Have you heard of the name Maslow? No? Well, he’s actually a pioneer of the social sciences and is known to those who took up psychology, political science or behavioral sciences as their degrees. The social scientists would probably say, “if economics got Marx’s triangle, we got Maslow’s hierarchy of needs”.

Maslow’s triangle is composed of 5 goals that a human being should attain:

1. The physiological part.
2. His/her own safety.
3. Love.
4. Self-Esteem.
5. Self-fulfillment.

It’s something transitional. The person must fulfill first number 1 before proceeding to number 2; it is therefore implied that for a person to be motivated (reach number 5), he must first accomplish the first 4.

Photo taken from http://goosei.info

Why use icebreakers?

•to create a positive group atmosphere
•to help people relax
•to break down social barriers
•to energize and motivate
•to help people think outside the box
•to help people to get to know one another

The right icebreaker games make a vital difference to your meeting, training or team building, and in building your reputation as a good facilitator? Ice Breakers can be an effective way of starting a training session or team-building event. As interactive and often fun sessions run before the main proceedings, they help people get to know each other and buy into the purpose of the event.

In a job interview, the employer usually ask questions on what motivates a candidate. I, myself, encountered such questions from my previous employers in describing the work environment or culture in which you are most productive and happy.

Here are some frequently asked questions that you should not tend to forget:

•Imagine you have received a coveted national award five years from now. Why did you receive the award, what is the award, and what are the circumstances under which you are receiving the award?
•What goals, including career goals, have you set for your life?
•How would you define “success” for your career? At the end of your work life, what must have been present for you to feel as if you had a successful career?
•Describe a work situation in which you can demonstrate that you motivated another person.

As seen here on this website (previous post), Douglas McGregor created a theory regarding job motivation. Now, another theoretician made his own hypothesis about it. Frederick Herzberg, a prominent psychologist who has published his own book regarding job motivation, said that hygiene is the key to every office that has motivated employees. If you think hygiene refers to the physical cleanliness of the office, well, it’s more than that. It requires cleanliness in the organization (people-related), policies, management (type of leadership), working conditions, job security and so on and so forth. Basically, it envelopes all the qualities of a “perfect” job arena. Can managers really do that?

Photo taken from http://www.wpclipart.com

Motivation starts with the desire to be free. Total freedom is not possible or desirable, but the struggle to achieve that ideal is the basis for motivation.

Motivation is built on three basic elements:

1.Motivation starts with a need, a vision, a dream or the desire to achieve the seemingly impossible. Creativity is associated with ideas, projects and goals, which can be considered a path to freedom.

2.Develop a love-to-learn, become involved with risky ventures and continually seek new opportunities. Success is based on learning what works and does not work.

3.Developing the ability to overcome barriers and to bounce back from discouragement or failure. Achievers learn to tolerate the agony of failure. In any worthwhile endeavor, barriers and failure will be there. Bouncing back requires creative thinking as it is a learning process. In addition, bouncing back requires starting again at square one.

Most likely the answer would be “goals”. Goal Setting is extremely important to motivation and success. A goal should be moderate, not too hard or too easy to complete. Certainly, you need some intelligence, knowledge base, study skills, and time management skills, but if you don’t have motivation, you won’t get far. Interest is also an important motivator as well as the desire to learn. When you link these two things together, you create success. Oftentimes, success in an endeavor that leads to more interest and a greater desire to learn, creating an upward spiral of motivation toward a goal you have established.

If you’re a manager then you’ve been told at least once that you have to “motivate your people.” But how do you do that? Here’s what you can do to get the job done.

Change your mindset. Forget about “motivating” people. You can’t see motivation. Motivation is inside another person’s head and heart. You can’t touch it. You can’t measure it. And, therefore you can’t manage it.

Think about managing the things you can see and measure. Start concentrating on behavior and performance. The things people say and do are behavior. The results of their efforts are performance.

Use the things you say and do to influence the behavior and performance of the people who work for you. Talk your talk. Walk your walk. Your people will pay attention to what you say and do and try to do what you want them to do.

