The Science of Motivation

When it comes to success, one key component could be more important than even such factors as talent, intelligence, money, or connections. That elusive piece of the puzzle is motivation. After all, without motivation, accomplishing your goals, being productive, and even just staying active becomes a difficulty. Reaching your goals or meeting your self-imposed deadlines without the motivation to take action toward them will most likely result in burnout without motivation. That motivation is often what is lacking in the fulfillment of our desires. We all have lists of things we hope to accomplish. These lists contains big goals, daily tasks and everything in between. By learning how to increase your motivation, it will boost the likelihood of checking more items off your to-do list.

Let’s take a look at the science of motivation and the ways to harness it to your advantage.

An Improved Approach to Motivation

Author Dan Pink writes in his best-selling book, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, that there are three essential components of motivation that compel individuals to get things done. His premise is that the traditional method of motivating ourselves and others using a carrots and sticks type of reward system is ineffective. Instead, he claims that the scientific approach to comprehending the makeup of motivation supplies a far better lens from which to view the subject. By understanding the factors that tangibly affect motivation, we can then develop strategies to improve it.

Three Elements of Motivation

The three elements of motivation that Pink examines in his book are autonomy, value, and competence. According to researchers, It is these three components that drive people to become motivated. Autonomy refers to the control or independence one feels over a task or action. It has been shown that when you feel that you have a considerable amount of input regarding a task, you are more likely to follow through to completion. The second component of motivation, value, is the amount of personal significance or importance one places on a matter. In essence, if something matters to you on a deeply emotional level, you will feel more motivated to take it on than if you are simply given an assignment to which you feel no connection. Competence has been found to come from an individual’s sensation of mastery as it relates to practice and hard work, not necessarily to one’s natural abilities. If you spend time developing competence toward a particular goal, it is predicted that you will be more motivated to complete the said goal.

Strategies to Increase Motivation

Now that you have an understanding of what matters most with regard to what motivates us, it’s time to consider some strategies to increase your motivation. Using the idea of autonomy as a guide, let’s consider ways to add a sense of control or involvement to those activities that need to be completed. One way to do this is to take ownership of a chore or add some aspect of self-direction to it. If you are having difficulty starting a project, such as submitting a paper for review, it may help to think of all the ways doing so will set you apart as an expert in your field. In doing so, you’ll see that turning in the paper is a necessary component of sharing your unique views with your colleagues. To add value to your task, you want to make it meaningful and personal. Find a way to add purpose to that item on your to-do list. This involves changing your mindset or the way you look at that item. Completing your taxes is a dreaded chore for most of us, but you can add purpose to it by focusing on the work you’ve done that comprises the numbers on the page or the contribution you’ve made to your job and community through your efforts. Paying taxes is a symbol of good citizenry. Finally, there’s competence. Feeling mastery over an act requires practice. Try to look at the job at hand as one in which you are working toward an end goal of skillfulness. For instance, you’ll soon see the treadmill as less of an adversary the more workout sessions you endure and the more results you see. So, along with the ultimate goal of getting fit, you’ll soon see each session will become easier, leading to a feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment.

Motivation is rarely easy to come by. However, with this knowledge of the science behind it, you can now pursue the steps required to achieve your dreams more effectively. Soon you’ll be mastering your goals, which will fuel your motivation toward future endeavors.