The concept of internal motivation. What is the difference between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation?

(20)

The article raises in detail the issue of motivation and reasons for people’s behavior. What is motivation, what types of motivations exist and what are the reasons for people’s behavior.

Explaining human behavior is one of the main and most interesting tasks of psychology. And even if you are completely far from science, you probably at least from time to time have to think about the reasons that force people to act this way and not otherwise. Each of us has observed many times that in the same situation different people behave completely differently. On the other hand, the same person can exhibit very different reactions and perform actions that we would also like to understand and explain.

In some cases the explanation lies on the surface, in others it is very difficult to establish the cause of the behavior. However, obvious explanations often turn out to be far from the truth.

The psychology of motivation deals specifically with the study of various factors that serve as the causes of certain forms of behavior. Of course, this is not a separate area of ​​psychology: when explaining human behavior, researchers proceed not only from the characteristics of the situation, but also from personal characteristics of a person, take into account its emotional reactions, properties self-esteem. Let's take a look at some areas of motivation research.

The study of motivation is a search for answers to the questions: for what purpose does someone carry out this or that action? Why does an individual act in a certain way in a particular situation? Are there patterns that explain people's behavior in certain conditions?

What is motivation?

IN in a broad sense The definition of motivation is:

Motivation is the impulses that cause the activity of the body and determine its direction.

When we're talking about About people we know well, we usually do not find it difficult to explain the reasons for their actions - we know (or assume that we know) why they perform certain actions. And even more so, we rarely question the reasons for our own behavior. And yet, we can name at least three reasons that make us think about motivation from time to time.

Firstly , sometimes we are faced with a situation where someone, under certain conditions, acts differently from what is customary, or differently from most other people. So the first reason can be formulated as the presence of individual differences in behavior. These differences can be traced in many, very diverse situations and, in general, are quite stable. Therefore, psychologists have long concluded that people differ from each other in their predispositions to how exactly to act in different situations. These individual predispositions that each of us have are called motives.

Secondly , we often consider people's behavior not from the point of view of their personal motives, but from the point of view of the characteristics of the situation. It often seems that the reasons for this or that action lie not in the person’s personality, but in the conditions in which he finds himself. Remember how often you say about someone that “circumstances forced him” to act this way and not otherwise, or, conversely, that someone “took advantage of the situation” - the second version of the explanation, although it presupposes the activity of the actor, but still indicates on external conditions: they are the ones who push a person to certain actions.

In such cases, we are interested in the stimuli that motivate action. We are constantly exposed to their influence and Everyday life, but the impact of external conditions is especially pronounced in emergency situations, when any threatening circumstances arise. In addition to explaining people's behavior, studying the mechanism of action of various stimuli also interests us from a practical point of view: after all, every now and then we have a desire or need to somehow influence the behavior of another person, to induce him to certain actions.

Third , what matters is not only the fact of the action and its possible reasons, but also how exactly this action will be performed. Under certain circumstances, desires, as soon as they arise, are embodied in intentions and, at the next opportunity, are realized in action. Some people are distinguished by “decisiveness,” that is, they know how to organize themselves well and quickly move from desire to the implementation of intentions. Others cannot quickly and confidently choose a goal, concentrate attention and efforts on achieving it, they doubt and hesitate.

This leads us to the idea that human behavior is not reducible to a simple “stimulus-response” or “motive-action” scheme. Between the urge to do something and the action itself, there is still a certain preparatory stage: after the desire is formulated, it needs to be assessed, its importance, necessity and the possibility of its implementation must be weighed. You also need to plan exactly how you will act to achieve what you want. All this turns motive into intention, that is, an act of will.

Thus, one of key points in the motivational process is the presence of a volitional component.

You might argue that you don't always set intentions by carefully weighing and thinking about your goals and action plan. And this objection is completely fair: of course, in most everyday situations we act automatically, in a habitual way. And in fact: it is impossible to even imagine the life of a person who consciously and consistently thinks about his every action. For huge number situations, we have long ago developed the behavior that is most effective in specific conditions, and we do not need to spend time and energy on planning and preparation - we simply act.

According to the figurative description of H. Heckhausen, these are those situations in which “the barrier of intention is raised and the path to action is clear.” The same author recalls that “in addition to volitional actions and actions of habit, there are also impulsive or affective actions. In this case, the internal tension of the motivational impulse makes its way to action even when the barrier is closed.”

So, let's summarize. From the point of view of the psychology of motivation, human behavior is structured as follows: with a combination of internal needs, individual characteristics and external conditions (incentives) a motive is formed. Further, in the course of volitional processes, this motive is “processed”, as a result of which an intention is formed - a plan for carrying out an action, “charged” with the energy of desire. And finally, the intention is realized in action:

Motivation => intention<=>action

In addition, in many cases, the stage of intention formation is very compressed and invisible (automated actions, actions out of habit) or absent (impulsive actions). This point deserves special attention, so now we will talk a little about conscious and unconscious motivation.

Conscious and unconscious motivation

Have you ever done something “against your will”, and then were surprised at your own behavior? How often do you hear from your friends explanations like “The demon has led me astray!” or “It was as if some kind of eclipse had come over me...”? It happens that we “accidentally” do some good deeds (for ourselves or others), but much more often we find it difficult to explain our motives in cases where our behavior turned out to be far from what we wanted. An entire trend in psychology that has had a significant impact on the entire world culture The 20th century is essentially devoted to the study of the causes and mechanisms of such “unconscious”, or rather, unconscious behavior. This direction is called psychoanalysis.

The founding father of psychoanalysis had invaluable good researcher quality: the habit of not neglecting the little things. One of his works has a characteristic title: “The Psychopathology of Everyday Life.” In it, he analyzes such trifles as forgetting names and words, impressions and intentions: cases when a person “accidentally” made a slip of the tongue, forgot about something, “pawned it” and cannot find the right thing, etc. These are known to everyone Freud interprets “accidents” as signs of the work of the unconscious: every inexplicable action has a motive, even if it is hidden from our consciousness. For an outside observer, this motive can also be hidden, and sometimes it is quite obvious: “Forgetting intentions... gives the right to conclude about the presence of unrecognized motives.<...>A lover who is late for a date will in vain look for excuses to his lady that he, unfortunately, completely forgot about it. She will certainly answer him: “You wouldn’t have forgotten a year ago. You don’t love me anymore.”<...>She believes, and not without reason, that from unintentional oblivion one can draw the same conclusion about a certain reluctance as from conscious avoidance.”

Freud gives many examples of such ordinary, random actions. In some cases his explanations are quite obvious and plausible; for example, he tells with commendable sincerity that he once noticed that on a day when he had many appointments with patients, he often forgot to visit some of them, and these almost always turned out to be unpaid patients or his colleagues (from whom he also, of course, did not charge). From time to time, people forget the names of people who are not very pleasant to them, lose things with which some painful memories are associated - all this is completely unintentional, but in fact it is by no means accidental: the motives in such cases simply pass by our consciousness.

