(definition further explained in this post if you still aren't satisfied)

Monday, May 10, 2010

Your Own Brand of Gasoline

Some people are driven to put everything into whatever job is at hand, while others can't find motivation with a magnet and a metal detector.  Why?  Have the more determined people simply found what motivates them?  Are "lazy" people really just people who don't know how to make their tasks really matter to them?

What motivates you?  Maybe you like to prove to yourself that you can beast any challenge.  Maybe you're more determined to impress other people, even if it's not so much about boasting as it is about having a satisfying sense of personal pride.  Maybe you're just really competitive.  Or maybe you have to bribe yourself with candy just to get housework done.

This writer finds it difficult to be driven to finish schoolwork or housework.  Doing things for friends, however, is a different story.  I find myself willing to help people in almost any situation, despite whatever personal cost there may be to me.  I'll give basically all of myself for other people.  Maybe I have more trouble with schoolwork and housework because those things are supposed to benefit me directly, and I find more satisfaction in seeing my friends happy than I do in seeing a clean floor in my bedroom.  It might be because helping others has the immediate payoff of their happiness, while doing schoolwork isn't really rewarded until grades come out at the end of the semester.  In the end, I care about the people in my life very deeply, while I'm unsure what my own future holds.  I don't have a defined goal to work toward for myself or my career, but I do have a heart full of love.

When you think about what motivates you, what does that say about you as a person?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm the same way in a lot of respects. I'll go to great lengths to accomplish something for someone else, but often don't care enough when it comes to myself. I like to blame it on laziness often times, or claim that i just care about other people so much that i don't have time for myself. because i believe it's easier than admitting to myself that i just don't have the same love and motivation for myself as i do for everyone else in the world. even when i do strive for things that benefit me -- such as good grades, a healthy lifestyle, making the right decisions, etc. -- it's for someone else. I never strive for straight A's for me, it's for my parents. i don't want to disappoint them. i never stive for a healthy lifestyle for me, it's for the guys that surround me, and the girls that judge me.

I tell myself all the time that if i could stop living for everyone else and start living for myself, i might actually stick with the things i decide to do, such as excercising daily, or studying hard all semester for that perfect 4.0 GPA.

but when it comes to me...i have no motivation.

Ethan said...

Motivation can be a fickle thing. Children are very different when it comes to motivation and momentum in work, But adults tend to be like an old steam powered train. There is an old adage, “if you want someone to do a job for you, give it to someone that is already busy.” often times having the drive to do something and keep going to the end is hard to muster... I usually rest for 15 minuets before clocking in at work to gather the strength and energy to get me through the day. But generally once you get going on a task, it is easy to keep going so long as you don't stop to rest (one of the main reasons why I tend to skip breaks at work).
There is another underlying problem I am sensing here. It can be described with a simple example, it's easier to clean up other people's messes than your own. This phonomina is simple to explain. When we clean up others problems one of two things happen, both leading to the same end result. One, the people that you are helping are glad you are there helping and provide a salvo of complements and praise. Two, the people you are doing the task for are not there, or simply ungrateful, in this case you are doing the task despite them, because you are so awesome. In the end no matter if it is case one or two, the result is building yourself up. When you do things for yourself, you don't have this ego boosting experience.