The meaning of Motivation

In today’s competitive business world, we all want to strive to be our best.

And to do this, we continually look for any help we can get from books, podcasts, videos, and articles – often telling us how the best of the best have succeeded to become what they are today.

Whichever medium we choose for our learning, there’ll be one common theme – the use of positive ‘buzz words’ which all allude to success. Words such as passion, commitment, determination and, often most important of all, motivation.

We’re all built and operate differently and, as such, we’ll all have different motivations.

Before moving on in this set of blogs to examine what motivates us, and the importance of motivation, let’s take things right back to basics and answer the key question – what is motivation?

Understanding the history of the word motivation can help us apply it to the business world.

Motivation comes from the word ‘motive,’ which the Oxford English Dictionary defines as: “a reason for doing something.”

What is it that then that gives any of us this ‘reason?’ It will more than likely have something to do with your Purpose which is a specific dimension of Resilience.

In a simple scenario, whether you’re leaving the house to do a simple task (e.g. shopping) or making a major life change (like moving to another country), you make these movements for a reason. You do this because these actions allow you to fulfil something that’s important to you – something that you value.

This idea of movement in the words “motive” and “motivation” is all about taking action.

What enables you to take action? Photo Austin Neill Unsplash

Motivation represents our internal desire to accomplish something that’s important to us. This motivation (desire) makes us act. Motivation is about an unmet need that we want to satisfy - a goal that we want to fulfil.

Motivation then is a powerful desire to act — to achieve something we want. It’s literally the desire to do things. It comes from our needs, values, and goals.

The interesting thing about motivation is that it’s largely internal. If someone wants us to be motivated to take some action, the most that they can do is influence us. They must address our needs, emotions, and goals.

Marketers, sales professionals, and politicians understand this well.

Now, let me apply this concept to you.

No one can force you to want to do something. 

They cannot tell you what your needs are, nor can they insist that what they value is what you should value.

Finally, they can’t give you a strong desire to fulfil certain goals. Your motivation - needs, values, and goals - come from you.

Since motivation is individual, you can’t have a ‘one-approach-fits-all’ attitude about motivation.

The goals you want to fulfil in the workplace and in your career may be of little interest to others working with you. They simply may not have the same motivations as you do.

This understanding of the origin of the word motivation and its internal focus has special meaning for managers as they seek to get their teams to follow their lead. Technically, they can’t ‘motivate their teams’ – instead, their colleagues need to fulfil their organisation’s objectives for themselves.

Managers’ success in motivating their employees comes through their ability to create the environment in which they work – an environment that will either appeal positively to their colleagues internal motivations, or be viewed negatively as something that de-motivates them.

Look out for the next in our series of blogs – What Motivates You? and The Importance of Motivation.

If you’d like to explore the subject of motivation more deeply, please get in touch

Email: russell@theresiliencecoach.co.uk.