8 ms·

How some people stay motivated at work when they don’t love their jobs

127 points by rrherr 9y ago

tetraodonpuffer 9y ago
isn't this "third motivation" simply fear that if they don't perform they will be fired and their family would suffer from it?
- zzalpha 9y ago
  Or, this "third motivation" is the desire to succeed so the family can thrive as a consequence of that success. Sort of a half-full/half-empty kind of thing, really. I suspect the perspective you cleave to is a product of your personal outlook.
- jimmywanger 9y ago
  Sometimes it is. Sometimes it's the feeling that you can't make your family/race/school/tribe look bad by not working hard. e.g. "If I slack off on this job, they will think everybody who graduated from Stanford is a lazy unprofessional bum." or "My parents raised me to be a better worker than this."
  - dacracot 9y ago
    That's fear too. Fear of looking bad to your peer groups.
    - dpark 9y ago
      Fear of looking bad is a far different thing than fear of unemployment, though.
    - jimmywanger 9y ago
      No, it's pride. Wanting to not look bad to your peers (who aren't part of your tribe) because it reflects poorly on your tribe is pride. "If I'm lazy, people will think all Mexicans are lazy." is not a fear motivator. It's motivated by pride and a sense of internal self worth.
- dacracot 9y ago
  I agree. The article puts "extrinsic factors (like the chance to earn a big bonus) or intrinsic factors (like personal fulfillment)" as the primary factors. The "third" motivation, and I'd say likely the most common, is "fear". Even if the fear is that your children will suffer the same servitude that you are experiencing.
- pxnii 9y ago
  I think the point is doing the job makes you feel valuable/appropriated by someone you care about (family in this case). Just like personal fulfillment, in that case, yourself.
  - dacracot 9y ago
    I think the different perspectives on this would line up with the personality testing from C. Jung. (http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp)
- jhou2 9y ago
  That may be the case for some, but for some others I've met in similar situations in developing countries, they were happy and felt proud to be supporting their families. I didn't feel like their primary motivation was fear. Not everyone is so complex or pessimistic.
  - goshx 9y ago
    Yes. To me it was about the challenge itself and the "I can do it" motivator.
- Dove 9y ago
  No. It is the pride of independence. I can provide, rather than being a dependent. It is literally being the one who has the power to make your family's life better, rather than being one of the powerless. Being able to provide your daughter with a better school, your mother with better health care, your family with a better place to live, feels to some the way "changing the world" feels to others.
jasode 9y ago
There's the well-known Simpson's image "do it for her"[1]. I'm confused as to who he's writing for as it seems very obvious that many people get "motivated" for work they don't enjoy because they have to support their family. For example, every time the word "passion" is thrown around on HN, it will incite people to respond: "fuck passion... I just want to work my 40 hours and go home and spend time with my family." [1] http://i.imgur.com/7MkgTGT.jpg http://i.imgur.com/7MkgTGT.jpg episode wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_Maggie_Makes_Three https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_Maggie_Makes_Three
- zzalpha 9y ago
  I'm confused as to who he's writing for as it seems very obvious that many people get "motivated" for work they don't enjoy because they have to support their family. Actually, what I find interesting about this is the post goes on to note that: It wasn’t only parents who experienced family motivation. It also applied to unmarried and childless workers who defined their family as brothers, sisters, parents, and other relatives. I'd love to dig into this more, but the paper is, of course, behind a paywall. I'm very curious if the people indicated, above, had to financially support their extended family, or if it was simply the need to be dependable and responsible, that created the motivation.
  - creepydata 9y ago
    So the study is about Mexicans in Mexico working in maquiladoras. Multigenerational/extended households/families are rather common in Mexico. Mexican culture is certainly more family oriented than in the US - "familism." Plus since maquiladoras pay very little (Google what the houses of maquiladora workers looks like) pooling resources is probably extremely beneficial just from a practical standpoint.
    - throwanem 9y ago
      Depends on where in the US you're talking about. I'd hesitate to suggest there's an inverse correlation between SES and this kind of family orientation, but I don't have a better explanation for the observations I've made. I would have to question rather strongly the blanket assertion that people in Mexico just fundamentally care more for their families than people in the US do. Certainly I could be happier, on a daily basis, were I plying my trade as part of an organization more closely focused on the kind of work that I do. On the other hand, where I am now has the twin virtues of being quite stable and enthusiastically remunerative, which counts for a lot more when I've got folks back home to look after.
SirLJ 9y ago
"another day, another dollar" is a good motivation for a lot of people...
goshx 9y ago
