What makes you get out of bed every morning?
In the autobiography of Anthony Trollope - an acclaimed English novelist of the Victorian era - he describes how every day of his adult life he sat at his desk at 5:30 am sharp, without fail. In this way he managed to advance in his literary work, without being interrupted; afterwards, he got ready for breakfast and world affairs. He never allowed any tolerance with himself, nor with the boy who brought him the coffee, to whom he paid 5 pounds for the task. It was thanks to: that boy who never failed him, to his great determination and above all to the great motivation that his passion for writing gave him, that he managed to be one of the most recognized authors in the English language with 47 novels, several short stories and some travel books.
What is Motivation about?
In psychology, Motivation is defined as the process that initiates, guides and maintains our behavior when it is goal oriented. In general, Motivation can be defined as: “having reasons to do something”; it is the reason why we act and do different things in life (like stopping every day at 5:30 am). Motivation is present in simple things, like when we drink a glass of water because our motive is to quench our thirst; even deeper decisions such as when we study a postgraduate degree because our motive is to continue our personal development and achieve excellence.
People are better at what we do when we are committed to it…
To understand why it is sometimes easier to commit and stay motivated with some challenges or projects, you must first understand that there are 4 different types of Motivation. The first is the Extrinsic Motivation, this occurs when an external reward is expected for the work or task (money, pay, bonus); The second type is Intrinsic Motivation when the reward is the delight of the task itself, because it represents for us something of interest, challenge, meaning or learning; the third is Interpersonal Motivation which has to do with social influence, recognition, acceptance and a sense of belonging; and the fourth, the most powerful of all, is Personal Motivation, which has to do with our values and priorities in life.Personal Motivation is defined by our priorities and how you are, they give meaning and purpose to our actions and guide us in the decisions we make in our career, relationships and family life.
How can I activate my Motivation?
The most effective Motivation, the one that works in the long term and generates the commitment required to achieve successful results is the one that is generated when we manage to combine in some way the 4 types of Motivation. Regarding Extrinsic Motivation, a fair remuneration must be sought or negotiated (it is not always money), which allows us to concentrate on the other levels of motivation; Regarding Intrinsic and Interpersonal Motivation, it is good to remember that tasks or work become much more attractive when we feel that we are contributing to something important that in one way or another improves the lives of others; That is why it is important to look for a job or task that really fulfills us and where our contribution can be recognized in some measure.Regarding Personal Motivation, what the experts suggest is to order our own life based on our priorities and our values; and act consistently once we've established them. As Stephen Covey said about living personal values: "Before you climb the ladder of success, make sure you are leaning on the right wall."
Source
How to Motivate Creative People (including yourself) by Mark McGuinness.