True, in most cases, Freud's explanations for such absurdities are far from being so simple and obvious: he builds complex associative chains, and as a result, it may turn out that a certain gentleman forgets an insignificant word in a Latin saying because he is worried about the possible and extremely unwanted pregnancy of his beloved . Very often such interpretations seem too far-fetched, and today psychologists for the most part do not share Freud’s desire to see behind every involuntary movement a pile of unconscious motives...

But the very fact that we have such unconscious motives, which often guide our actions “secretly” from ourselves, is proven and practically universally accepted.

Psychoanalysts explain this phenomenon by the action of psychological defenses.

The defense mechanism comes into play in cases where a person’s unconscious impulses run counter to the requirements of society. Desires and aspirations that are not approved by public morality, that violate ethics, and accepted cultural norms are hidden from consciousness.

Thanks to the action of psychological defenses, such “inappropriate” motives can simply be repressed into the sphere of the unconscious and retained there (this type of defense is called “repression”), or they can be modified in some way, “masked”: this is how actions that we we do unintentionally, inexplicably to ourselves.

The main purpose of psychological defenses is to weaken the feeling of guilt that a person would experience if he were aware of his “reprehensible” desires. It is absolutely impossible to completely get rid of such desires: no matter how far civilization has advanced, Homo sapiens still remains in some ways a natural being.

- this is the curbing and suppression of natural instincts: no instinct forces people to be polite towards each other, to share something with their neighbors, to visit patients without any benefit for themselves, to refuse immediate satisfaction of hunger or sexual desires etc. All these restrictions and requirements are created by people themselves and, of course, are necessary for the survival of humanity as a whole. But at the same time, they are a source of constant internal conflict between “I want” and “I cannot,” or, as Z. Freud formulated it, between the pleasure principle and the reality principle. So, psychological defenses reduce the severity of this conflict, helping us to bypass these contradictions.

The significance of psychological defenses is twofold: on the one hand, they clearly help a person adapt to the demands of the external environment and maintain him in some balance inner world. On the other hand, they can lead to serious difficulties in social adaptation, because to one degree or another they always distort the perception of reality.

The most “healthy” version of psychological defense is considered to be sublimation - the redirection of unconscious impulses into socially acceptable behavior. Freud considered any creativity and generally productive activity to be sublimation. For example, sadistic tendencies that are unconscious and certainly unacceptable to social norms can be sublimated by becoming a surgeon or the author of exciting detective novels, that is, by directing a charge of one’s mental energy into useful, socially approved activities.

Today, ideas about unconscious motivation are by no means limited to the ideas of Freudian psychoanalysis.

Psychologists identify different styles of motivation, for example, aimed at achieving success / avoiding failure. The characteristics of each of these styles can, in certain situations, explain unconscious actions performed by people under the influence of their characteristic motives.

Another type of motivational style is impulsive/controlled action. The impulsive style is the tendency to act “according to the situation”, with minimal consideration of the options and consequences of one’s behavior. On the contrary, the controlled, or reflexive-volitional, style is distinguished by careful consideration, preliminary analysis all options and possible results of actions.

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation

The motives for our activities can be formed not only on the basis of our internal needs, but also under the influence of external incentives - rewards coming (or expected) from the outside. You read for your own pleasure, because you are interested, or simply like the process of reading, or you need to fill some gap in knowledge - all this is internal motivation. And your first-grader son reads because you told him to, or because he wants to get an A in class (or not get a D - if his motive for avoiding failure prevails over the motive for achieving success). His motivation is external.

And although you are busy with the same thing, you do it in completely different ways: you cannot be torn away from the book, and the child reads only as long as the external stimulus is in effect. As soon as you let go of the reins, you’ve only seen him: he’s already completely absorbed in the activity to which his internal motivation pushed him, for example, watching cartoons or building spaceship from Lego...

People who are extremely passionate about their work become immersed in the experience of flow. This is what psychologists called a special state, which is characterized by complete concentration of attention, when a person feels that he is in complete control of the situation, acts at the limit of his capabilities, does not react to external stimuli and is completely devoted to his activities. This is a state that is well known to all creative people, true professionals - be it an opera singer, a sculptor or a surgeon.

Researchers say that everyone can achieve the experience of flow.

This requires that there be a very difficult task, which requires full effort of all forces, but is not in principle impossible. (A task that is too simple creates boredom and distraction; a task that is too difficult creates anxiety and uncertainty.) In addition, solving this problem should involve gaining new experience, growth and development.

Only activities driven by intrinsic motivation can lead to the experience of flow. In modern Western society, external motives much more often come to the fore - achieving success that is obvious to others (status, fame, reputation), material reward, good assessment, etc. But external motivation, the desire to receive external rewards never lead to the experience of flow - you are doing something that does not captivate you completely; it is not the process that is important to you, but only the result.

There are, of course, frequent cases when external and internal motivation are combined: a passionate student may really enjoy the process of studying and acquiring new knowledge, but attention from potential employers is also important to him.

Psychologists experimentally studied how external motivation affects internal motivation, and obtained very interesting results: it turned out that the appearance of external motivation, as a rule, weakens internal motivation!

For example, the following experiment was conducted: subjects who liked to solve puzzles (that is, who in this case had internal motivation) were divided into two groups. The first was simply asked to solve puzzles, and the participants of the second were told that for each correct solution they will receive one dollar.

After this, the subjects were left alone, giving them the opportunity to independently choose an activity and plan their time. The result was that people who were promised a reward spent much less time solving problems than those who worked for free. Internal motivation decreased significantly when external motivation emerged.

Perhaps this data will be of interest to those of our readers who have the habit of paying their children for good studies. The practice is very common, and many parents claim that this is the most effective method make the child study well. So, keep in mind: this destroys internal motivation and reduces the child’s cognitive activity. In fact, this method is not the most effective, but simply the least labor-intensive for parents: a lever to control the child, replacing deep participation in his interests and development.

Psychologists have found that the only type of external motivation that has a beneficial effect on behavior and does not interfere with internal motivation is verbal praise, which increases internal interest in activities.

Motivation- motivation to action. It controls human behavior and determines the direction of his movement. It determines where we are moving, with what activity we are moving and how stable we are in moving towards our goals.

In other words, motivation- impulse to action. There is a clear relationship: the clearer it is, the higher the motivation and the better the result.

Meet Personal Motivation Our friend and ally

She lifts us out of a comfortable chair and sits us at our desk, at the piano, at the easel. She pushes us to achieve goals and implementation dreams.

- one of the foundations success in any activity. And today the conversation will go about what motivation is.

Motivation is external and internal.

Extrinsic motivation associated with incentives or reinforcements coming from the external environment. Such rewards include: salary, bonus, commendation, award, win, etc.
They are fixed by agreements between the employee and the employer, the terms of competitions, laws, the nature of relationships between people, etc.

Examples of extrinsic motivation:

Marina is a first-grader. She likes to get good grades and likes to be set as an example to other children. And it’s especially nice for a girl to receive praise from her mother, who rejoices at her success.

Tatyana is a seller. Sales volume is important for her, since wages and the size of the bonus at the end of the month directly depend on this.

