The Secret of Real Motivation

There are many schools of thought behind what actually motivates us, day in and day out. Some theorist’s believe it’s reward, others purpose, some say it’s status, social acceptance and pressure. But, is motivational universal? Is the driving force that will motivate you, motivate me? Or do all of us have our own unique triggers?
What do you think?
What motivates you?
Here is an article from Forbes, to help answer some of those questions.

What really motivates us?

Several books and studies have been published recently on the source of motivation and productivity in the work place. Here are a few sources of motivation theses studies have found:

No One-Size-Fits-All Principle
There is no universal motivation that works for everyone. According to “Do You Play To Win- Or Not Lose?” published in the Harvard Business Review, by Heidi Grant Halverson, a social psychologist and author, and E. Tory Higgins, the director of the Motivation Science Center at Columbia University, there is a way of grouping people into types based on personality traits that does not predict performance: promotion focused or prevention focused. Promotion focused people have goals that are focused on professional progress and rewards. They are eager, work quickly, take chances and dream big. Prevention focused people see their goals as responsibilities and fixate on staying safe. They are careful, thorough and not particularly creative.
The study says that a person’s goals are based on these personality traits because often a person recognizes their strengths (or weaknesses) and purses a career path that plays to those strengths. Identifying your own type should help you cultivate your strengths and compensate for your weaknesses.

The Really Successful Aren’t Working For The Money

In a TedxRiodelaPlata talk, Dan Ariely, a behavioral economist, discusses several studies that he has conducted and studies conducted by others about what makes people productive and happy. One of the studies had Harvard undergraduates give speeches and participate in mock interviews with experimenters who nodded and smiled to their responses, or shook their heads, furrowed their eyebrows and crossed their arms.

Read the rest here.

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