This article resonates with me, although I loved my job. To make a long story short, when I was 20 I had to fully support my mother and my very young sister. This was the most important reason that led me to accept conditions at work (work for a foreign company who I didn't know anyone in person, for low salary, not enough vacation, work way more than 40 hours per week, be on call 24/7 for years, etc) that I know for a fact people that were not in the same situation would never take. At least the vast majority of my friends and colleagues from college. I still loved my job, but it was a balance between accepting shitty conditions and being a very dedicated worker betting on a brighter future for my family. It turned out very good for me, although it took a very long time to, in terms of salary, be on par with a national median. I never thought about it that way, but family indeed was the real motivator for me.
preavy 9y ago
“Listen. You don’t live there. You live here. With your people. Go to work. Get your money. And come on home.” http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/06/05/the-work-you-do-the-person-you-are http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/06/05/the-work-you-do...
creepydata 9y ago
I'm absolutely dumbfounded this is some sort of revelation to the author. It must be a new thing? Perhaps a product of the "self esteem/entitled generation?" Whenever I hear people (including job ads) talk about "passion" at work I have to roll my eyes. I never though of work as a means to some sort of personal fulfillment, it's a job, it's purpose is to provide you money. That is it! If you get personal satisfaction out of your work that's a nice bonus. Those "passion" people are going to become very dissatisfied with work and life - there's very, very few jobs that have the ability to provide that. We should probably be looking at things in a more practical manner to avoid this. I always thought jobs advertising that they are looking for someone with "passion" as a ploy to trick the bright eyed and naïve young into overworking before they become disillusioned. I've actually enjoyed most of the "menial" jobs I've worked. The only unenjoyable job I worked was only unenjoyable due to piss poor management. Now I enjoy working as a software engineer, I like what I do, but it's still just a job, just a way to earn a living. I'm reminded of Office Space on career advice: "[The question from a guidance counselor of what you would do if you had a million dollars] is bullshit to begin with. If everyone listened to her there would be no janitors because because nobody would clean up shit if they had a million dollars."
- k-mcgrady 9y ago
  >> Those "passion" people are going to become very dissatisfied with work and life - there's very, very few jobs that have the ability to provide that. Maybe that's a good thing. If there's enough of them the entire concept will have to be reexamined (UBI for example or digital nomads, etc.). I think a lot more people are just starting to realise that owning a house and a car and having a few kids and a couple of ex-wives and a mountain of 'stuff' isn't necessary. There are lots of jobs that will provide fulfilment. Most of them, of course, won't pay anywhere as near as well as your average office work - they pay enough though for someone who doesn't want the things I mentioned above. Edit: Claiming having lots of money and 'stuff' isn't important apparently gets you lots of down votes now...strange.
  - EpicEng 9y ago
    >Maybe that's a good thing. If there's enough of them the entire concept will have to be reexamined (UBI for example or digitals nomads, etc.) Finding "passion" in your job is an entirely new concept. We've been around quite some time and, for 99.9% of that time and for 99.9% of the people, a job is a job. Nothing more than a means to an end. I don't see how UBI follows from people realizing what we've known for millennia.
ranprieur 9y ago
Supporting your family is not a third kind of motivation. It's totally extrinsic, because you get more money for doing the job than not doing the job.
taytus 9y ago
I'm not going to ask why this BS is on the front page of HN. But it would be nice to know how many people upvoted it.
- sidlls 9y ago
  Work motivation is a big topic in the software industry. See the comments regarding "passion" that pop up in these discussions for example. Studies about and discussions of what motivates people to work are therefore very perinent to HN.
  - ciacci1234 9y ago
    I wouldn't necessarily call this article "bs", but at the same time, I don't see how people working for their family is really HN-newsworthy...But perhaps people in the software industry need reminding of this?
    - sidlls 9y ago
      I believe there is a definite movement to partially replace remuneration with intangible "passion" in this industry, so yes the industry does need reminding of this.
asah 9y ago
People are also strongly motivated by being part of a team and "winning" e.g. achieving a common goal or beating an enemy.
WalterSear 9y ago
I don't see how you can ask people to self report in a circumstance like this and get anything but cognitively assonant responses. If you are hemmed in by poverty, location, and financial obligations, you are going to convince yourself that your circumstances are acceptable to you, whether or not that is actually the case, or you won't survive in it, and be around to make a self-report.
- creepydata 9y ago