Set clear targets. If your people don’t know what you want them to do, they’ll guess. And you may not get the behavior or performance you want. Learn to give good directions. Constantly check for understanding.

Continue reading from: buzzle.com

So you ask, “what makes a person motivated in his/her job?” Since this is a question leaning to the soft sciences, there are no rigid answers to it. Answers may vary from person to person and collecting such responses will only get you a long list of varied answers.

Douglas McGregor was brilliant enough to hypothesize two theories regarding job motivation. His first theory states that it is innate for humans to dislike work and will shun away from it if he/she can. People also prefer to be instructed rather than taking responsibility. If these theories are true (has been proven), then managers should think of ways how they could possibly motivate them (incentive – disincentive maybe?).

Photo taken from http://banditosbanditosbanditos.typepad.com

Some signs of demotivation

* Increased absenteeism/sickness.
* Incomplete or careless work.
* Lack of concentration.

Motivate yourself

Before you can inspire others to extend themselves, you need to develop your own sense of motivation. Here are some tips to help you.

* Build your confidence and develop self-belief. Success doesn�t always go to the strongest person, but to the person with the greatest conviction.
* If you work alone, identify an understanding person with whom you can talk through business issues and who will encourage you. A mentor can help here.
* If you feel overwhelmed by a daunting task, such as sorting out your tax or personal finances, it tends to affect the rest of your attitude. There are three ways you could deal with a large task:
o Divide it up into smaller chunks and start immediately on the first chunk.
o Use an independent specialist, who will have greater knowledge of the subject than you and can relieve you of the anxiety of dealing with the task.
o Delegate the task to a member of your staff. Delegation can be a great motivator � but dumping an unwanted job on someone isn�t.
* Assess, plan, act. Write a plan for yourself for the next year, both in business and personal terms. Set tough, but realistic objectives with timescales. We all react positively to these.
* Also write down why you want to do something, even if the reasons hardly seem important. Something as simple as: �I want a clear desk so I don�t have to start the day in a mess� is perfectly valid. Clean it up tonight and start tomorrow afresh.
* Use picture power or visualisation to fix your goals. Have you ever seen something in a shop window and longed for it? It is easier to visualise having something that you can see, so visualise the result you want. Savour the emotions you will feel when (not if) you land that order. Also, collect pictures that summarise these emotions � your dream house, boat, car or holiday � and pin these round your desk to remind yourself why you are doing it all.
* Tell people what you are going to do � it will make you feel more committed.
* Compile a record of past successes. When you feel you are achieving nothing, review your records to remind yourself what you have achieved already.
* Finally � give yourself a pat on the back. You deserve it for having the strength of character to go out and make things happen.

Source: lloydstsbbusiness.com

Your staff may say money is a motivator � but look closely and you will find that it is frequently more of a stepping-stone to another goal: for instance, money to travel, retire early or a desire for recognition.

* A sense of belonging motivates � the smaller the group to which someone belongs, the stronger the loyalty, motivation and effort.
* Participation motivates � people feel more motivated when they feel their involvement in a project is important and valued. Often we exclude our greatest assets � the people around us � from decisions in which they could be usefully included.
* Challenges motivate and people often rise to the occasion. However, it can also be demotivating if they are too difficult, or conversely, too easy to achieve.
* Motivation needs recognition and reward � even if it�s something as simple as a thank you.

What causes demotivation?

* Constantly moving goalposts � people lose sight of goals, or feel they will never reach them and so cease to care about them any more.
* Not knowing what is going on. If you do not bother to tell people what is happening, you can demotivate and possibly alienate them too. Uncertainty is a very destabilising emotion in a group.
* Not showing faith or trust in people.
* Arbitrary decisions which are not consistent for all members of staff, and humiliating people in front of their peers.
* Pay, work conditions or available facilities can affect motivation, and often small changes can make big differences.

Source: lloydstsbbusiness.com