Friday, May 14, 2021

Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us

 Author: Daniel H Pink

Loved reading this book! Very well written and really liked the content!

As the name suggests, the book is about what motivates most people. The author talks about intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic true to it's name, comes from within and end of the day, it is what leads to the best work! Extrinsic is when we are motivated by external rewards; also called if-then rewards by the author. In such a case, the doer already knows that "if" they do this, "then" they will get that. The focus in such a case is on finishing the job and not so much on how the job is done. As a result, the doer will try to do whatever it takes to achieve the goal - trying unethical means, lower quality work and so on. Extrinsic motivation can work for routine jobs.

On the other hand, creative work requires intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation comes when an individual has autonomy be it over the task, the time, the technique and/or the team, they can see the purpose for what they're doing and can hope to achieve mastery.

Towards the end of the book, there are specific suggestions for individuals in various roles as well as organizations.

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