I've always admired people with high internal motivation. Although there is no guarantee that they will succeed, even the fact that they enjoy the work is a benefit in itself. Those who are not in such a fortunate state spend their lives waiting for external factors that will motivate them. External factors are variable by definition, beyond the control of individuals, and ideal conditions that will ensure high motivation often do not occur.

I realized in the first months of my working life that motivation was needed to achieve any job. I've never been a lazy and reluctant type, but my internal motivation wasn't too high. I remember doing a lot of research to find out how I could increase my motivation.

Over the years, when I became a manager, I was responsible for my own motivation and the motivation of my colleagues. I was working motivated for myself, but I could not contribute to the motivation of my colleagues. This was not a special case for me, and I have not come across a single manager who can permanently increase teammates' motivation. I can't say that the face-to-face interviews did not work at all. Managers who were successful in human relations could increase the motivation of their teammates for periods ranging from a few hours to a few days. But this result was, of course, far from satisfactory.

I'm not suggesting that managers don't affect team performance at all, managers who love their work can inspire their teammates, and they work in a more motivated way on average. However, the internal motivation levels of people working in the same team are so different that I think the impact of the manager is limited.

Having high motivation is not just a necessary trait in business life. It is necessary to have a high motivation to study for exams, quit smoking, lose weight, play sports.

How does this blessed feeling, which we call motivation and which seems to be the key to achieving any job, form in a person? What can we do to increase our motivation? I will try to answer these questions based on my personal experience and research.

Several years ago, I came across an article explaining motivation, and based on my personal experience, I decided that what was described in the article was true. It is stated in the article that the motivations of people who do knowledge-based work are determined according to three main factors.

Social Environment

We mostly run our business as a team. The social environment we are in working life seriously affects our motivation. Do we like the people we work with? Do we respect them? Do they like and respect us? Is there positive ambiance in our work environment, or are cold winds blowing between people? When the answers to these questions are positive, our motivation is positively affected.

Autonomy

Every one of us is an incurable anarchist. We don't like someone telling us what to do. Anyone with children will understand this very well. They are more inclined to accept when we give them more than one option. We want to achieve a result stemmed from our decisions and efforts. When we are in such a condition, our motivation increases.

Competency

It's a nice feeling to be doing a job that other people can't do. As we master a job, we begin to experience this feeling more intensely. Over time, we become an authority on what we are interested in, and people start consulting us with ideas. We become more willing to do the work that we are the master of.

Other Factors

There are also differences in motivation between people in the same team, do similar jobs, and have about the same seniority. Why?

Personalities and perspectives on life influence internal motivation. Individuals who can look at life positively and have a high sense of responsibility have high internal motivations. In addition, I think how much a person needs success is an important factor. Some people need money, appreciation, and prominence more than others for financial or psychological reasons. So they're ready to make more sacrifices.

Individuals who have a goal with spiritual meaning can maintain a higher level of motivation for a longer period of time. To achieve the main goal, of course, it is necessary to accomplish everyday sub-goals. Since achieving the main goal usually takes too long, and even worse, it is often unclear when the main goal will be achieved, it is necessary to be happy with the realization of everyday goals.

Although I emphasize the importance of internal motivation, positive feedback from others contributes significantly to motivation. In addition, not doing the same things in the same way for a long time, learning, and developing are also factors that increase motivation.

It is also important not to deny the importance of habits in the formation of motivation. When you do a certain job in a disciplined manner for a certain period of time, it becomes a habit.

So far, I have not mentioned money or the benefit that will be obtained as the result of the accomplishments. If the work is uniform and boring that a human would not prefer to do, money becomes more important. As work becomes complex and difficult to achieve, the impact of money on motivation decreases. Here, of course, to what extent individuals need money is also an important factor.

Finally, I want to emphasize the importance of loving work. Although competence is formed over time, the maximum level of competence to be achieved is closely related to the person's talent. If a person likes an activity, we can assume that she/he is talented at that activity. Because competence is gained much faster in the gifted field, people can act more motivated in this regard.

CONCLUSION

I can summarize what I am trying to explain as follows:

• We do better when we love our job.

• If we have an overall goal to achieve, we work steadily to achieve it.

• Expecting others to motivate us doesn't work. We better look for ways to motivate ourselves.

• Not being too much motivated at the beginning is normal. Our motivation increases as we gain competence.

• A work environment dominated by positive emotions helps.

• Being determined and taking advantage of the power of habits is essential.

Thanks for reading.

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