Intrinsic motivation – perhaps the most effective and efficient, encouragement comes from within. When a certain goal is achieved, the individual’s sense of self-worth increases, the person receives satisfaction, experiences joy, and the soul celebrates victory.

Examples of intrinsic motivation:

Anton is a student. Passionate about physics. Engaged in development in promising area(nanotechnology). Enjoys additional work on the chosen project. By making small discoveries, he receives incomparable joy and feels capable of making a breakthrough in this direction.

Svetlana is a psychologist. Gets satisfaction from his activities, helping people change themselves, become better and happier.

The best option is when external and internal motivation complement each other.

The student learns not only for praise, but also enjoys the process of mastering new knowledge.
The seller feels important by helping people choose a high-quality and necessary product.
The student, to his inner satisfaction, also receives praise from scientific supervisor, the opportunity to present your ideas at the conference.
The psychologist receives a bonus for the work performed.

With this combination the results are better.

Motivation "from" and motivation "to".

Motivation “from” or the “stick” method - management of activities through punishment (reprimand, fine, physical impact, unkind word). In this case, the person is driven by fear. In order to avoid troubles, pain, and loss of money, he tries to do a well-assigned task, in fact, he “avoids” punishment.

Motivation “to” or motivation using “carrot” - a person is focused on receiving encouragement - a kind word, an additional day off, monetary reward, promotion career ladder. Each person is susceptible to these stimulation methods in their own way. For some, the “stick” helps more, while for others, the “carrot in front of the nose” is more effective.

In this article we will find out which motivation, internal or external, is more effective? How are they interconnected and thanks to what motivation can you become the master of your own life? With internal motivation, a person gains a sense of his own competence, self-confidence and internal satisfaction from his own self-realization. In essence, a person rewards himself. But, of course, internal motivation is enhanced by external motivation in the form of approval and praise from other people. Thus, confidence in yourself and your abilities increases many times over.

If we talk about external motivation, it directly depends on a person’s relationship with others, on his perception and attitude towards praise. Sometimes a person does something to receive a reward or, conversely, to avoid some kind of punishment. External motivation depends on the psychological and material aspects of human activity. For example, if a person works only for money, then money acts as an internal motivation for him. If a person simply likes what he does, then money becomes an external motivator. A kind of additional bonus to an activity that brings pleasure.

It is important to know! Decreased vision leads to blindness!

To correct and restore vision without surgery, our readers use the increasingly popular ISRAELI OPTIVISION - the best product, now available for only 99 rubles!
Having carefully reviewed it, we decided to offer it to your attention...

An effective motivation system is when internal and external complement and strengthen each other.
A feature of extrinsic motivation is that it helps to increase the amount of work performed. While intrinsic motivation mainly improves the quality of work performance. If a person’s salary depends on his output, then of course he will try to do as much as possible, but not always to the highest quality. If a person works to achieve results, in order, first of all, to prove to himself that he is the best in some matter, then of course he will do everything efficiently.

Internal motivation drives a person to complete a task, to do everything as best as possible, which is why it is considered more effective. External motivation can be reduced to zero at any moment; a person can lose interest in activities if conditions have changed not in his favor. For example, a person may quit his job if he was not paid a bonus for additional work or his salary was cut. Extrinsic motivation is dynamic and can depreciate at any time.
Sometimes recognition is very important to a person. If this does not happen, he may fold his arms and stop moving in that direction.

If internal motivation is replaced by external motivation, then, as a rule, internal motivation decreases. This leads to the fact that a person ceases to conduct activities with passion, admiration and inspiration.

A person’s internal motivation increases with increasing confidence in himself and his abilities. The more goals a person was able to achieve, the more and higher he sets subsequent goals. He climbs the steps and is internally confident that he can do everything. Often, people with strong internal motivation reach the top and never stop there.

The most popular and worthy books on motivation were written by A. Maslow. He says that motivation is the internal behavior that motivates a person to act. In his opinion, motivation determines human behavior.

First, human needs are endless. As soon as a person satisfies one need, the next one immediately arises. Secondly, a satisfied need immediately loses its motivating power, while unsatisfied needs prompt action. Thirdly, all needs are arranged in a certain order of importance.

A hungry person cannot think about building a business until he satisfies his basic need - hunger. If a person has nowhere to live, he cannot even think about love and building relationships.

Maslow discovered a certain law of motivation, according to which the satisfaction of basic needs opens the way to the satisfaction of higher levels of needs. This is why we so often hear whining and complaints from people. Some people whine that they don’t have enough to buy bread, while others have no less global problem– 25 new cars are missing for the collection.

Maslow divided needs into 5 levels, which are depicted as a pyramid. Of course, all levels are interpenetrated and equally important as a person rises from one level to the next as needs are met.

Diagram of Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of human needs.

Steps (from bottom to top):

1. Physiological
   2. Security
   3. Love/Belonging to something
   4. Respect
   5. Cognition
   6. Aesthetic
   7. Self-actualization

Cognition, aesthetic needs and self-actualization are combined into one common stage - the need for personal growth.

According to Maslow, extrinsic motivation is the motivation of a person to do something by external circumstances or other people. For example, a thundercloud will make a person quickly run home to avoid getting wet. The promised bonus will force a person to work faster, and fines will force him to adhere to certain rules.

A person carries internal motivation within himself, and it does not depend on external rewards or incentives. A person acts because he wants it, likes it. For example, Small child He is constantly exploring something, not because those around him stimulate him, but because he himself is interested in exploring this world. Internal motivation is inherent in a person from birth and is studied by psychologists as a phenomenon.

Of course, intrinsic motivation can be created externally. For example, Paganini's parents forced him to play the violin 8 hours a day. But it was thanks to this that a great violinist appeared!
If we compare the effectiveness of internal and external motivation, we can say that each of them is effective in solving certain problems.

If you need to decide simple task and just don’t get distracted, then external motivation is good. For example, the more a person is paid, the more he will do.

If you need to solve a difficult problem where you need to use all your creativity, creative approach, skills and abilities, then internal motivation will work more effectively here. A person works on his own initiative and enjoys it.

There are controversial issues that relate to motivation. For example, does a wife take care of her husband because she loves him (intrinsic motivation) or is she afraid of being alone and losing him (extrinsic motivation)?

You can become the master of your life only if a person is able to motivate himself to action at the right moment. And don’t sit idly by because your motivation has run out. The master of life is in constant movement and achieves one goal after another.

Here we come to the issue of self-motivation. Every person encounters certain difficulties and tasks every day that need to be solved. This can be related to work, family, money, friends and most often internal imbalance. This problem is always the most difficult to solve. You can easily influence others, but dealing with your own conditions is the most difficult.