  That's like telling religious people "you aren't REALLY happy being religious, you are just afraid of going to hell."
tpeo 9y ago
Funny how the first thing that appears when you open the article is some guy pouring a drink. Turns out it's not for him (I think) nor did the guys at QZ intend to suggest it was, but I just interpreted the picture in a whole different way.
rubicon33 9y ago
There's a huge difference between the quality and quantity of work one does when intrinsically motivated, v.s. externally motivated. Yes, fear of losing your job and the inability to support your family that comes with it can and does motivate people to perform. That said, intrinsically motivated people are on a league of their own, driven to pursue their craft for the enjoyment of it.
timwaagh 9y ago
this is interesting. i thought i was a bit silly for working to essentially please my mom. maybe its still a bit silly. but sometimes people are silly and act in irrational ways. at least i'm not alone in this.
likelynew 9y ago
This is my story for the internship I am doing. Though I like the main aim of what I am doing, but I couldn't write a single line that involve any thought. And it's not I don't like programming. I contribute to open source at least once almost every week. It's just I don't feel like reporting to someone who knows less than me(no kidding), and I resort to trickery that I done something, which in reality I don't spend half an hour a day. And, I can not leave the internship because of the fear of what I will tell my friends and family.
ForRealsies 9y ago
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/06/05/jordan_peterson_why_you_have_to_fight_postmodernism.html https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/06/05/jordan_pe... "I can tell you, because I received many letters of this sort ... young people are absolutely starving for someone to provide them with a sense of responsibility, and say look here, here's something worth living for, man. You can find meaning in life with freedom, but freedom. Freedom is a chaotic sort of meaning, right, and freedom isn't sort of thing makes people happy. It is the sort of thing people troublesome -- troubled. Because freedom expands your series of choices, and that makes you nervous and uncertain... not to say that that's a bad thing. It's a good thing but it requires that you shoulder the responsibility of the freedom, but responsibility per se is what gives your life meaning, genuine meaning in the face of suffering." -Jordan Peterson
notadoc 9y ago
Money, mostly.
ensiferum 9y ago
Bollocks to this. Just show me the money!
bryanrasmussen 9y ago
I like money.
- mangofoobar 9y ago
  This. If the software job pays well and is easy (no matter how boring), then count me in. But I can sure pretend to be passionate tho.
thetruthseeker1 9y ago
Presumably for this author, when he came of age to work, he didnt need to support his parents or his brothers, so he had the luxury to look for true meaning in his work and had enough balance in his checking account that quitting wasn't an unreasonable choice when he didnt find what he was looking for. I would think he is not alone, and many people around the world who come from upper middle class families are in the same boat if they dont have anybody else depending on them and if they can't find meaning in their job.
csours 9y ago
Some people on this discussion have mentioned the motivation of "they pay me". For me personally "they pay me" is enough to get me in the door and sitting at my desk for a certain amount of time each day. I think it's actually this way for a lot of people. My previous job doing DevOps-y stuff was completely different. In that job, if I didn't show up and do my work, other people wouldn't be able to work either. Doing that job felt like I was supporting my work family. My current job (software QA) is very disconnected from eventual users and it just feels like a very repetitive slog every day. Anyway this should maybe have been a throwaway, but whatever.
mathiasben 9y ago
The author is mistaken, it's not motivation he's attempting to describe; it's coercion.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
ikarous_lost 9y ago
I read this article hoping that it would provide some meaningful insight into my own situation, but unfortunately, it only raised more questions. What about those of us who don't have families to support? What about those of us who are, in essence, unneeded? What each person needs in his or her life, whether it is provided by work or by something else, is a sense of meaning. Without this, vigor suffers. How this is not commonly known is beyond my comprehension. Viktor Frankl wrote a whole book about this innate need for meaning, aptly titled "Man's Search for Meaning." In the book, Frankl observes that those who best survived the horrors of concentration camps were precisely those who were able to give some sort of meaning to their suffering, which in many cases came in the form of a family or loved one that waited for them to emerge from captivity. This article is not very useful, and its lack of insight leaves me feeling surprised that it was written by a psychologist (who ostensibly should know better).
mangofoobar 9y ago
I stay motivated by seeing my bank account grow massively.... for barely putting in effort. I save my passion for my side projects and managing my apartment buildings. I'm going to spend the best days of my life having tea, playing in the sun and overall doing what I like. My "employer" can have me for a few hours in the evening.

