Push-Pull Motivation

Tony Robbins has said people are motivated by either inspiration or desperation. This sounds like a duality aspect that I’ve seen in my own experience.

The standard way of thinking about motivation is that you’re doing something because you truly enjoy it or you get some big pay-off from it. Some people genuinely enjoy working out. Others don’t really enjoy the activity, but they enjoy the end result of looking or feeling better. Some people are passionate about their careers; others are working just for the paycheck.

The aspect of motivation that doesn’t get as much attention is avoidance of something you cannot stand. I know people who are neat freaks. They don’t clean or organize because they love doing it (maybe some do). They cannot stand clutter and disorganization, so they are motivated to clean. On a side note, it must be tough for these people to live in a world of chaos.

At work, I cannot stand when there are procedures that we do regularly, i.e., every month/quarter/year, and it feels like it’s the first time we’re doing it every time we do it. To avoid that, I take the extra time to create desk-level procedures and workflows so that it’s clear what everyone should be doing. I also happen to enjoy writing, so this particular one is a win-win.

One aspect of motivation seems to be this push-pull interaction. Either you are moving toward a future state that you want or you are moving away from a current state that you don’t want. Bonus points if you’re enjoying the journey along the way.