Motivation Made Easy – Lesson 1

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Lesson 1

Different Types Of Motivation

There are many different types of motivation, and different types of motivation will drive different people. One type of motivation will drive a person, while it will not drive another person. Similarly, another type of motivation will drive the second person and not the first person. In this chapter, you will learn of the different types of motivation that can drive us to do great things and achieve our goals.

There are two main types of motivation: Intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is internal, coming from within oneself, and it is often invisible to other people. Extrinsic motivation is external, coming from outside oneself, so it can often be seen by other people.

Both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can come from a variety of sources, and those sources can be positive or negative. For instance, one source of motivation is an incentive or reward for something that we do well. For example, if we do our jobs well, we may get a monetary bonus to increase our paycheck. This is an example of positive extrinsic motivation- people can see we are working hard to do our jobs well so that we get rewarded for it.

Similarly, we are also attempting to do our jobs well so we are not fired and replaced by someone with a better skill set or better ability to perform those skills. The extrinsic motivation here is fear, the fear of losing our jobs. Again, people can see that this is the reason we are really striving to do well in our jobs.

Some examples of intrinsic motivation include achievement. We are looking to satisfy our internal desire to achieve our goals and take on more challenges. This is positive intrinsic motivation; this is a type of motivation that other people really can’t see- it is a desire within ourselves to accomplish the tasks we set out to do and take on more challenges.

Another example of intrinsic motivation is growth. Our need to improve ourselves and our skills is an internal one that other people really can’t see. We often want to grow to be able to influence our environment and our world more easily and make a difference.

One type of motivation that can be positive or negative is the desire and need for power. A positive need for power is one where we want to control our own lives and be able to influence others in a positive way. However, a negative need for power is where we have the overriding need to dominate others and control every aspect of their lives. This can lead to some people wanting to commit illegal, immoral, and/or harmful behavior toward others in an effort to satisfy this overriding need.

Another powerful form of motivation is social. We often feel a need to belong to a larger group, to be accepted by them and be affiliated with them. We often look to either be accepted into a group that shares our views and values, or we modify our views and values to be more closely aligned with the group.

All of these forms of motivation can be positive or negative; it really depends on how the person is motivated by these forms that determines whether the motivation is one that drives them to do positive actions or negative actions. As said before, different people will be motivated by different factors; one factor can motivate one person and not another.

You’ve learned different types of motivation that drive people to reach for and attain their goals. In the next chapter, you will learn to set goals that interest you so you can have a greater chance of achieving them.

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