The National Security Council proposed a series of easing measures last Friday night. These give the people perspective, although their implementation is conditional and hard choices had to be made. By necessity, our social contacts will be at a low ebb for some time to come. More than ever it comes down to perseverance during this "people's marathon," where it is crucial that the government motivates, inspires, and connects the population. Without sufficient and quality motivation, the population begins to flout the measures. Without a connecting narrative, the population's well-being is in danger of deteriorating. But the motivation barometer, which since March 19 at UGent has been mapping citizens' motivation and well-being on a daily basis, shows that fatigue is setting in. In a first part, we give an overview of these results, while in a second part we take a closer look at the (de)motivating communication style of the government.
