What Motivates You?
Psychological research has identified sixteen basic desires underlying our behavior. See the list to determine what motivates you.
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We discussed sixteen motivations for happiness on The BIGG Success Show. Here’s a summary of that discussion.
This show was inspired by the book, Who Am I? The 16 Basic Desires That Motivate Our Actions and Define Our Personalities*. It’s written by the late great Dr. Steven Reiss.
He found that happiness and life-satisfaction come from a sense that our lives have meaning and fulfill a larger purpose. He calls this “value-based happiness.” He has identified 16 universal desires that drive all meaningful behavior.
BIGG success is inner peace which flows from three sources:
– finding and fulfilling your calling
– striving daily to reach your full potential
– staying true to your vision and values
If you don’t have a sense of inner peace, you won’t feel like a BIGG success. And you won’t have inner peace if you don’t fulfill your calling. And you need to understand the motivations underlying your actions.
16 motivations
Power – The desire to influence (including leadership)
Curiosity – The desire for knowledge
Independence – The desire to be autonomous
Status – The desire for social status (including desire for attention)
Social contact – The desire for peer companionship (desire to play)
Vengeance – The desire to get even (including desire to compete, to win)
Honor – The desire to obey a traditional moral code
Idealism – The desire to improve society (including altruism, justice)
Physical exercise – The desire to exercise muscles
Romance – The desire for sex (including courting)
Family – The desire to raise one’s own children
Order – The desire to organize (including desire for ritual)
Eating – The desire to eat
Acceptance – The desire for approval
Tranquility – The desire to avoid anxiety, fear
Saving – The desire to collect, value of frugality
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3 steps to find what motivates you
Step 1: Rank the basic desires from most (1) to least important (16).
Step 2: Look at your rankings for consistency with your life.
Which desires rank high on your list? Does your life reflect it? Compare desired desires with your world results. For example:
– If social contact is important, are you in a work environment that allows for companionship?
– If independence is important, are you in a work environment that encourages individuality?
– If power is important, are you on the right track for management?
Step 3: Act! Act to align your life with your top motivations
Motivations are combustion. They create energy. But you must act to ignite the fire.
For example, let’s say you have a high desire for power. If you’re not on track for a leadership role, how can you get on track for management?
Understanding what motivates you, and acting on that information, will give you a greater sense of happiness, meaning, and fulfillment. That’s BIGG success!
Please…If you found this post helpful, would you share it with your friends? They may find it helpful too.
Pretty please…And join us back here next week – we’ll be celebrating 12 years of BIGG Success!
Here’s to your BIGG success!
George “The Professor” & Mary-Lynn
Co-Founders, BIGG Success
Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file | podcast:
http://traffic.libsyn.com/biggsuccess/00998-110719.mp3
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