We all inherently take actions that move us toward things that fulfill us. Often we don’t realize what’s happening. What if you were more aware of how this happens to you?
We all do things our own reasons. While our reasons are unique to us, there are similarities that can be captured and characterized. Armed with that insight, it’s easier look inside and capture your insightful answers to questions like:
We do our best work our driving forces are satisfied. We all inherently move toward things that fulfill us. Often we don’t realize why it’s happening.
Each driving force represents a lens through which we view the world, what we consider to be fulfilling and rewarding, and what sparks our initiative.
To help you understand your Driving Forces, let’s look at six categories of Motivators. Then, break these into two sub-categories of Driving Forces. Review the categories and their sub-categories below. Then ask yourself…
People who are driven by utilizing past experiences, intuition and seeking specific knowledge when necessary.
Driven by opportunities to learn, acquire knowledge and the discovery of truth.
Driven by completing tasks for the greater good, with little expectation of personal return.
Driven by practical results, maximizing both efficiency and returns for their investments of time, talent, energy and resources.
Driven by the functionality and objectivity of their surroundings.
Driven by the experience, subjective viewpoints and balance in their surroundings.
Driven to assist others for a specific purpose, not just for the sake of being helpful or supportive.
Driven to assist others for the satisfaction of being helpful or supportive.
Driven by being in a supporting role and contributing with little need for individual recognition.
Driven by status, recognition and control over personal freedom.
Driven by new ideas, methods and opportunities that fall outside a defined system for living.
Driven by traditional approaches, proven methods and a defined system for living.
Part of what makes each of us unique are the different “forces” that drive and fulfill us. Considering the 12 categories above, what is your hierarchy?
Which are your most potent protagonists? They are the forces compelling the story of your life forward. The remaining eight forces are at play either situationally or not at all.
Our personal motivators drive our actions. They effect our decisions both large and small. Understanding your core four Driving Forces is a component to developing your emotional intelligence. How aware are you about what truly drives you?
Once you understand the uniqueness of your own Driving Forces, you can develop skills for recognizing important differences and potential conflicts within your team. When it come to helping your followers find motivation, different words work differently with different driving forces.
Motivator recognition skills take time to develop. And casual recognition of Driving Forces still requires some unscientific guessing. Is there a more efficient and accurate solution? For some leaders I’ve coached, we removed the guesswork by assessing their entire team. Then we bring the team together to learn, understand and value the uniqueness and contribution of each member. The result: the leader and each member of the team gain enhanced communication skills and an awareness of what button can and can not be pushed to positively inspire the desired actions. And they discover new ways to play to each other’s strengths.
For three decades, our Talent Assessment partner TTI Success Insights, has measured and assessed six common motivators, rooted in Eduard Spranger’s famous research from 1928. Recently, their researchers discovered the six motivators were only half the story. Research revealed avoidance, compared to acceptance, is often a more powerful force. As a result, six became 12 by analyzing and naming both ends of Spranger’s six categories.
Eduard Spranger was a German psychologist, teacher and philosopher. He received his Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Berlin in 1909. His book, “Types of Men,” was originally published in German and remains in use at several universities in Germany as a textbook. TTI SI has reissued “Types of Men” and has made it available to anyone who would like additional insight into Spranger’s theory. Spranger identified six categories of motivation and believed that these motivators were hierarchical.
Additionally, he described both ends of each of the six category continuums but did not name the description of the opposite ends of the continuum. Each of the six categories or motivators represents a keyword that a person values and will move them to action. Spranger also believed that motivators were predetermined at birth, one of the few concepts of his theory that is rejected by most. Spranger did not develop an assessment to measure motivators; he was purely interested in the philosophical classifications.
Tom Lemanski helps accomplished leaders unlock potential, solve complex challenges, and amplify their impact.
Effective leadership is the key to driving meaningful, lasting success in a fast-changing world.
Tom’s focus on innovative strategies and self-awareness creates transformative results for leaders striving for the next level.
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