127 points by rrherr 9y ago

isn't this "third motivation" simply fear that if they don't perform they will be fired and their family would suffer from it?

zzalpha 9y ago
Or, this "third motivation" is the desire to succeed so the family can thrive as a consequence of that success. Sort of a half-full/half-empty kind of thing, really. I suspect the perspective you cleave to is a product of your personal outlook.
jimmywanger 9y ago
Sometimes it is. Sometimes it's the feeling that you can't make your family/race/school/tribe look bad by not working hard. e.g. "If I slack off on this job, they will think everybody who graduated from Stanford is a lazy unprofessional bum." or "My parents raised me to be a better worker than this."
- dacracot 9y ago
  That's fear too. Fear of looking bad to your peer groups.
  - dpark 9y ago
    Fear of looking bad is a far different thing than fear of unemployment, though.
  - jimmywanger 9y ago
    No, it's pride. Wanting to not look bad to your peers (who aren't part of your tribe) because it reflects poorly on your tribe is pride. "If I'm lazy, people will think all Mexicans are lazy." is not a fear motivator. It's motivated by pride and a sense of internal self worth.
dacracot 9y ago
I agree. The article puts "extrinsic factors (like the chance to earn a big bonus) or intrinsic factors (like personal fulfillment)" as the primary factors. The "third" motivation, and I'd say likely the most common, is "fear". Even if the fear is that your children will suffer the same servitude that you are experiencing.
pxnii 9y ago
I think the point is doing the job makes you feel valuable/appropriated by someone you care about (family in this case). Just like personal fulfillment, in that case, yourself.
- dacracot 9y ago
  I think the different perspectives on this would line up with the personality testing from C. Jung. (http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp)
jhou2 9y ago
That may be the case for some, but for some others I've met in similar situations in developing countries, they were happy and felt proud to be supporting their families. I didn't feel like their primary motivation was fear. Not everyone is so complex or pessimistic.
- goshx 9y ago
  Yes. To me it was about the challenge itself and the "I can do it" motivator.
Dove 9y ago
No. It is the pride of independence. I can provide, rather than being a dependent. It is literally being the one who has the power to make your family's life better, rather than being one of the powerless. Being able to provide your daughter with a better school, your mother with better health care, your family with a better place to live, feels to some the way "changing the world" feels to others.

jasode 9y ago

There's the well-known Simpson's image "do it for her"[1]. I'm confused as to who he's writing for as it seems very obvious that many people get "motivated" for work they don't enjoy because they have to support their family. For example, every time the word "passion" is thrown around on HN, it will incite people to respond: "fuck passion... I just want to work my 40 hours and go home and spend time with my family." [1] http://i.imgur.com/7MkgTGT.jpg http://i.imgur.com/7MkgTGT.jpg episode wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_Maggie_Makes_Three https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_Maggie_Makes_Three

zzalpha 9y ago
I'm confused as to who he's writing for as it seems very obvious that many people get "motivated" for work they don't enjoy because they have to support their family. Actually, what I find interesting about this is the post goes on to note that: It wasn’t only parents who experienced family motivation. It also applied to unmarried and childless workers who defined their family as brothers, sisters, parents, and other relatives. I'd love to dig into this more, but the paper is, of course, behind a paywall. I'm very curious if the people indicated, above, had to financially support their extended family, or if it was simply the need to be dependable and responsible, that created the motivation.
- creepydata 9y ago
  So the study is about Mexicans in Mexico working in maquiladoras. Multigenerational/extended households/families are rather common in Mexico. Mexican culture is certainly more family oriented than in the US - "familism." Plus since maquiladoras pay very little (Google what the houses of maquiladora workers looks like) pooling resources is probably extremely beneficial just from a practical standpoint.
  - throwanem 9y ago
    Depends on where in the US you're talking about. I'd hesitate to suggest there's an inverse correlation between SES and this kind of family orientation, but I don't have a better explanation for the observations I've made. I would have to question rather strongly the blanket assertion that people in Mexico just fundamentally care more for their families than people in the US do. Certainly I could be happier, on a daily basis, were I plying my trade as part of an organization more closely focused on the kind of work that I do. On the other hand, where I am now has the twin virtues of being quite stable and enthusiastically remunerative, which counts for a lot more when I've got folks back home to look after.

