I wish to touch
on this because it is
important but not really clear for some people.
Motivation is
essentially the carrot (incentive)
and stick method (negative
consequence) but it tends
to lack that “I feel excited, good and raring to go” feeling. Some motivational techniques will work for some of the
people, but no motivation will push everyone because not every incentive can be achieved by every person – either
because of a limited number of incentives (“The top 10 will get this!”), goals
that not everyone is capable of reaching (either because it is not possible or
people believe it is not), a tough deadline.
Motivational techniques often appeal to basic needs (money, a place to
live, a job, etc.) and emotions (fear, greed, sadness, insecurity, etc.) to
provide the needed impetus to get a person to take action, but often such
things are transitory and do not fulfill us on a long-term basis. Motivation is inferior. Some motivators actually use inspirational
techniques.
To
motivate: to give an incentive or reason of some kind to do something. A
punishment or reward can be given for the purpose of getting a person to strive
harder to do what they must do, such as a cash bonus for completing a big sale,
a whipping for failing to protect the cattle, a better score if extra objectives
are achieved, etc. Other definitions
include:
·
to make somebody feel enthusiastic, interested,
and committed to something
·
to be the reason for something that somebody
does
Some people
operate on a different level for which traditional motivations have little
meaning, or they feel there is no possible way they can ever acquire those
incentives or achieve those goals. An
“A+,” cash bonus, new car, promotion or “summa cum laude” may motivate some
people, but it doesn’t get everyone interested; some believe they can never
achieve those goals – even if they can – or they are not interested in such things.
Here are some real-life examples of
motivation:
·
As
a database entry employee where we handled insurance claims, we were given a speed
goal, for which we would have a bonus added to our salary. I, along with a small number of other
employees, was able to achieve this rate, but many others could not. As a result, however, of endeavouring to
reach that speed, I ended up stressing my right arm so much that it hurt from
hand to shoulder.
·
As
a telephone surveyor for a surveying company that was employed by companies
which made the surveys and worked with the actual clients, we were given
bonuses based on the number of surveys completed. On some surveys, I could reach the required
minimum, but on others I had no idea how people were even able to do that many
– it just seemed like they were incredibly lucky or falsifying surveys (as it
turned out, both were true).
·
As
an outsourced customer support technician for a major ISP and telcom, we were
given tiered quotas that allowed us to supplement our income. As I recall, there were 3 or 4 tiers of
bonuses. I have always believed that it
is best to provide the best quality possible within the time allowed, rather
than trying to rush through, so I never attempted to reach the first tier. I always got 2nd or 3rd
tier rewards, and I didn’t really understand how some people got to the top of
the 1st tier list.
Eventually, I understood that some were very skilled at quickly
identifying the problem and providing input to customers who were also skilled
at receiving instructions, which meant that luck played a part; drop calls; cut
a call short by giving short instructions to the customer and then telling them
to try and call back if it didn’t work (which was poor service if the customer
didn’t actually need to hang up) and other techniques that made them appear to
be working hard when they were actually disappointing customers.
·
As
perfume and cologne salespeople, we were once sent out in the rain with the
promise of an extra bottle of our choice for every 2 bottles we sold. It was a hard day even for the most
experienced salesperson, but I managed to sell two bottles by not taking any
profit, so I was the only person to get a bottle. I left feeling like it was a Pyrrhic victory
because I’d earned no money although I could sell the bottle for 100% profit,
but I had done what even the best salesperson failed to do.
Inspiration,
on the other hand, appeals to
what is in our minds. It provides the carrot without any stick and provides a muse-like feeling that gets
people in a positive mood (enthusiastic) and provokes active. Acts of charity are sometimes
inspired – not because of a tax break but because we feel good about helping
others, and we buy into the inspiring idea.
Inspiration sometimes seems mysterious, but it is often accomplished by
triggering emotions, giving hope and courage, and helping us to see beyond our
own situation to realize possibilities and potential that can be realized,
etc. While a particular method of
inspiration won’t work for everyone either, inspiration provides more energy,
desire and sincerity than motivation. Inspirational techniques often
appeal to desires, dreams, and hopes, and focus us more on other people and the
world around us.
To inspire:
fill (someone) with the urge or ability to do or feel something, esp. to do
something creative; to awaken within a person the desire to do something for
noble reasons. It is often associated
with a heightened state of emotion, unity or spirit; some equate it with being
led by something spiritual, or being “visited by a muse”. Some definitions:
·
to be the reason for something that somebody
does
·
to arouse a particular feeling in somebody
·
to stimulate somebody to do something,
especially creative or artistic work
Daniel
Goleman, the author of
“Emotional Intelligence”, had this to say about inspiration (he uses the
term intrinsic motivation) and creativity:
“My original work looked at the connection between intrinsic motivation
and creativity. That research discovered that people are most creative when
they’re motivated primarily by the interest, enjoyment, satisfaction and
challenge of the work itself, and not motivated primarily by external goals, external
motivators or external pressures.” From this, we can see that the
desire to do something is coming from within the person, from the mind and
“heart”.
Here are real-life examples of
inspired action:
·
As
a child, my friends and I sometimes helped car owners whose vehicles were
snowed in by digging out some of the snow and pushing the car out. We did it because we felt good about helping
them but we got nothing for it.
·
As
an adult, if I saw another car owner’s car had stalled because their battery
was dead, I would stop and use my jumper cables to help them start their
car. I did this because it made me feel
good about myself and it was the right thing to do. I even lost my bonus once because of this.
·
When
our story (my wife was diagnosed with cancer and I was selling food on the side
of the road) was reported on nationally in 2014, we received a lot of support
from people – most of whom we didn’t know at all. Newspapers (print and online), radio stations
and TV news picked up the story after a blogger covered our story
surreptitiously and it went viral on Facebook and, between 2014-2016, we (or at
least I) appeared as guests on a few TV shows.
Many people, some we knew and others we didn’t, contacted us offering to
send us money to help us, and this continues to happen to this day.
Most people get a job because they
need money – that is motivation. Those
people who choose a job based on their dreams are inspired. A person, for example, who becomes a member
of the clergy in order to escape the stresses of the world is motivated, but if
that person does so because s/he greatly desires to help others then that one
is inspired.
Inspiration is noble, motivation is
base, one might say.
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