LUV Your Genius
6 - Your Motivation
Module 6: How you are motivated to achieve
Are we having fun yet? As before, this module builds on everything that went before, so you should review Units 1-5 before continuing, especially your Values from Unit 5.
Today we're looking at what's motivating you - are you moving purposefully toward a worthy goal, or are you being driven by fear of things going wrong?
Towards & Away
All motivation is either towards something, or away from something - another way to put that is Towards a dream, or Away from a fear. And it's not always clear which it is - even when we think it is!
For example, someone who is motivated by money could be being drawn towards the dream of everything that money could get for them. Or it could be by fear of not having enough - in other words, away from the fear of poverty. Or even just away from not having what money can get you.
Both forms of motivation have their place, and for long-term success "Towards" motivation is the most powerful.
Red Flags
Chris Howard, at his "Breakthrough to Success", talks about what he calls 'red flags' that indicate a possible "Away From" motivation, when you hear them in what people say - or in your own self-talk about your Values.
Amongst these are:
- “Must” – this indicates the Value may not really be yours, you’re being driven to it by others.
- “Have to” – the same applies, this indicates a lack of free will.
- “Should” – once again, somebody else’s priorities.
- “Want” – this may seem like an indicator of Towards motivation, but it’s really focused on the fact that you don’t have the thing you want.
It's important to realise that these 'red flags' are not absolute, they are only indicators.
Top 5 Values
OK, now you understand Towards and Away motivations, it's time to apply them to your top 5 Values. (You can do more, if you have the time, the top 5 should be enough for now).
Take your Values Elicitation worksheet from Module 4, and write "Towards" at the top of the 3rd column, and "Away" at the top of the 4th. You're now going to fill in what percentage you think each of your Values is motivated by either Towards or Away, out of 100. So the total of the two columns is always 100 percent.
Do that for your Values now, before reading on.
Away
Don't worry if a lot of your Values seem to be driven by Away motivation. Depending on where you are in your life, work and career, that may be appropriate. We all need a "kick up the bum" from time to time, to get us moving - Away motivation is brilliant for that.
The challenge with Away is, it fades as you get further away from the object of fear, and that can lead to complacency.
Towards
Towards motivation is brilliant when you're on your path, moving purposefully towards your goal. Its challenge is that sometimes the goal can be too far away to really create the necessary pull to generate movement, especially early in your path.
Towards and Away can work really well together - see this article on TheBusyFool blog:
How’s Your Motivation?
Now, it's important not to get hung up...
... on whether you have the "right" sort of motivation. It's just that it can be very helpful to have an understanding of what yours is, and how it could affect the way you use your Genius.
See you in the next unit - the last but one!
Course Modules
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At busy times it can take up to 15 mins for your next module to appear in the list - not ideal, we're working on it. And it's a great reason to go get a cup of tea and have a little break!
At busy times it can take up to 15 mins for your next module to appear in the list - not ideal, we're working on it. And it's a great reason to go get a cup of tea and have a little break!