There are practical ways of self-motivation that will help a person move forward and never give up:

1. You need to learn to ignore everything unnecessary that can distract you from your goals. Think about what is really important to you personally. After all, people often set unnecessary goals for themselves, which are dictated to them by advertising, society, the examples of friends and the instructions of their parents. Throw away everything unnecessary and start doing what you want.
   2. Maintaining a “Success Journal” is very conducive to the development of motivation, in which you need to record all your achievements. IN Hard time it will remind you how much you have been able to achieve, how much you are capable of, and will not let you lose heart.
   3. Another good way to increase motivation is to create a suitable environment. The environment affects a person’s mood, well-being and, of course, motivation. Improve your workplace just the way you like it.
   4. Setting specific, clear goals has a motivating effect. When you think about your goal, this is already motivation. You begin to think through specific time frames within which you want to achieve something. Think through all possible plans of action.
   5. Various motivating stories contribute to the formation of motivation. successful people. You can read books, articles. Watch films about successful people and how they managed to achieve this. By the way, this method is the most effective of all for increasing motivation.
   6. To increase activity motivation, it is necessary to constantly perform different tasks. Psychologists have long proven that working on the same project for a long time exhausts the human body.
   7. Ways of motivation are sometimes very creative. One of these is to learn to enjoy defeats. You need to understand that defeat is also a valuable experience and you learn from mistakes. Every failure shows you new way how not to do it. This is wonderful!
   8. Filter your social circle, exclude the ever-whining whiners, pessimists and losers. Communicate with those who are better than you in some way. With those who were able to achieve success in some business. Then you will have wonderful example for imitation and desire to reach upward.
   9. Very often people have great plans and goals, but never achieve anything. Do you know why? Fear hinders them. You must understand for yourself that fear is normal, but it should not stop you. Well, what's so bad will happen if you fail? Will everyone survive? Then nothing bad happened. Take failure as a valuable experience, be afraid to your health, but never give up or stop.
   10. Develop your inner world. All successful people, having satisfied their basic needs, come to higher, spiritual ones. Try to keep your inner world clean and harmonious. Then you will be able to think clearly, feel, understand what you really need and achieve it with ease.

Remember that life is fleeting. Don't put everything off until later. It depends only on you what kind of person you will become, how you will live your life, and whether you will feel happy. Don't be idle. Become the master of your life!

Motives occupy an important place in the structure of activity. Diagram 1 shows the structure of activities according to A.N. Leontiev

Scheme 1

Structure of activity (according to A.N. Leontev)

A.N. Leontiev defined a motive as that object that, in response to an actual need, i.e. acting as a means of satisfying it, organizes and directs behavior in a certain way. With the same need, the motives for observed behavior can be a variety of objects.

A.V. Petrovsky, continuing the ideas of Leontyev, introduced a classification of motives into external and internal (see diagram 2)

Scheme 2

Classifications of motives and relationships according to A.V. Petrovsky

Thus, all motives are divided into external and internal. It follows from this that professional motivation is formed in young people under the influence of environmental factors, vocational guidance work carried out at school or in relevant career guidance centers.

Motives may be internal or external character. Intrinsic motives do not have external manifestations and are associated with pleasure, satisfaction, a sense of achievement and are often associated with the process of completing a task. Extrinsic motives have external manifestations, for example, salary, prizes, win/loss, pressure from competitors or managers in general are associated with results. Individuals have high or low levels of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Professionals to achieve success high class usually have a high level of both internal motivation, due to the perception of their profession as an art, and external motivation, due to the fairly high pay for their work. Reward brings a sense of achievement, which in itself is highly motivating. However, not everyone achieves success. Goal setting is a powerful technique for developing intrinsic motivation. However, it is important to recognize that goal setting can have both a negative and positive effect on motivation. Goals that are considered appropriate, specific, controversial, achievable, measurable and personal may become inappropriate due to any change in circumstances

In modern management and management psychology, at least 8 methods of reward are used. All these methods relate to external motives

1. MONEY. The motivating role of money is especially effective when enterprises reward their employees based on work performance and specific results, rather than on time spent at work.

Henry Ford placed money at the forefront of incentives. He significantly increased the minimum wage to $5 per day, reducing the workday from 10 to 8 hours. His innovations in stimulation were met with great enthusiasm and had, in addition to the material, a great psychological effect. In 1914, this daily wage was twice the generally accepted rate. Few people realized that Ford did not offer such wages out of great generosity. He was not at all concerned about the standard of living of the workers. Henry Ford never hid the real reason introducing a daily wage of $5 for workers: he wanted his workers to earn enough to eventually buy the cars they produced themselves.

If we consider a person’s life as his movement forward along the path of development, then we can say that life is a process of constantly overcoming new boundaries, achieving best results, self-development and personal growth. And in this process, one of the dominant roles is played by the question of the meaning of all actions and deeds that a person performs. What influences human activity and behavior? Why is he even doing anything? What motivates him? What motivates? After all, any action (and even inaction) almost always has its own motive.

So that we can better communicate with each other, so that it is easier for us to understand the people around us and ourselves, as well as the actions of others and our own, we should talk about what motivation is. This question is as important for psychology as, for example, its foundations or methods. For this reason, we devote a separate lesson to the topic of motivation, in the process of studying which we will get acquainted with the process of formation of motivation, the motivation system, theories of motivation, its types (work, educational, self-motivation). We will learn about methods of managing the motivation of work and staff, students, schoolchildren and ourselves; Let's talk in detail about ways to stimulate and increase motivation.

What is motivation?

And the conversation about motivation should begin with a clear definition of this concept. The concept of "motivation" comes from the Latin word "movere" to move. There are several definitions of motivation:

• Motivation- this is an incentive to action.
• Motivation- this is a person’s ability to satisfy his needs through any activity.
• Motivation is a dynamic psychophysiological process that controls human behavior and determines its organization, direction, stability and activity.

Currently, this concept is understood differently by different scientists. Some are of the opinion that motivation is a set of processes responsible for motivation and activity. Others define motivation as a set of motives.

Motive- this is an ideal or material object, the achievement of which is the meaning of activity. It appears to a person in the form of specific experiences, which can be characterized by positive emotions from achieving this object, or negative ones associated with dissatisfaction in the present situation. To understand the motive requires serious work. internal work.

A motive is often confused with a need or goal, but a need is a subconscious desire to eliminate discomfort, and a goal is the result of a conscious goal-setting process. For example, hunger is a need, the desire to eat is a motive, and food to which a person’s hands reach is a goal.

Motivation is a complex psychological phenomenon, which is why its diversity is associated.

Types of motivation

In psychology, it is customary to distinguish the following types of human motivation:

• Extrinsic motivation- this is motivation that is not related to the content of some activity, but is determined by circumstances external to the person (participation in competitions to receive a reward, etc.).
• Intrinsic motivation- this is motivation associated with the content of the activity, but not with external circumstances (playing sports because it brings positive emotions, etc.).
• Positive motivation- this is motivation based on positive incentives (if I don’t be capricious, my parents will let me play computer game and so on.).
• Negative motivation- this is motivation based on negative incentives (if I don’t be capricious, then my parents won’t scold me, etc.).
• Sustainable motivation- this is motivation based on the natural needs of a person (quenching thirst, hunger, etc.).
• Unsustainable motivation- this is motivation that requires constant external support (quit smoking, lose weight, etc.).