SirLJ 9y ago

"another day, another dollar" is a good motivation for a lot of people...

goshx 9y ago

This article resonates with me, although I loved my job. To make a long story short, when I was 20 I had to fully support my mother and my very young sister. This was the most important reason that led me to accept conditions at work (work for a foreign company who I didn't know anyone in person, for low salary, not enough vacation, work way more than 40 hours per week, be on call 24/7 for years, etc) that I know for a fact people that were not in the same situation would never take. At least the vast majority of my friends and colleagues from college. I still loved my job, but it was a balance between accepting shitty conditions and being a very dedicated worker betting on a brighter future for my family. It turned out very good for me, although it took a very long time to, in terms of salary, be on par with a national median. I never thought about it that way, but family indeed was the real motivator for me.

preavy 9y ago

“Listen. You don’t live there. You live here. With your people. Go to work. Get your money. And come on home.” http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/06/05/the-work-you-do-the-person-you-are http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/06/05/the-work-you-do...

creepydata 9y ago

I'm absolutely dumbfounded this is some sort of revelation to the author. It must be a new thing? Perhaps a product of the "self esteem/entitled generation?" Whenever I hear people (including job ads) talk about "passion" at work I have to roll my eyes. I never though of work as a means to some sort of personal fulfillment, it's a job, it's purpose is to provide you money. That is it! If you get personal satisfaction out of your work that's a nice bonus. Those "passion" people are going to become very dissatisfied with work and life - there's very, very few jobs that have the ability to provide that. We should probably be looking at things in a more practical manner to avoid this. I always thought jobs advertising that they are looking for someone with "passion" as a ploy to trick the bright eyed and naïve young into overworking before they become disillusioned. I've actually enjoyed most of the "menial" jobs I've worked. The only unenjoyable job I worked was only unenjoyable due to piss poor management. Now I enjoy working as a software engineer, I like what I do, but it's still just a job, just a way to earn a living. I'm reminded of Office Space on career advice: "[The question from a guidance counselor of what you would do if you had a million dollars] is bullshit to begin with. If everyone listened to her there would be no janitors because because nobody would clean up shit if they had a million dollars."

k-mcgrady 9y ago
>> Those "passion" people are going to become very dissatisfied with work and life - there's very, very few jobs that have the ability to provide that. Maybe that's a good thing. If there's enough of them the entire concept will have to be reexamined (UBI for example or digital nomads, etc.). I think a lot more people are just starting to realise that owning a house and a car and having a few kids and a couple of ex-wives and a mountain of 'stuff' isn't necessary. There are lots of jobs that will provide fulfilment. Most of them, of course, won't pay anywhere as near as well as your average office work - they pay enough though for someone who doesn't want the things I mentioned above. Edit: Claiming having lots of money and 'stuff' isn't important apparently gets you lots of down votes now...strange.
- EpicEng 9y ago
  >Maybe that's a good thing. If there's enough of them the entire concept will have to be reexamined (UBI for example or digitals nomads, etc.) Finding "passion" in your job is an entirely new concept. We've been around quite some time and, for 99.9% of that time and for 99.9% of the people, a job is a job. Nothing more than a means to an end. I don't see how UBI follows from people realizing what we've known for millennia.

ranprieur 9y ago

Supporting your family is not a third kind of motivation. It's totally extrinsic, because you get more money for doing the job than not doing the job.

taytus 9y ago

I'm not going to ask why this BS is on the front page of HN. But it would be nice to know how many people upvoted it.

sidlls 9y ago
Work motivation is a big topic in the software industry. See the comments regarding "passion" that pop up in these discussions for example. Studies about and discussions of what motivates people to work are therefore very perinent to HN.
- ciacci1234 9y ago
  I wouldn't necessarily call this article "bs", but at the same time, I don't see how people working for their family is really HN-newsworthy...But perhaps people in the software industry need reminding of this?
  - sidlls 9y ago
    I believe there is a definite movement to partially replace remuneration with intangible "passion" in this industry, so yes the industry does need reminding of this.

asah 9y ago

People are also strongly motivated by being part of a team and "winning" e.g. achieving a common goal or beating an enemy.

