As we continue our series on your dream job, we’d like to suggest you consider the research cited in Daniel H. Pink’s book, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us.
We know that life is full, and it can be hard to find the time to read a book these days; so, if you’re too busy, we’ve included a 10-minute “Cliff note” YouTube version of it that’s fun to watch and easy to digest. It will forever change how you approach motivating yourself and motivating others!
In Drive, Pink describes the research on what motivates us humans. While money is important to some extent, for most people once they have enough money to do most of what matters to them, the three core ways by which most people are motivated are autonomy, mastery, and purpose.
We’ve found that in considering whether your work is good for you and truly motivating, if you flip the order of these three motivators, it can give you a path forward:
- Purpose: If your work is aligned with your sense of purpose, you’ll be more energized and motivated in your life.
- Mastery: If you’re using the skills and strengths that you love and are seen as an expert, you’re more likely to feel accomplished and valued for your contributions.
- Autonomy: Once you’ve mastered the skills required to fulfill your purpose, then you’ll want to be granted some level of autonomy to do the work that energizes and motivates you.
Take some time today to think about your purpose, your level of mastery, and how much autonomy works best for you and your workplace. Motivating yourself or others is an ongoing process—it will be iterative as you move through the phases of your success path.
Click here to watch a video adapted from Daniel Pink’s book, Drive, which illustrates the hidden truths behind what really motivates us at home and in the workplace.
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