Sustainable and unstable motivation also differs in type. There are two main types of motivation: “towards something” or “from something” (this is also often called the “carrot and stick method”). But there are additional types of motivation:

• Individual motivation aimed at maintaining self-regulation (thirst, hunger, avoiding pain, maintaining temperature, etc.);
• Group motivation(caring for offspring, finding one’s place in society, maintaining the structure of society, etc.);
• Cognitive motivation (play activity, exploratory behavior).

In addition, there are separate motives that drive people’s actions:

• Self-affirmation motive- the desire to assert oneself in society, to gain a certain status and respect. Sometimes this desire is referred to as prestige motivation (the desire to achieve and maintain a higher status).
• Identification motive- the desire to be like someone (an authority, an idol, a father, etc.).
• Power motive- a person’s desire to influence others, to lead them, to direct their actions.
• Procedural-substantive motives- motivation to action through non- external factors, but the process and content of activity.
• External motives- factors inducing action are outside the activity (prestige, material wealth, etc.).
• Self-development motive the desire for personal growth and realizing one’s potential.
• Achievement motive- the desire to achieve better results and master something.
• Prosocial motives (socially significant)- motives that are associated with a sense of duty, responsibility to people.
• Motive of affiliation (joining)- the desire to establish and maintain connections with other people, to have contact and pleasant communication with them.

Any type of motivation is very important important role in the study of human psychology and behavior. But what influences a person's motivation? What factors? It is to study these issues that theories of motivation are used.

Theories of motivation

Motivation theories study and analyze human needs, their content and how they relate to his motivation. They attempt to understand what motivates a person to engage in a particular activity, what needs motivate his behavior. The study of these needs led to the emergence three main directions:

Let's look at each direction in more detail.

Analyze factors that influence motivation. For the most part, they focus on analyzing human needs. Content theories describe the structure of needs and their content, as well as how all this is related to the motivation of the individual. The emphasis is on understanding what motivates a person to act from within. The main theories of this direction are: hierarchy theory Maslow's needs, Alderfer's ERG theory, McClelland's acquired needs theory, and Herzberg's two-factor theory.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory

Its main provisions are:

• A person always feels the need for something;
• Strongly expressed needs experienced by a person can be combined into groups;
• The groups of needs are arranged hierarchically;
• A person is driven to action by unsatisfied needs; satisfied needs are not motivation;
• The place of a satisfied need is taken by an unsatisfied one;
• In a normal state, a person feels several needs at once, which interact with each other in a complex manner;
• The first person satisfies the needs located at the base of the pyramid, then the needs of a higher level begin to influence the person;
• A person is able to satisfy higher level needs a large number ways than lower level needs.

Maslow's pyramid of needs looks like this:

In his work “Towards the Psychology of Being,” Maslow after some time added a list of higher needs, calling them “growth needs” (existential values). But he also noted that they are difficult to describe, because... all are closely interconnected with each other. This list included: perfection, integrity, justice, completeness, vitality, beauty, simplicity, richness of manifestations, goodness, truth, ease, honesty and some others. According to Maslow, growth needs are often the most powerful motive for human activity and are part of the structure of personal growth.

You can find out for yourself how true Maslow's studies are. To do this, you just need to make a list of the most significant needs for you, divide them into groups according to Maslow’s pyramid of needs, and try to determine which needs are satisfied by you first, which ones second, etc. You can also find out which level of need satisfaction predominates in your behavior and the behavior of people you know.

Another interesting fact is that Abraham Maslow was of the opinion that only 2% of all people reach the “stage of self-realization.” Match your needs with your life results and you will see whether you are one of these people or not.

You can get acquainted with Maslow's theory in more detail here.

Alderfer's ERG theory

He believes that all human needs can be combined into three large groups:

• Existence needs (safety, physiological needs);
• Communication needs (needs social nature; desire to have friends, family, colleagues, enemies, etc. + part of the needs from Maslow’s pyramid: recognition, self-affirmation);
• Growth needs (self-expression needs from Maslow’s pyramid).

Maslow's theory differs from Alderfer's theory only in that, according to Maslow, movement from needs to needs is possible only from the bottom up. Alderfer believes that movement is possible in both directions. Move up if the needs of the lower level are satisfied, and vice versa. Moreover, if a need at a higher level is not satisfied, the need at a lower level intensifies, and a person’s attention switches to this lower level.

For clarity, you can take Maslow’s pyramid of needs and see how needs are met in your case. If you notice that you are moving up the levels, then this process, according to Alderfer, will be a process of satisfaction. If you go down through the levels, then this is frustration (defeat in the desire to satisfy the need). If, for example, you cannot satisfy your growth needs, then your attention will switch to connection needs, which will be called frustration. In this case, in order to return to the satisfaction process, the need must be satisfied lower level, thereby rising to the top.

You can read more about Alderfer's theory.

McClelland's theory of acquired needs

His theory is associated with the study and description of the needs of achievement, participation and dominance. These needs are acquired throughout life and (subject to a strong presence) have an impact on a person.

You can easily determine which needs have the greatest impact on your activities: if you strive to achieve your goals more effectively than before, then you are motivated to satisfy the need for achievement. If you strive for friendly relations, try to establish and maintain contacts, if the approval, support and opinions of others are important to you, then you strive to satisfy mainly the needs of complicity. If you notice your desire to control others, influence them, take responsibility for the actions and behavior of others, then the desire to satisfy the need to rule prevails in you.

By the way, people with a predominant need to rule are divided into 2 groups:

• Group 1 - people striving for power for the sake of power;
• Group 2 - people striving for power for the sake of implementing some common cause.

Knowing what type of needs prevails in you or those around you, you can more deeply understand the motives of your own or others’ actions, and use this knowledge to make life and relationships with others better.

More information about McClellanad's theory can be found here.

Herzberg's two factor theory

His theory owes its appearance to the growing need to clarify the influence of material and intangible factors on human motivation.

Material factors (hygienic) are associated with a person’s self-expression, his internal needs, the environment in which a person operates (amount of wages, living and working conditions, status, relationships with people, etc.).

Intangible factors (motivating) are associated with the nature and essence of human activity (achievements, public acceptance, success, prospects, etc.).

Data about this theory can be very effectively used by managers of companies, firms and other organizations when analyzing the work of their employees. For example, the lack or absence of hygienic material factors can lead to an employee being dissatisfied with his job. But if there are enough material factors, then in themselves they are not motivating. And the absence of intangible factors does not lead to dissatisfaction, but their presence causes satisfaction and is an effective motivator. It should also be noted that Frederick Herzberg made the paradoxical conclusion that wages are not a factor motivating a person to action.

You can learn more about this theory.

They analyze how a person distributes efforts to achieve new goals, and what type of behavior he will choose for this. In process theories, a person's behavior is determined not only by needs, but is a function of his perceptions and expectations associated with a particular situation, and the possible consequences of the type of behavior that the person chooses. Today there are more than 50 procedural theories of motivation, but the main ones in this direction are considered to be: Vroom’s theory, Adams’ theory, Porter-Lawler’s theory, Locke’s theory and the concept of participative management. Let's talk about them in more detail.

