subject: The Eight Natural, Performance-Doubling Effects Of Top Quality Motivation [print this page] The Eight Natural, Performance-Doubling Effects Of Top Quality Motivation
Your own internal Motivational Intelligence contains some of the most powerful leverage around to increase effectiveness, happiness, and positive change in your life. This belief and my own personal, motivational journey have led me to a life-long devotion to helping people build this capability.
Some of theeffects of improved motivation are hard to see. They don't necessarily show up in loud verbal or vigorous physical expressions. But the results can be extraordinary and it doesn't take a great deal of change to make an enormous difference. Research studies have shown that the most motivated employees are commonly 200 - 300% more productive than their poorly motivated colleagues. A realistic goal is to help you become, a manageable, 10% better - but 10% better in a number of wonderfully compounding ways that result in over 200%.
What if I told you that you can increase your enthusiasm by 10%? Do you think you could do that? Imagine a highly enthusiastic football player who is passionate about training and determined to be a winner at the game, and now imagine one that is only moderately enthusiastic, who isn't as committed to the game. You see, there is quite a difference. Being both realistic, and utilizing the right techniques, along with knowledge, and abilities, it is possible for you to easily improve your enthusiasm and your actions by a mere 10%.
1. A Performance of 100 x 110% = 110 Performance
Now a 10% improvement in productivity is not bad - a 10% better job, or perhaps a 10% increase in commission is not something we are going to turn down. However, that is not enough. That is not what I nor you are after, because more can be achieved! Let's look at how increasing the "Will" in the well known phrase "When there is a 'Will' there is a way!" produces results. Having greater motivation does not just increase enthusiasm. When you are really engaged and really want something, it has many other effects.
Motivation improves your focus, your desire to pay close attention, to avoid distractions, and intensify your efforts. I know you can do that. I see it in myself. I see it in my clients. And, I see it in my two little boys daily. That 10% increase in focus is readily available to us most of the time. When you are inspired and motivated, this comes naturally. Distractions are no longer temptations and welcome interruptions are no longer so welcome. When you are not as inspired, that 10% can make the difference.
2. A Performance of 110 x 110% = 121 Performance
A huge part of getting where you want to go is choosing things you will actually do and actually follow through with to success. This cannot be over emphasized. When you are attuned to the nature of your motivation, to the resilience of it, and to what you will enduringly want to pursue, you can reduce the number of things you waste time pursuing without any benefit, only to quit. Well, over half of new initiatives in our personal lives, and in change efforts within organizations, end in failure. The lost time you can prevent, by not touring these cul-de-sac's, with both short tasks and long term pursuits, can provide much time for other things.
3. A Performance of 121 x 110% = 133.1 Performance
When we are immersed, we more commonly and more deeply get into a state of "flow". This increases our understanding, our facility, and our creativity in whatever we are doing. This enables us to be 10% more adaptive and more innovative in our approach. We simply produce things of higher quality or with more appeal with greater ease. Our immersion or "flow" enables us to produce better ideas the first time around and reduce our need to redo work.
4. A Performance of 133.1 x 110% = 146.3 Performance
Greater motivation also increases our courage. We are less likely to be stopped or misdirected by fear. We are more motivated to do the right thing, even if we are fearful and we face the prospect of embarrassment. Generating Motivation has a way of making us believe in ourselves and believing in what we can do. Overcoming obstacles that would otherwise slow or divert us by 10% is achievable for all of us, if we are pursuing things that are challenging for us. And if we do not have challenging things to do that require overcoming fear, then perhaps we are not very motivated. There are stretch challenges all around you. You just have to find some that mean something to you.
5. A Performance of 146.3 x 110% = 160.6 Performance
Motivational Intelligence involves stopping our ineffective motivation that propels us to do things that are not worthwhile, as much as it is building motivation. There are times in life when we just don't like the alternative, so we keep doing something that has no potential. In these cases, we are tempted to continue against our own judgment. It is not smart to motivate blindly. Motivation, poorly directed, can often be as bad as none at all. We'd all like to decide what we want to do, but often we have to suppress that, in order to take the more prudent path. Pursuing the wrong path, one that is not going to be rewarded, is ineffective and ultimately demoralizing. Quitting and failing is part of success and the most intelligently motivated people, who are most clear on what they want, and what they can achieve, know when to pull out of activities - and they do it every day.
6. A Performance of 160.6 x 110% = 176 Performance
When you are motivated, you also can improve your persistence! What does it take to do something good for eleven minutes rather than 10? We can put off that "C" priority, lower value, activity by just 10%. As Stephen Covey says, some of these low priorities often go away anyway, as we do more important things. Persistence is one of the most powerful impacts of increased motivation and often we want to do even more than 10% when we are experiencing "high quality"
7. A Performance of 176 x 110% = 193.6 Performance
If you do these seven things above, throughout your life, I guarantee you that you will attract 10% more support and encouragement from others - and from people who are 10% more resourceful and influential. You will be given more resources, more green lights, better tools, and more opportunities by at least 10%. When you are motivated, people feel it. They admire it. They may even want to join you.
8. A Performance of 193.6 x 110% = 213 Performance
It is often difficult for us to really sense some of these effects in our lives. We are simply too close to the work or just do not want to face these truths. We go through life day by day, not realizing that EACH of these has a meaningful effect and the differences over time can be extraordinary. After all 10-20% faster will win you a medal in the Olympics, a 10-20% better resume will win you your dream job over other candidates, and a 10-20 % better product will create an entrepreneurial success in the marketplace.
Learn how to produce greater motivation in your life and watch these effects naturally come about. Increase your Motivational Intelligence and experience a world of difference in your life.
What could you achieve if you were more motivated and inspired?
Blair Relf, Ph.D.is the leading expert onMotivational Intelligence - using it to dramatically improve performance. His site at http://www.MotivationalIQ.com provides many free tools including interactive assessments that map out your motivational life in color, engaging MP3's that help you increase your achievements, and an enlighteningMotivational Intelligence special report. He works closely with people in highly affordable programs using dynamic groups, virtual technologies and innovative approaches to help achieve goals, break through barriers and take lives to an entirely new level. Visit online at http://www.MotivationalIQ.com for more information.
