Tweet

What's Your Motivation?

Written by: David Bohl

Article Overview: It's become a joke to wonder "what's my motivation?" like an actor, when we have something in front of us to do and just can't seem to get it done. We may complain that we just can't get motivated to do something.

What's Your Motivation?

It's become a joke to wonder "what's my motivation?" like an actor, when we have something in front of us to do and just can't seem to get it done. We may complain that we just can't get motivated to do something.

What we usually mean by this is just that we don't want to do it right then, or maybe it all.

Motivation is not just "wanting" to do something.

In fact, motivation is the force behind doing something, including the desire, the need, the energy, and the actual doing of it.

Interviewers often ask job applicants about their motivation, whether they're self-motivated or "self-starters." The correct answer, of course, is yes.

In fact, no one is motivated by just one thing, and what motivates us at one time may not be very motivating at all at another time.

For example, if you're taking a course in calculus, you may be motivated to study for my test by the fact that you need to get an A on that test in order to insure an A in the class. However, if you're taking a class in a subject you're more confident in, say contemporary events, you may find it hard to study for a test because you know that you have made As on every test so far, and that you do not have to do as well on this test.

Often in our jobs we think we're motivated to work by the money we make, but often we could make just as much, or more, at another job.

What motivates us at work may actually be a love of our work, or a need to please our boss, or a desire to finish this project so we can move on to something we enjoy more.

Because motivations vary so much, it is sometimes hard to feel motivated to do something, whether that is to complete a project at work or attend a family function like a wedding or anniversary party.

The reason it's hard to find our motivation in these cases is that we don't want to do whatever it is, and we don't have a strong sense that we will get something positive out of it or suffer consequences for not doing it, that we feel "motivated."

Relying on a "feeling" of motivation in order to do what's in front of us to do is not the best way to take care of our obligations.

Being a responsible adult sometimes means doing things we don't want to do or don't feel motivated to do, or finding a reasonable alternative to doing them now by postponing or changing our plans.

To see how motivation works in your own life:

* Write down your motivation for each action as you take it
* When you don't feel motivated to do something, think about what you are motivated to do
* Examine what makes you want to do or not do things over the course of the next week

Related Articles
  For Good SEO You Must Go Back To Basics
  Powerful Relationship Selling
  Why Motivation Malfunctions at Midlife
  5 Ways to Motivate Your Salespeople
  Motivation with consequences

Article Tags: anniversary party, boss, calculus, consequences, correct answer, desire, interviewers, job applicants, jobs, joke, love, money, motivation, motivations, self starters



Related Forum Posts
Re: Hello from a San Diego-based marketer - Welcome Aaron! Whats the next stage for your business? Ben
Re: New, young entrepreneur - Congrats H20ismyLife! Do you have a website so we can see any of your work? Whats the next step for you?
Re: How To Stay Motivated In Your Business - Motivation spurs people into actions every time. When there is no motivation the reason to move forward seems lost. Thanks so much for this post Evan
Re: Finding AND Keeping Good People - Employee retention or as you mention “Keeping the Good People” is one of the biggest challenges for any growing business. It takes a huge effort from the entrepreneur’s end. I can come up with the following when it comes to KEEPing the good people- 1. Motivation of the employees 2. Recognition of the needs of the employees 3. Activities to make the employees feel valuable towards the organization 4. Make benefits more accessible 5. Offer profit sharing incentives 6. Create clear career paths at the company 7. Consider telecommuting, job sharing and other flexible working arrangements 8. Incentives are essential and they don't have to be huge 9. Have other managers praise an employee's work 10. Be sensitive to the balance between work and private life
Re: What Franchisors Want From Franchisees - Kevin - Here's a rough summary of your questions. Your credit score - below 600's and you're considered high risk. Best if you are in the high 600's and above... if you're in 700's you're golden. Franchisers want to see people who can relate to other people. If you are very shy or you dislike working with the public, then this can count against you. Even if you can fake it... why would you bother? Great customer service is a benchmark any business owner should strive for... Financing arrangements will vary - if you can show that you have 20% above all of your start-up costs, this would help. The more assets you own the better. Motivation can be expressed in HOW you plan the start-up. It's all in the details. Are you taking the opportunity seriously? Are you learning and studying business attributes like marketing, salesmanship, and customer service? Demonstrate that you are motivated. Subscribing to their system would be about following their rules. If you have a maverick mentality... then consider starting your own business where you make the rules... not a franchise. Franchisers have different ways in how they evaluate their prospects. Your professional background or history can play an important role in the final evaluation. This is really about common sense...


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Live To Work Or Work To Live?

Severance and Separation Agreements

Ten Steps to Go from Idea to E-book for Sale

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.