Vroom's expectancy theory

This theory is based on the proposition that the presence of a need is not the only condition for motivating a person to achieve something. A person must expect that the type of behavior he has chosen will lead him to satisfy his needs. An individual's behavior is always associated with a choice from two or more options. And what he chooses determines what he does and how he does it. To put it differently, according to Vroom, motivation depends on how much a person wants to get and how much it is possible for him, how much effort he is willing to make for this.

Vroom's expectancy theory is perfect for use in practice to increase employee motivation in organizations, and is very useful for managers at various levels. Because Expectations theory comes down to the goals and needs of specific employees, then managers must ensure that their subordinates satisfy their needs and at the same time achieve the goals of the organization. We must try to achieve maximum correspondence between what the employee can do and what is required of him. To increase the motivation of subordinates, managers must determine their needs, possible results their work and make sure that they have the necessary resources to perform their duties efficiently (time, conditions, tools). Only with the correct balance of these criteria can the maximum result be achieved, which will be useful for the employee and important for the organization.

You can learn more about Vroom's theory by going to this.

Adams' theory of equality (justice)

This theory states that a person evaluates the effectiveness of motivation not according to certain factors, but taking into account the assessments of rewards that were received by other people under similar conditions. Those. motivation is considered not from the point of view of the individual's needs, but on the basis of his comparison of himself with others. We are talking about subjective assessments and people compare their efforts and the results obtained with the efforts and results of others. And here there are three options: underestimation, fair assessment, overestimation.

If we take the employee of the organization again, we can say that he evaluates the size of his remuneration with the size of the remuneration of other employees. This takes into account the conditions in which he and others work. And if an employee feels that, for example, he is undervalued and has been treated unfairly, then he can do the following: deliberately distort his contribution and results, as well as the contributions and results of others; try to get others to change their contributions and results; change the contributions and results of others; choose other parameters for comparison or simply quit your job. Therefore, the manager must always be attentive to whether his subordinates feel unfair towards themselves, seek from employees a clear understanding of the required results, encourage employees, taking into account the fact that they are interested not so much in how they will be assessed, but in how they will be rated compared to others.

Porter-Lawler model

Their comprehensive theory of motivation includes elements of Vroom's expectancy theory and Adams' equity theory. There are five variables in this model: effort, perception, results obtained, reward and satisfaction.

According to this theory, results depend on the efforts, abilities and characteristics of a person, and on his awareness of his role. The level of effort determines the value of the reward and the degree of confidence that the effort will actually bring a certain reward. It also establishes a correspondence between remuneration and results, i.e. a person satisfies his needs with the help of rewards for achieving a certain result.

If you study and analyze all the components of the Porter-Lawler theory in more detail, you can understand the mechanism of motivation for more deep level. The effort a person expends depends on how valuable the reward is to him and on the person's belief in their relationship. When a person achieves certain results, he feels satisfaction and self-esteem.

There are also connections between performance and reward. On the one hand, for example, results and rewards may depend on the opportunities that a manager in an organization determines for his employee. On the other hand, the employee has his own opinion about how fair the remuneration for certain results is. The result of fairness of internal and external rewards will be satisfaction, which is a qualitative indicator of the value of the reward for the employee. And the degree of this satisfaction will further influence the employee’s perception of other situations.

E. Locke's theory of goal setting

The premise of this theory is that a person’s behavior is determined by the goals he sets for himself, because It is to achieve them that he performs certain actions. It is important to note that goal setting is a conscious process, and a person’s conscious intentions and goals determine his behavior. Guided by emotional experiences, a person evaluates the events happening around him. Based on this, he sets himself goals that he intends to achieve, and, based on these goals, he acts in a certain way. It turns out that the chosen strategy of action leads to certain results that bring satisfaction to a person.

In order, for example, to raise the level of staff motivation in an organization, according to Locke’s theory, you can use several important principles. First, it is necessary to clearly set a goal for employees so that they understand exactly what is required of them. Secondly, the level of the tasks assigned should be of medium or high complexity, because Thanks to this, better results are achieved. Thirdly, employees must express their consent to complete assigned tasks and achieve set goals. Fourthly, employees should receive feedback on their progress, because this connection is an indicator that the right path has been chosen or what other efforts need to be made to achieve the goal. And fifthly, the employees themselves should be involved in setting goals. This has a better impact on a person than when goals are set (imposed) on him by other people, and also contributes to a more accurate understanding by the employee of his tasks.

The concept of participatory management

Participatory management concepts were developed in the United States through experiments to improve labor productivity. From these concepts it follows that a person in an organization manifests himself not only as a performer, but also shows interest in the organization of his activities, working conditions, and the effectiveness of his actions. This indicates that the employee has an interest in participating in various processes, occurring in his organization and related to his activities, but beyond the scope of the functions he performs.

In fact, it looks like this: if an employee takes an active part in various activities within the organization and receives satisfaction from it, then he will work better, of higher quality and more productively. If an employee is allowed to make decisions in matters related to his work in the organization, this will motivate him to better performance their responsibilities. This also contributes to the fact that the employee’s contribution to the life of the organization will be much greater, because its potential is exploited to the maximum.

And another important area in the study and analysis of human needs are theories based on a specific picture of the employee.

Theories based on a specific picture of the worker, take as a basis a certain sample of an employee, his needs and motives. These theories include: McGregor's theory and Ouchi's theory.

McGregor's XY theory

His theory is based on two premises:

• Authoritarian Employee Management - Theory X
• Democratic Employee Leadership - Theory Y

These two theories imply completely different guidelines for motivating people and appeal to different needs and motives.

Theory X assumes that employees of an organization are inherently lazy and will try to avoid active work. Therefore they must be supervised. Designed for this purpose special systems control. Based on Theory X, without an attractive reward system, employees of an organization will be passive and will try to avoid responsibility.

So, for example, based on the provisions of theory X, it follows that average worker has a dislike for work and a reluctance to work; he prefers to be led, to be directed, and tries to avoid responsibility. To increase employee motivation, managers must pay special attention to various incentive programs, carefully monitor work, and direct the activities of employees. If necessary, coercive methods and a system of punishment should be used in order to realize the goals set by the organization.

Theory Y takes as its starting point the initial ambition of employees and assumes their internal incentives. In this theory, employees themselves take the initiative to take responsibility, self-control and self-government, because receive emotional satisfaction from fulfilling their duties.

From the premises of Theory Y, it follows that the average worker, under proper conditions, will learn to bear responsibility, approach work creatively and creatively, and control himself independently. In this case, work is akin to a pleasant pastime. It is much easier for managers to stimulate the motivation of their employees than in the first case, because employees will independently strive to better perform their duties. Employees should be shown that they have free space for their activities, that they can express themselves and realize themselves. Thus, their potential will be fully utilized.

You can also use McGregor’s theory to better understand what motivates you to carry out a certain activity. Project the X and Y theory onto yourself. By knowing what motivates you and what approach you need to be more productive, you can find the best job for you or even try to point out to your manager that you can change your management strategy to improve the performance of employees and the entire organization in in general.

You can learn more about the XY theory.

