Yesterday’s blog was focused on what can hold you back from being motivated. Today’s focus is on a great article by Royale Scuderi on the 6 Motivation Types: She defined motivation as “the force that compels us to action. It drives us to work hard and pushes us to succeed. Motivation influences our behavior and our ability to accomplish goals.” I have always found motivation to be such an interesting topic. What drives one person to do things and doesn’t work at all for another person? Asking team members about their motivation is key to ensure that you understand how to motivate them to do their work.
In the article there are six types of motivation. Here is my take on each of the types:
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Incentive – these are the people who are driven by money. Many salespeople are driven by this type of motivation so they can get bonuses for selling a certain amount of product. This could be in the form of money, trips, gift cards or bonuses.
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Fear – this type is often referred to as the “carrot and the stick.” People are driven to do something out of fear of something else happening. If someone isn’t performing well in their role, there is a fear that they may lose their job. They are motivated to change their behavior and improve performance.
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Power – these are the people who are looking to gain power and are very motivated by it. Perhaps that is climbing the ladder to a position of authority or gaining a role that has a great deal of power over others. The driver here may be one of control more than anything else. The danger with this one is that being motivated by power means that you may want more of it once you have gained some. Being able to handle power effectively without crossing the line is important.
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Achievement – this type is where people are motivated by achieving things. The person is looking to receive the pat on the back that they did a good job. They are driven by what they have accomplished. They are looking for the positive feedback that what they did was good and someone shares that recognition with them.
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Growth – these people are motivated to change and improve. They are driven by their own need for self-improvement. They are constantly learning, growing and seeking out new ways to do this all the time. These are the people that you may see reading a lot or taking more classes to gain knowledge.
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Social – the people motivated are motivated by making a difference. They are improving the environment, doing work that benefits other groups that they feel connected to in some way. They are the people that will build community and are so passionate to do the work that they are doing. These are the people that are seeking out a way to improve things in the world.
How are you motivated? There are no right or wrong answers here. You may be motivated by one or more of these types. Your motivations may also shift depending on where you are in your career and life. It is good that you understand your own motivation and share it with your leadership. Leaders who focus on motivating their individual team members will achieve a great amount of team success.
Speaking of motivation….Are you ready to move forward and sign up for the ReVISION Group Coaching Program? The support of a group is a great way to motivate you to move forward on your goals for this year and accomplish more than ever before!
Here are the dates for the upcoming sessions:
February 20th session will begin at 7:00pm (CST)
February 21st sessions will begin at 8:00am (CST) and Noon (CST)
If you haven’t heard about the program yet or would like more information, you can click on this link.