Motivation bleeds into everything we do, and it helps us choose where to focus in our busy lives. We have motivations for why we’re in relationships, listen to certain podcasts, and even how we work. Where we derive our motivation is connected to how we expend our energy long-term.

Intrinsic motivation is the sustainable way to drive employee performance. It’s all about incentive and deriving pleasure from the activity itself (e.g., a genuine interest in a project or strategic initiative) rather than because of any external benefits that might be obtained.

In other words, doing an act that is intrinsically motivated means you are doing it to achieve a deeper, more personal reward than money or any other external validation can offer. 

External motivators can only go so far to drive someone’s performance in life and in business. Personal fulfillment doesn’t come from a paycheck or the end-goal five years down the road; true motivation comes from waking up day-to-day excited to use our unique strengths and capabilities.

In this episode of the Best-Self Management Podcast, co-founders David Hassell and Shane Metcalf examine what lies behind intrinsic motivation in the workplace and why it’s a far more powerful way to encourage performance.

• Why external motivators fall short of intrinsic ones
• The formula for keeping your team intrinsically motivated
• What happens when we don’t take time to build relationships 
• Crafting a purpose that goes beyond profitability
• Honing potential and mastery to tune into your zone of genius

So, how do you connect your company’s vision to the work that your people do? Share with us in the comments!

“Most people don’t reach their full potential because they don’t know what their full potential is.” [5:34]

“Paired up against each other, a team that’s intrinsically motivated is going to out-perform a team that is externally motivated every day of the week.” [6:19]

“Everybody's unique genius and perspective are different. The things that I’m incompetent at or don’t give me energy can actually be someone else’s zone of genius and things they do exceptionally well.” [21:00]

“If you’re not tuned into whether your employees are having an experience where they can continue to grow, you’re at risk of losing people.” [29:12]

Primed to Perform by Neel Doshi and Lindsay McGregor

Drive by Dan Pink

Simon Sinek TED Talk

Listen to Best-Self Management Here

Find 15Five online

Follow 15Five on Facebook | Twitter | Linkedin