Ouchi's Z Theory

Theory Z is based on Japanese experiments in psychology and supplemented with premises from McGregor's XY theory. Fundamental to Theory Z is the principle of collectivism, in which the organization is represented as a whole labor clan or a large family. The main task is to align the goals of employees with the goals of the enterprise.

To be guided by Theory Z when organizing the activities of employees, you need to keep in mind that most of them like to work in a team and want to have a perspective career growth, associated, among other things, with their age. Employees also trust that the employer will take care of them, and they themselves are responsible for the work they do. The company must provide its employees with training and professional development programs. The term for which the employee is hired plays a big role. It is best if the hire is for life. To increase employee motivation, managers must achieve their belief in common goals and pay great attention to their well-being.

Read more about Z-theory.

The theories of motivation discussed above are by far the most popular, but not exhaustive. The list of currently existing theories of motivation can be supplemented with dozens more theories (hedonic theory, psychoanalytic theory, drive theory, conditioned reflexes and many others). But the task this lesson is a consideration of not only theories, but also methods of human motivation, which are widely used today to motivate people of completely different categories and in completely different areas.

Motivation methods

All methods of motivation that are successfully used in human life today can be divided into three main categories:

• Staff motivation
• Self-motivation

Below we will look at each category separately.

Staff motivation

Staff motivation is a system of moral and material incentives for workers. It implies a set of measures to increase labor activity and labor efficiency. These measures can be very different and depend on what kind of incentive system is provided in the organization, what general system management and what are the features of the organization itself.

Methods of motivating personnel can be divided into economic, organizational-administrative and socio-psychological.

• Economic methods imply material motivation, i.e. employees fulfilling their duties and achieving certain results for the provision of material benefits.
• Organizational and administrative methods based on power, submission to regulations, laws, charter, subordination, etc. They can also rely on the possibility of coercion.
• Social-psychological methods are used to increase social activity workers. Here the influence on the consciousness of people, their aesthetic, religious, social and other interests is carried out, as well as social stimulation of work activity.

Considering that all people are different, using any one method for motivation seems ineffective, therefore, in management practice, in most cases, all three methods and their combinations should be present. For example, using only organizational, administrative or economic methods will not allow activating the creative potential of employees. But only the socio-psychological or organizational-administrative method (control, instructions, instruction) will not “hook” those people who are motivated by material incentives (salary increases, bonuses, bonuses, etc.). The success of measures that increase motivation depends on their competent and comprehensive implementation, as well as on systematic monitoring of employees and skillful identification of the needs of each employee individually.

You can find out more about staff motivation here.

- this is a very important stage towards the formation of motives in students that can give meaning to their studies, and the fact itself educational activities do important goal for a pupil or student. Otherwise, successful learning will become impossible. Motivation to learn, unfortunately, manifests itself quite rarely. It is for this reason that you need to use various methods its formation so that it can provide and maintain fruitful learning activities over a long period of time. There are quite a lot of methods/techniques for developing motivation for learning activities. Below are the most common ones.

• Creating entertaining situations is the process of introducing interesting and entertaining experiences, life examples, paradoxical facts, unusual analogies that will attract the attention of students and arouse their interest in the subject of study.
• Emotional experiences- these are experiences that are created by imagining unusual facts and conducting experiments during classes, and are also caused by the scale and uniqueness of the material presented.
• Comparison of scientific and everyday interpretations natural phenomena - this is a technique in which some scientific facts and are compared with changes in people’s lifestyles, which arouses students’ interest and desire to learn more, because it reflects reality.
• Creating situations of cognitive dispute- this technique is based on the fact that a dispute always causes increased interest in the topic. Involving students in scientific disputes helps deepen their knowledge, attracts their attention, arouses a wave of interest and a desire to understand the disputed issue.
• Creating situations for success in learning This technique is used mainly in relation to students who experience certain difficulties in learning. The technique is based on the fact that joyful experiences help overcome learning difficulties.

In addition to the methods listed above, there are other methods of increasing motivation to learn. Such methods are considered to be bringing the content of educational material closer to important discoveries and achievements, creating situations of novelty and relevance. There is also positive and negative cognitive motivation (see above (positive or negative motivation).

Some scientists point out that students' motivation is greatly influenced by the content of educational activities and the content of educational material. It follows that the more interesting educational material and the more the student/student is involved in active process learning, the more his motivation for this process increases.

Often social motives also influence increased motivation. For example, the desire to be useful or occupy a certain position in society, the desire to earn authority, etc.

As you can see, in order to increase the motivation of schoolchildren and university students to learn, you can use completely different methods, but it is important to understand that these methods will always be different. In some cases, emphasis should be placed on collective motivation. For example, ask each member of the group to express their subjective opinion on a particular issue, involve students in discussions, thereby awakening interest and activity. In other cases, it is necessary to take into account the individuality of each student, studying their behavior and needs. Some may enjoy doing their own research and then giving a presentation and this will satisfy the need for self-actualization. Someone needs to realize their progress on the path of learning, then they should praise the student, point out to him his progress, even if it is very small, and encourage him. This will create a feeling of success and a desire to move in this direction. In another case, you need to give as many analogies as possible between the material being studied and real life so that students have the opportunity to realize the importance of what they are learning, thereby arousing their interest. The main conditions for the formation cognitive activity There will always be reliance on the active thought process of students, conducting the educational process in accordance with their level of development and the emotional atmosphere during classes.

Some useful tips You can find information about student motivation in.

And last but not least important issue, which we need to consider will be the issue of self-motivation. After all, often what a person strives for and what he achieves in the end depends not so much on how he is motivated by employers, teachers and other people around him, but on how much he is able to motivate himself independently.

Self-motivation

Self-motivation- this is a person’s desire or desire for something, based on his inner beliefs; a stimulus for an action he wants to perform.

If we talk about self-motivation a little differently, we can characterize it like this:

Self-motivation is a person’s influence on his state when external motivation ceases to influence him properly. For example, when something doesn’t work out for you and things go very badly, you want to give up everything, give up, but you find reasons for yourself to continue acting.

Self-motivation is very individual, because... Each person chooses different ways to motivate themselves. But there are certain methods that have a positive effect on most people. Let's talk about them more specifically.

Affirmations

Affirmations- these are special small texts or expressions that influence a person mainly on psychological level.

Many successful people use affirmations in their daily lives in order to constantly have internal incentives to do something. Very often they are used by people to change their attitude towards something, to remove psychological and subconscious blocks. In order to create the most effective affirmations for yourself, you should use the following technique: you need to take a blank sheet of paper and divide it into two parts with a line. On the left are the beliefs and blocks that you believe have a negative impact on your activities. And on the right are positive affirmations. For example, you know that you have a fear of communicating with your boss at work, but you often have to talk to him, and because of this you constantly feel stressed, uncomfortable and reluctant to go to work. Write on one part of the sheet “I am afraid to communicate with my boss”, and on the other - “I like to communicate with my boss.” This will be your affirmation. Affirmations, as a rule, are used not individually, but comprehensively, i.e., in addition to the fact that you are afraid of communicating with your boss, you must identify some of your other fears and weak sides. There can be quite a lot of them. To identify them to the maximum, you need to do some pretty thorough work on yourself: take time, create a comfortable environment so that nothing distracts you, and think carefully about what you would like to change in yourself and what you are afraid of. After you write everything down on a piece of paper, write affirmations for it all, cut the sheet into two parts with scissors and leave only the part with affirmations. For them to begin to act and influence you and your life, read your affirmations every day. It is best if it is immediately after you wake up and before going to bed. Make reading affirmations a daily practice. After some time, you will begin to notice changes in yourself and your life. Remember that affirmations have an effect on a subconscious level.

