In general, human beings are driven by two internal forces – what we think and how we feel.
While thinking tends to be more objective and feeling is more subjective, both serve to drive our behaviours. Motivation is the one key behaviour influenced by our thinking and feeling.
A popular definition of Motivation which I like is defined as ‘the set of reasons that drives one to engage in a particular behaviour’.
So, when someone says ‘I’m not motivated’ – they are saying that they either don’t feel like doing something or that they don’t find any reason to do that thing – i.e., either the feeling or the thinking is holding them back.
As humans, we tend to either be motivated by the desire to avoid pain or the desire to obtain a gain.
The need to avoid pain or to obtain a gain can work well in differing circumstances and therefore, neither are wrong or right.
Take for example a successful investor – her goal is to make money (the gain), however, she may go about it by avoiding pain, i.e. avoid making risky investments.
Imagine how much better off we would all be, if we could truly understand what drives us – i.e. our motivations.
Imagine if we had a handle on our thinking and feeling as well as knowing our motivational drivers.
The consequence of knowing our motivational drivers would mean we could have clarity and a sense of purpose and thereby design a roadmap to achieving success, instead of simply hoping for the best.
This is possible if we take the time to understand why we do what we do – in other words, understanding our motivational drivers.
The tell-tale signs of low or poor motivation
How do you know if your level of motivation is low or even non-existent?
Typically, people with low motivational drivers experience the following:
- They don’t have a strong driving force in their lives, i.e. the ‘Why’ – instead, they live life on autopilot, hoping for the best.
- Work life tends to be unfulfilling – as a result, many people are un-inspired by their work and are merely in it for the monthly paycheck
- Wishing away 5 days or your life for 2 – in other words, you live for the weekend
- The single aim in life is looking forward to retirement
The importance of knowing your Motivational Drivers
As mentioned above, you can choose to merely live your life being dictated to by outside forces or you can design your life and choose how to live it.
The difference between the two is knowing what drives you – your motivational drivers.
And when you do know what drives you, you have clarity on;
- Making better career and life decisions
- Knowing how your motivation is likely to change over time
- How your current work role is or isn’t fulfilling your core career drivers
- How to develop better life and leadership skills
- Achieving greater fulfillment in life and in work
- Actively setting your life direction
So, stop and think! Right now – do I know what truly gets me going? What gets me out of bed every morning? Why do I behave the way I do?
If you’re struggling to clearly identify what drives you, there is a quicker, more accurate way to find out, cutting out bias and guesswork.
In our next Blog, we discuss motivation in more detail and offer you an amazingly accurate assessment to find out your own primary motivators and start building your life of success.
