It is not always easy to set goals, let alone achieve them! Life presents many difficulties that can become obstacles in their implementation. But when things get tough, the tough get going.
But what is this inner, force that drives us to do things? Psychologist David McClelland, one of the most important theorists with a specialization in motivation, mentions three factors that activate it:
1. The need for interaction with other people.
According to McClelland, there are two kinds of forces, the selfish, the egocentric force, the narcissistic that doesn’t care of the others. And the social force, which derives satisfaction from the interaction with the others, and the realization of common goals!
2. The need for correlation, that is, the pleasure derived from the presence of other people. Their motivation is to work with others and derive pleasure from this cooperation. Collaborating on a common goal offers energy and pleasure. Teamwork is done by members of the same team, with common goals.
3. The need to achieve a meaningful goal. Those with a high need for achievement want to score, and get feedback on their actions. These people are trying to get better and better. No matter how good they are, they are never happy and always want to get better.
The motivations also:
1. Direct the individual to plan his goals and make choices
Let’s say for example that a person wants to lose weight. To do so, the person needs to choose how to do it; with diet, exercise or something else in order to achieve his goal.
2. Make the person more active and motivate to stick to his goal.
For example, the person starts exercising to lose weight and manages to stay consistent in his program, i.e. he goes to the gym regularly and follows the coach’s advice. If he succeeds to lose his first kilo, then the partial achievement of his goal gives him a greater impetus to continue.
3. Affect the learning and cognitive processes used by the individual (focus-attention, memory, way of achieving).
So the person has managed to lose his first kilo. Now he wants to repeat the exercises that bring him those results and focus on them in order to achieve further more his goal.
4. Promote the start of certain activities and persistence in them even if they are difficult.
Gym is a difficult habit because you need to overcome yourself. But exercise betters the quality of life, makes us feel well and gain stamina. Let’s see the person we set as an example and have managed to lose the first kilo and feel rewarded; there is a good chance that he will continue this activity, despite all the frustrations he may feel from time to time.
Motivation makes us feel good, self-sufficient and capable and bring us closer to success.
