Motivation

What motivates us? Dan Pink’s presentation on the subject is very interesting. He discusses a research study conducted by highly regarded economists that compares the size of a monetary reward to performance. They concluded that people perform physical tasks better as the monetary rewards increases. However, higher monetary rewards lead to lower performance as it relates to cognitive tasks.

This makes sense to me. Most people will physically work hard to gain a profit.  But when given a choice to mentally rise to the challenge, people would rather do so on their own terms. Providing a monetary reward can make it feel like your thoughts are for sale. It can feel like you are being manipulated. People want a sense of self. They want a sense of purpose. A sense of purpose provides fulfillment. People are motivated to perform cognitive tasks when they can connect it to a sense of mastery, autonomy, or a greater purpose.

Check out this very cool presentation… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6XAPnuFjJc

Coach Randal Suozzo, CPC, ELI-MP