What is Motivation: the Motivation Theory and How to Really Motivate Yourself and Others

What is Motivation? Can we motivate and push ourselves and others to achieve a desired results? What is the Secret of Motivation? I’m going to tell you how it works so before spending your hard earned money on any motivational stuff read this article until the end and than see if you really need to spend money or if you already have what’s needed to motivate yourself and others.

The Motivation Theory is that Motivation is the “desire” or drive to do something which makes us to perform actions in order to achieve a desired result. That is to say we do something because we have a reason, a motive, something which moves us and stimulate ourselves to act, to do it, and a goal to achieve. Usually Motivation’s reasons are divided in internal reasons, like deciding to eat healthy food because we care for our health, and external reasons like recognition from others; e.g. working more to buy that beautiful car so that our friends can say we are successful people.

So to define what is Motivation for us we can say that it depends if the desire to change comes either from ourselves or from other people. From the inside or the outside.

Not really.

Motivation comes always from inside ourselves, the Motivation Theory is wrong, or incorrect. In the example above we work hard to buy a new car because for us it is important to be recognized as successful. For us. Otherwise we would just go on using our old car, or a bicycle. So from basic needs like food, health, a roof, clothes and so on, to higher needs like recognition from others, appreciation and compliments we always do something because it is important for us. The reasons, so to speak, lie always within the individual. And that’s you.

So the Motivation Theory “revised” is that whenever we do something we do it because we find it important and to be motivated to achieve a result we must find it important, for us. Otherwise any motivational technique will simply not work. On the other side if we think that something is really worth achieving any technique will work, even the simpler ones.

So, What is Motivation? It is the desire/drive/need coming from inside ourselves which makes us to perform actions to achieve our desired result in order to satisfy our own, personal, inner necessities.

And the real Motivation Theory is that if you find something important you do it without needing further, external assistance or any strange motivational techniques. This is the real secret: you do what you want to do.

Now, let’s go further into the what is Motivation thing and its secret.

The secret of Motivation Explained:

You already do what you really want to do!

I know, it seems too much simple, but the truth is that this is the only secret of Motivation because you already achieve what you really want to and you have always done it. You already have the Motivation to do what you think is important, and you do it.

Motivation is simply the drive to do something which makes us to perform actions in order to achieve a desired result. And you have already done it, I’m sure. From walking for miles to go to meet your girlfriend or boyfriend (at least at the beginning of your love story) to waiting for hours to see her, or him. From remaining awake to see your favorite movie late at night to going out on a rainy day because you had something that really needed to be done.

It has already happened that you did something because you found important to do it. It was important for you so you needed no external effort to motivate yourself.

This is the secret of Motivation, you don’t need boosts to do what you think is important to do, you just do it. Am I wrong?

The problem arises when you are not so sure that something you should do is important for you. And I mean for both your Conscious and Subconscious Mind or if you prefer for your Rational Mind and your Inner Self.

If you are not really, deeply convinced or persuaded that something is important and needs to be done then no Motivation technique will work. And if it will then its results will last only for a short time. So, if you really want to motivate yourself to do something look closely and honestly at it and ask yourself if it is really important: why, what outcomes you could achieve doing it and what if you do nothing. And if you really have to do it try to find a way to make it appear important for you.

If you believe something is important being motivated it’s just a consequence. If you have to push yourself to do something than you must find a way to see it as really important for you.

How to Motivate Yourself and Others.

To motivate yourself or someone else you need two things: Values and Connections.

• First identify what you find important (Values) not only at a superficial level but at the deep one, your inner feelings about what is important and worthy for you or others in your life like family, friends, being recognized as a leader or an expert in your field, a good husband or father, money, etcetera.

• Second you must Connect what has to be done in respect to what is felt as important. That is you must show that the action to perform resonates with yours or someone else’s Values and how it can improve your life accordingly.

Motivation is all about Values! And improving yours or others’ lives.

Let’s say that you have a business and you need to motivate your employees to increase productivity. A general statement like “We need to increase out productivity to stay in business and improve our results.” is probably worth nothing. It can be of value for you but this doesn’t mean that it has any value for your employees.

What you should do instead is identify, possibly for every employee if realistic, what he or she feels important (Values), then you must show how increasing productivity can make his or her life better or easier (Connection).

If for your employee, or yourself, having more free time to stay with family or friends is important then a good reason to increase productivity could be going home sooner. If instead money is important then a productivity bonus could be probably the best choice. If it is recognition from others something like the best employee of the month award could be perfect.

“If I do this I can have more free time, or more money, or feel good with others, and so on.” Enough Motivation will surely arise. It can seem a lot of work but it’s the only way to go. Think about you, if your family or your friends come first how much motivated can you become if I just offer you money, or recognition from others?

Probably your Motivation would be around a big zero. If instead I tell you that if you finish your job sooner you can go home probably almost everyday you give the maximum you can, right? It’s just the same for everyone else.

These are the simple secret steps to Motivation, identify Values and Connect how performing that action can improve one’s life accordingly to those Values. That’s it. If you don’t show others clearly how an action can improve their lives then you can forget to motivate them. At least long enough to see real results. You have to understand what moves you and others.

Understand yours and others Values and Connect them to the desired result.

Now I guess you know more What is Motivation and how to motivate both yourself and others and you haven’t had to spend 99 dollars for an ironclad guaranteed product teaching you this very basic truth or secret of Motivation. Now, tell me what you think.

Have I been clear enough? Any point you like to discuss more?

Picture courtesy of SXC.