What’s driving you and those who work?
When is the last time you followed your heart and passion? When have you embraced your innate curiosity, playfulness and joy that you experienced as a child? If you can’t think of a recent example, perhaps you need to take a road trip, volunteer for a cause you believe in, learn a new game, plan a family stay-cation, or download a comedy to watch tonight.
What about at work? When is the last time you felt compelled by your contributions or inspired to achieve more? We often think that what motivates us to work are the external rewards — recognition, money, promotions, etc. Yet, Daniel Pink in one of his latest books, Drive, says external rewards aren’t supported by the most current scientific research on human behavior. Instead what matters to all of us is autonomy, having the opportunity to develop mastery of our work/craft and for our work to have purpose. Not only does Drive describe in detail why this is true, he also offers great ideas and techniques for putting these three concepts into action for ourselves and the people we manage. Read this book to change and clarify how you think about motivation.