A month ago I ran a creative coaching workshop for an inspiring team of human rights activists. During the Q & A session someone asked a question that started me thinking. It sparked my curiosity for a subject which is fundamental in the pursuit of our goals: Motivation.
The question I was asked was in reference to how we can keep motivated once the initial excitement of doing something wears off. I wasn´t entirely satisfied with the answer I gave, so I set myself the challenge to research the subject matter further to find out what those who study motivation say about maintaining it when the going gets tough.
I was so motivated by the prospect of researching this subject that I began almost immediately. However, I was not prepared for the vast amount of information out there. It appears that the motivation industry is booming and everyone has something to say on the matter, and I mean everyone. I didn´t know where to begin or which sources to trust. The sheer volume of information was daunting and made me question myself and my ability to complete the task. At this stage, my initial motivation levels fell dramatically. According to what I discovered in my research, what I experienced is quite common. Our motivation is high during the choice phase, e.g., when I decided to do some research into motivation; however, it drops when we start to do the action, especially if there is a sense of lacking the skills to carry out the task. The science tells us that in order to raise the levels of motivation, the brain´s reward centres (which are located in the prefrontal cortex) need to be activated, i.e., dopamine needs to be released to these areas.
However, and without realising it at the time, the next steps I took when my motivation was low actually helped me to activate my brain´s reward centres and put my motivation back on track. This is what I did:
- I narrowed the focus of my research, so that the task at hand felt more manageable and like one I had the competence to complete.
- I reframed the task. Instead of seeing it as something I had to do, e.g. “I have to do this if I want to be a good coach”, I perceived it as something I was choosing to do: “This is a great learning opportunity which I can use to inform my coaching practice”. This gave me a sense of autonomy and choice.
- I spoke to my husband about what I was feeling. This support was important as he provided me with some much needed words of encouragement to help me to regain my motivation.
What follows is a brief summary of what I discovered in my research, including some of the most common techniques to create the conditions for motivation to thrive. I hope the rewards of finding out what I discovered – or just your pure curiosity to learn – keep your brain´s reward centres activated throughout.
Types of motivation
Firstly, let´s make sure we are all on the same page as to what motivation is. According to the dictionary, motivation is the reason why we do something or behave in a certain way. Many psychologists recognise two types of motivation, which I touch on briefly below:
Extrinsic motivation is inspired by our external environment. We are motivated to act or behave based on external influences, like rewards, threats of punishment, the approval of other people, etc., all of which increase our motivation levels over short periods of time. However, the absence or the overuse of rewards can have a negative impact, causing motivation to drop or even disappear.
Extrinsic motivation is most useful when completing a task that you don´t particularly like. For example, I love British Sunday roast dinners (if you`ve never had one you`ve been missing out). The thing is, I don`t like cooking them. However, the idea of eating a delicious roast potato with gravy is enough reward to make me cook it.
The second type is intrinsic motivation. This is inspired internally: the desire to act or behave comes from within ourselves. Intrinsic motivation is linked to our values. It comes from our passions, our sense of purpose and meaning. We are inspired to act without the need of rewards. And this type of motivation lasts over long periods of time. I was fascinated to learn that if we are given an external reward for something that was originally intrinsically motivated then our motivation can reduce overtime, resulting in us doing it less and less.
Let´s delve deeper into this type of motivation and discover how we can create the right conditions for it to flourish. There are three key elements which lay the foundations for high and sustainable levels of intrinsic motivation.
1. Autonomy – We need to feel autonomous over our actions or behaviour. Our motivation is fed when we feel that we are in control and have choices.
E.g. The example I used early was when I felt overwhelmed when I started my research. By reframing my perception of the task as something I was choosing to do, I created a sense of autonomy and freedom.
2. Competence – When doing a task, there needs to be a balance between ability and effort. If it is too simple we can get bored, if it´s too hard we can feel ill equipped to carry it out. The result? Low motivation. Therefore, choose a task that moves you out of your comfort zone whilst allowing you to use and build on your current skill set. It´s a fine balance.
E.g., By breaking down my task and narrowing the focus, I was able to make a complicated task seem manageable and achieve this balance.
3. Relatedness – this refers to the role played by positive relationships with the people around us. Support and feedback from those around us are crucial for our motivation.
E.g. Talking to my husband about what I was learning provided me with feedback and input into what I was doing. However, at one stage my husband´s advice was “find another topic if this is too hard!”… luckily I don´t listen to everything he says!
An awareness of the function of these three conditions in motivation is helpful when choosing and working towards our goals.
Those of you who were extrinsically motivated to read this article, before your motivation waivers let me give you some praise: “well done for making it this far”. And as a reward, below are the tips and techniques you´ve been waiting for. For those of you that were intrinsically motivated, hopefully your curiosity and enjoyment are keeping your prefrontal cortex stimulated.
Tips and techniques to get motivated and stay motivated.
Below are some recommendations to set the conditions for optimum and sustainable motivation levels which help to support autonomy, competence and relatedness.
Set strategies to motivate you.
- Make it matter – When you set your goal, attach a value to it to give it meaning and purpose for you. This makes it easier to maintain motivation over longer periods of time.
- Say it positively – State your goal in a positive way. This provides a sense of moving towards something positive rather than away from something negative. E.g., instead of “I have to write this article” try “I want to learn more about motivation and write about it”.
And here’s how to plan your approach whilst nurturing motivation.
- Preparation – When selecting your goal, take time to consider how much work is involved. This helps you mentally prepare for the work ahead and identify any potential obstacles.
- Mini goals – Break the goal into smaller ones with deadlines not too far away. This gives you a feeling of competence as you can see the progress you´ve made at regular intervals.
- Collaboration – When possible, working with other people towards a goal keeps us accountable to others rather than just ourselves, helping us to stay motivated.
Execute your plan.
- Visualisation -To get dopamine flowing into the reward areas of the brain, give yourself the space and time to visualise the end result: what will it look like, feel like, be like when you achieve your final goal?
- Priorities – Tackle your priorities at the time of day when your focus is at its highest. Most find this is at the beginning of the day. Find your time of day and use it wisely.
- Review your goals – Set aside time to regularly ask yourself questions like: Am I on target? Is the goal still relevant? What changes do I want to make to the goal? Reviewing your goals gives you flexibility to respond to your changing environment and contributes to a sense of autonomy.
- Monitor your progress – Keep track of the steps you take towards your goal. Ideally this would include feedback from others (including a coach!!). Make sure you recognise your achievements. E.g., whenever I write an article I ask my husband for feedback which, it pains me to say, is really useful.
- Rewards – Use rewards sparingly as, ironically, too many rewards can reduce motivation levels. However, a reward now and again helps increase the flow of dopamine. For example: I don´t like editing my work. Therefore, I have promised myself a pisco sour when I finish… five sentences to go!
I hope these tips and techniques are useful to you and help to raise your levels of motivation. Try them and see what works for you.
And if you are motivated to discover more about motivation then I would recommend starting with The Center for Self Determination Theory. For coaches I would highly recommend Motivational Interviewing – third edition by William R. Miller and Stephen Rollnick.
Good luck and keep motivated.
Emma