WalterSear 9y ago

I don't see how you can ask people to self report in a circumstance like this and get anything but cognitively assonant responses. If you are hemmed in by poverty, location, and financial obligations, you are going to convince yourself that your circumstances are acceptable to you, whether or not that is actually the case, or you won't survive in it, and be around to make a self-report.

creepydata 9y ago
That's like telling religious people "you aren't REALLY happy being religious, you are just afraid of going to hell."

tpeo 9y ago

Funny how the first thing that appears when you open the article is some guy pouring a drink. Turns out it's not for him (I think) nor did the guys at QZ intend to suggest it was, but I just interpreted the picture in a whole different way.

rubicon33 9y ago

There's a huge difference between the quality and quantity of work one does when intrinsically motivated, v.s. externally motivated. Yes, fear of losing your job and the inability to support your family that comes with it can and does motivate people to perform. That said, intrinsically motivated people are on a league of their own, driven to pursue their craft for the enjoyment of it.

timwaagh 9y ago

this is interesting. i thought i was a bit silly for working to essentially please my mom. maybe its still a bit silly. but sometimes people are silly and act in irrational ways. at least i'm not alone in this.

likelynew 9y ago

This is my story for the internship I am doing. Though I like the main aim of what I am doing, but I couldn't write a single line that involve any thought. And it's not I don't like programming. I contribute to open source at least once almost every week. It's just I don't feel like reporting to someone who knows less than me(no kidding), and I resort to trickery that I done something, which in reality I don't spend half an hour a day. And, I can not leave the internship because of the fear of what I will tell my friends and family.

ForRealsies 9y ago

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/06/05/jordan_peterson_why_you_have_to_fight_postmodernism.html https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/06/05/jordan_pe... "I can tell you, because I received many letters of this sort ... young people are absolutely starving for someone to provide them with a sense of responsibility, and say look here, here's something worth living for, man. You can find meaning in life with freedom, but freedom. Freedom is a chaotic sort of meaning, right, and freedom isn't sort of thing makes people happy. It is the sort of thing people troublesome -- troubled. Because freedom expands your series of choices, and that makes you nervous and uncertain... not to say that that's a bad thing. It's a good thing but it requires that you shoulder the responsibility of the freedom, but responsibility per se is what gives your life meaning, genuine meaning in the face of suffering." -Jordan Peterson

notadoc 9y ago

Money, mostly.

ensiferum 9y ago

Bollocks to this. Just show me the money!

bryanrasmussen 9y ago

I like money.

mangofoobar 9y ago
This. If the software job pays well and is easy (no matter how boring), then count me in. But I can sure pretend to be passionate tho.

thetruthseeker1 9y ago

Presumably for this author, when he came of age to work, he didnt need to support his parents or his brothers, so he had the luxury to look for true meaning in his work and had enough balance in his checking account that quitting wasn't an unreasonable choice when he didnt find what he was looking for. I would think he is not alone, and many people around the world who come from upper middle class families are in the same boat if they dont have anybody else depending on them and if they can't find meaning in their job.

csours 9y ago

Some people on this discussion have mentioned the motivation of "they pay me". For me personally "they pay me" is enough to get me in the door and sitting at my desk for a certain amount of time each day. I think it's actually this way for a lot of people. My previous job doing DevOps-y stuff was completely different. In that job, if I didn't show up and do my work, other people wouldn't be able to work either. Doing that job felt like I was supporting my work family. My current job (software QA) is very disconnected from eventual users and it just feels like a very repetitive slog every day. Anyway this should maybe have been a throwaway, but whatever.

mathiasben 9y ago

The author is mistaken, it's not motivation he's attempting to describe; it's coercion.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

ikarous_lost 9y ago

I read this article hoping that it would provide some meaningful insight into my own situation, but unfortunately, it only raised more questions. What about those of us who don't have families to support? What about those of us who are, in essence, unneeded? What each person needs in his or her life, whether it is provided by work or by something else, is a sense of meaning. Without this, vigor suffers. How this is not commonly known is beyond my comprehension. Viktor Frankl wrote a whole book about this innate need for meaning, aptly titled "Man's Search for Meaning." In the book, Frankl observes that those who best survived the horrors of concentration camps were precisely those who were able to give some sort of meaning to their suffering, which in many cases came in the form of a family or loved one that waited for them to emerge from captivity. This article is not very useful, and its lack of insight leaves me feeling surprised that it was written by a psychologist (who ostensibly should know better).

mangofoobar 9y ago

I stay motivated by seeing my bank account grow massively.... for barely putting in effort. I save my passion for my side projects and managing my apartment buildings. I'm going to spend the best days of my life having tea, playing in the sun and overall doing what I like. My "employer" can have me for a few hours in the evening.