Detailed information you will find about affirmations.

Self-hypnosis

Self-hypnosis- this is the process of a person influencing his psyche in order to change his behavior, i.e. a method of forming new behavior that was not previously characteristic.

In order to convince yourself of certain things, you need to make a list for yourself correct statements and installations. For example, if at some moments you feel a loss of strength and a depressed state, you can use the statement: “I am full of energy and strength!” Repeat it as often as possible: both in moments of decline and in moments of normalcy. At first you may not notice the impact of such self-hypnosis, but with practice you will come to the point that you will begin to notice its influence. In order for statements and attitudes to have the greatest effect, you need to adhere to several rules: statements should reflect what you want, and not what you are trying to get rid of. Don't use the particle "not". For example, say not: “I don’t feel bad,” but: “I feel good.” Any installation should be short and have a specific meaning. It is important to form an attitude in the present tense. And most importantly, repeat the settings meaningfully, and not just by memorizing the text. And try to do this as often as possible.

Biographies of famous personalities

This method is one of the most effective for self-motivation. It consists of getting to know the lives of successful people who have achieved outstanding results in any area.

If you feel that you have lost the motivation to perform, achieve success, continue working on a project, or even work on yourself, do the following: think about who famous personalities arouses your interest and admiration. This could be a businessman, the founder of a company, a personal growth coach, a scientist, an athlete, a movie star, etc. Find the biography of this person, articles about him, his statements or any other information. Start studying the material you found. Surely, you will find in this person’s life many motivating moments, examples of perseverance and the desire to move forward no matter what. While reading, you will begin to feel the desire to pull yourself together, continue to strive for your intended goal, and your motivation will increase many times over. Read books, articles, watch films about the lives of outstanding people whenever you feel that your motivation is weak and needs to be recharged. This practice will allow you to always be in good shape and have strong motivation, because you will have clear example of how people stay true to their dreams and continue to believe in themselves and their success.

We wrote about what will is in one of our previous lessons. The influence of willpower on a person’s life cannot be overestimated. It is a strong will that helps a person develop, self-improvement and reach new heights. It helps you to always keep yourself in control, not to bend under the pressure of problems and circumstances, to be strong, persistent and decisive.

The simplest, and at the same time, the most in a complicated way The development of willpower is to do what you don’t want to do. It is “doing through I don’t want”, overcoming difficulties, that makes a person stronger. If you don’t want to do something, then the easiest thing is to simply put it off, leave it for later. And for this reason, many people do not achieve their goals, give up in difficult moments, succumb to their weaknesses and follow the lead of their laziness. Getting rid of bad habits is also a training of willpower. If you feel that some habit is dominating you, then simply give it up. At first it will be difficult, because... bad habits take away your energy. But then you will notice that you have become stronger and the habit no longer controls your actions. Start training willpower small, gradually raising the bar. On the contrary, in your to-do list, always choose the most difficult thing and do it first. Simple things will be easier to do. Regular training of your willpower will begin to produce results over time, and you will see how easier it has become for you to cope with your weaknesses, reluctance to do something and laziness. And this, in turn, will make you stronger and better.

Visualization

Visualization- this is another very effective method to increase your motivation. It consists of a mental representation of what you want.

This is done very simply: try to choose a time so that no one will distract you, sit comfortably, relax and close your eyes. Just sit and watch your breathing for a while. Breathe evenly, calmly, measuredly. Gradually begin to imagine pictures of what you want to achieve. Don't just think about it, imagine it as if you already have it. If you really want a new car, then imagine that you are sitting in it, turning the ignition key, taking the steering wheel, pressing the gas pedal and driving away. If you want to be in some place that is important to you, then imagine that you are already there, try to outline all the details, the environment, your feelings. Spend 15-20 minutes on visualization. After you finish, you will feel that you have a strong desire to quickly start doing something to achieve your goal. Take action right away. Daily visualization practice will help you always remember what you want most. And most importantly, you will always have a charge of energy to do something, and your motivation will always be at a high level, which means that what you want will become closer and closer to you.

Concluding the conversation about self-motivation, we can say that it is the most important stage on the path of self-development and personal growth. After all, the people nearby are not always able to awaken in us the desire to act. And it is much better when a person is able to make himself, find an approach to himself, study his strengths and weaknesses and learn in any situation to awaken within himself the desire to move forward, reach new heights, and achieve his goals.

In conclusion, it is worth noting that knowledge about motivation and applying it in your everyday life is an opportunity to understand yourself and others at a deep level, find an approach to people, and make your relationships with them more effective and enjoyable. This is an opportunity to make life better. It doesn’t matter whether you are the head of a large company or just its employee, whether you teach other people something or learn yourself, help someone achieve something or strive to achieve outstanding results yourself, but if you know what others need and yourself, then this is the key to development, growth and success.

Literature

If you want to get acquainted with the topic of motivation in more detail and understand the intricacies of this issue, you can use the sources listed below:

• Babansky Yu. K. Intensification of the learning process. M., 1989
• Vinogradova M.D. Collective cognitive activity. M., 1987
• Vikhansky O.S., Naumov A.I. Management. M.: Gardika, 1999
• Gonoblin F. N. Attention and its education. M., 1982
• Dyatlov V.A., Kibanov A.Ya., Pikhalo V.T. Personnel Management. M.: PRIOR, 1998
• Egorshin A.P. Personnel Management. Nizhny Novgorod: NIMB, 1999.
• Ermolaev B. A. Teach to learn. M., 1988
• Eretsky M. N. Improving training in a technical school. M., 1987
• Ilyin E.P. Motivation and motives. St. Petersburg: Peter, 2000
• Knorring V.I. Theory, practice and art of management: Textbook for universities specializing in “Management”. M: NORM INFRA, 1999
• Lipatov V.S. Personnel management of enterprises and organizations. M.: Lux, 1996
• Polya M.N. How to encourage students to study and work. Chisinau 1989
• Skatkin M.N. Improving learning processes. M., 1981
• Strakhov I. V. Cultivating attention in students. M., 1988
• Shamova T.I. Activation of student learning. M., 1982.
• Shchukina G. I. Activation cognitive activity students in the educational process. M., 1989

Test your knowledge

If you want to test your knowledge on the topic of this lesson, you can take a short test consisting of several questions. For each question, only 1 option can be correct. After you select one of the options, the system automatically proceeds to next question. The points you receive are affected by the correctness of your answers and the time spent on completion. Please note that the questions are different each time and the options are mixed.