Motivation and needs

We are born with two inherent sets of needs - (biological and psychological) and one set of environmentally developed needs (implicit).

accept that some things just have to be done

Biological needs garner our complete attention (motivation), because they are related to survival (e.g. breathing).

The second, psychological needs, sometimes require a push, depending on the activity. Activities are said to be intrinsically or extrinsically motivated, and it is with the latter that we tend to struggle. Knowing which activities are extrinsically motivated can help you identify why you need to do them and how you can motivate yourself to do them.

Implicit needs are the set of needs that are unique to each person depending on environmental or developmental factors. They are concerned with power, affiliation and achievement and, as such, generally do not suffer from motivation deficiency.

Intrinsic motivation

Intrinsically motivated activities are those we choose to do because we enjoy them. These intrinsically motivated activities do not require incentives or rewards. In fact, giving yourself a reward for activities you enjoy has been shown to reduce the pleasure gained from them.

Extrinsic motivation

Many of us struggle with extrinsic motivation, that is, activities that we do for an external reason. We might do something for a grade, a parent or an award, but it's not something we do for pure enjoyment. That's why interest wanes and we feel unmotivated about the activity.

It's human to feel this way and one of the best ways to deal with it and increase motivation, is to reward or give yourself some incentive when you don't feel like doing the activity.

Flow experience

The flow experience, a concept developed by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, derives from intense focus on (often intrinsically motivated) activities and an optimal challenge suitable to your skill level in those activities. It's believed this is the ultimate feeling of happiness and also promotes mastery, confidence and self-fulfilment.

An activity that generates flow encourages us to repeat the activity for the enjoyment and desire to experience flow again. You'll know you've reached some level of flow if you've been completely immersed in an activity that gets you into "the zone" and feel like you've accomplished something.

Rewards and incentives

Numerous studies have shown rewards or incentives for doing something you enjoy (intrinsic motivation) devalue the experience and should be avoided.

On the other hand, extrinsically motivated activities that we aren't enthusiastic about are best served with an incentive or reward. Various studies consistently saw positive verbal feedback as the most well-received reward.

Commit and do

As activities (e.g. assignments, sports, hobbies) are generally either intrinsic or extrinsic, there will always be activities we don't feel the urge to do.

Unfortunately, there's no secret formula to feeling motivated about extrinsically motivated activities. We must accept that some things just have to be done, and look for activities we are intrinsically motivated about - that is, things we enjoy doing.