Motivation is the will to do, the urge to achieve goals or the drive to excel. It is concerned with why YOU choose to do one thing over another and with the amount of effort or intensity of action that YOU put into anything you do.
So, what exactly motivates you, or any of us?
The answer to this question is of particular importance to managers and/or leaders. This is because these people need to stimulate active and enthusiastic interest in what their employees/subordinates/followers do. This is important, no doubt.
But aren’t you also a manager? In fact you are a special type of manager. You are in the business of managing your life. Therefore, knowledge of how or what motivates people (and you in particular) is important to all of us. Why?
We all do many things and many of these things you do only because you have to. Take me, for example, I do not do a lot but some of the things that I do are necessary evils: sitting for exams, going to work, studying etc. These are things that I have to do but I do not always want to do. In doing these things, I need to find ways of motivating myself -ways of ensuring that I don’t just do them but I do them well.
This, I believe, may apply to you and everyone else.
Fortunately, a lot of people have studied motivation and presented various theories that critically analyse motivation. You can even use these theories to understand what motivates YOU.
The theories are classified into two:
A) Contact theories-also called ‘need’ theories, they focus on what arouses, sustains and regulates motivation i.e. what particular things motivate people?
These theories are:
a. Maslow: Hierarchy of Needs
b. Herzberg: Two Factor Theory
c. McClleland: Need Based Theory
d. Argyle: Motivational Drives
B) Process theories-also referred to as ‘goal’ theories. They emphasize on the goals and processes by which people are motivated. They attempt to explain and describe how people start, sustain and direct behaviour aimed at the satisfaction of needs or reduction of inner tensions i.e. how does motivation start?
These theories are:
a. Vroom: Expectancy Theory
b. Adam: Equity Theory
c. Handy: Psychological Contracts
C) The yet unclassified Theory X and Theory Y by Douglas McGregor.
As an ACCA student, I got to learn of all these theories and it intrigued me to try and find out what motivates me.
I’ve studied all the theories and found that the one that best describes my situation is McCllelands Need Based Theory.
According to this theory, needs are learnt. Two people may be motivated by different needs. There are three categories of motives and people are drawn to one set of motives more than another.
i. Needs of Achievement
These are needs to attain something according to a certain standard that you either set yourself or someone else sets. There are two extremes:
A strong desire for success
A strong fear of failure
ii. Affiliation Needs
This is the need for a sense of belonging or membership to a group. The concern here is to obtain good personal relationships.
iii. Power
It is the need to influence others and make them behave in a way that you want them to.
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Looking at this, I found that I do crave for both power and affiliation, to a certain degree (don’t we all?), but what really drives me is the need for achievement.
At this point in my life, I have a strong desire for success-I desperately want some of my grand life-plans to succeed. I feel like I am destined for, at least some, greatness.
I have not dealt with all to do with motivation but I guess anyone can only do so much. However, if you want any more information, I’ll gladly answer any questions.
Have a lovely day( or night).