantine (Flavius Constantinus) was newly appointed prefect of Constantinople and was given an impossible task.
Constantinople is the heart and the capital city of Eastern Roman Empire.
Constantinople and Attila
Attila was ravaging Europe for almost 15 years now, becoming the main enemy of the Roman Empires and most feared one.
Constantinople was most fortified city of late antiquity and perhaps the most fortified and impossible to conquer city of all antiquity and medieval ages.
What made it impossible to conquer were its position and the walls that were protecting it.
But that part of Mediterenean has always been an area prone to earthquakes.
And during that period, in the times when Attila was main fear in Europe, first earthquake hit Constantinople in 437 damaging the wall.
Then another even more powerful earthquake hit the walls in 447 damaging walls beyond its ability to perform its main function: protection in case of a siege. This earthquake damaged large portions of the walls including 57 towers.
Another earthquake hit in early 448 further damaging the walls.
The city was now open. Anyone with slightly larger army could breach the city and perhaps destroy the entire Empire with it.
Atilla was surely up for such task.
This was an alarming situation, as the news of Attila getting ready to come for Constantinople have been arriving and getting more and more credible.
Rome, being divided in 395, at the time consisted of two independent parts: Western Empire and Eastern Empire. Constantinople being capitol of the East.
In 5th century Attila has been ravaging the West for a while now. And Western armies have been exhausted in defending that portion of the empire.
Furthermore the relations between Valentian III (Emperor of the West) and Theodosius II (Emperor of the East) were not so great. So mutual help and cooperation were not expected. East was alone at this moment.
Attila Is Approaching
Then the news of Attila moving towards Constantinople were confirmed. Theodosius sent armies under Arnegisclus from Marcianople to stop the Huns. But it did not work. In the Battle of Utus, Arnegisclus’s forces were defeated and the way for Attila to lay the siege, and perhaps conquer the city now that walls were destroyed, was clear.
Nothing was between Attila and perhaps his most valuable prize: Constantinople.
Constantine’s Solution
Constantine had an impossible task. Wall that it originally was built in 9 years, he had less than 3 months to practically build from scratch. The wall was destroyed beyond its repair in three subsequent earthquakes.
What is Constantine to do?
Who can he engage to complete this task and how to motivate them?
He realized that in the city there were organized groups of people (beyond army, that was not sufficient). He recalled that in the city they have active so called “The Circus Factions”.
Circus factions were crowds of people that organized themselves around one thing only: to cheer in chariot races. Similar to today’s soccer team fan groups (such as fans of e.g. Real Madrid or Juventus etc.)
As a prefect, Constantine had power to gather circus factions and to order them to provide compulsory labor for the city. But would that be sufficient? Can a mob organized only to have fun during chariot races provide efficient labor? Not only efficient, but to participate in the fastest rebuild of the wall in history!?
How can he accomplish that?
How can he motivate them?
How to motivate hedonistic mob into something that requires sacrifice and dedication and does not provide any fun?
He knew he cannot force them, as they are force that would riot and create even more havoc and panic. He cannot pay them, as the city treasury lacks the funds. But even if the funds were available, it is hard to imagine that money alone would give them motivational boost required for such feat.
So what Constantine did?
The only thing he could have done was to create a sense of urgency and even more dramatic: fear.
He communicated with the crowd horrific destiny that was probably awaiting the city and its citizen in case of fall to Attila.
He did not have to persuade the crowd too much, as Attila’s reputation preceded him. Horror stories were present among people of Constantinople.
So the fear, the loss of life they knew it, the great loss looming upon, was the key motivation for the Circus factions.
And it worked. The walls were completed in record of 60 days!
Hearing that the city was again protected by its impenetrable walls, Attila abandoned his plans for besieging the city.
The city was saved.
Apparently uninterested and questionably organized mob completed one of the most complex tasks in history in such record time.
And the motivation was: fear.
Conclusion: Is Fear a Good Motivator?
Now, before we conclude that fear is a great motivator, and that with its presence walls can be rebuilt in record times. Or even that we should even use fear to motivate teams, let’s dig deeper — as such conclusion would be wrong.
It is important to understand in this story that the fear that was motivating crowds was an external fear, and that external threat existed and that threat was substantial.
The imminence of the threat and its potential significantly harmful impact, were surely contributors to the level of the motivation of the crowds.
We are motivated by threat of loss. Loss aversion is greater motivator than potential gains.
But, in this story there is another factor that needs to be taken into consideration.
Although crowds feared Attila, they did not fear Constantine.
They trusted Constantine, they trusted their leader.
So the combination of the external threat, an external fear on one side and the internal cohesion and trust on the other side, created winning combination here.
If the crowds would have feared Constantine, had he not given them hope, vision and courage, the success would have eluded.
The reason why crowds were motivated was the combination of the aversion loss on one side, combined with trust on the others side.
So the conclusion would be: use the opportunities to illustrate the reality of the situation in any crisis, but provide trust, leadership and vision on how to prevail.
