I guess something else would be actual PAY DAY. Ever notice how people are just in a better mood that day, and tend to do a better job (at least where I worked…)?
Speaking as a graduate student, I can say that I’m often motivated by an urge to stop being a student before I die. Sometimes I think if I have to sit in one more classroom I’ll just snap and start taking a fire axe to those blasted little wooden chairs and their little fold-out panels which they laughingly call “desks”.
And every hard day’s work that I put in is one more day closer to getting that degree and moving on to a real job.
elle - this is just a thought…
You said, “I worked at a bank were the tellers received a dollar for certain refferals. For the first month everyone was “gung ho”. Then , a month later, most of them did not care whether they got it or not.”
Do you know for sure they lost interest? Banks get a lot of regular customers. I would think the third or fourth time a customer was asked about the referal thing they would start to get irritated. So maybe tellers had to stop asking to avoid irritating people.
lesa,
I see your point. However, even if some of the same customers are coming in on a daily basis there are still at least 6 new customers that would come in on that same day. Maybe my example was not the best. I am just trying to figure out what, besides the paycheck, motivates people? Is it more money, acknowledgement, or something else.
In my research I read about Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory. Herzberg began his research into motivation by asking workers two questions:
1)Tell me about a time when you felt exceptionally good about your job.
2)Tell me about a time when you felt exceptionally bad about your job.
If anyone would like to answer those two questions that would be great.
I think, in addition to my previous questions and everyones responses to them, answers to these will be helpful.
What motivates me?
Model X90- Series mL89
Class M5 carbon fueled biotic engine
humanoid biped neural transfer linkage
Oh… Why do I work? Because it pleases the master.
Seems we’ve already established the money thing, so…
the fact that my job affects people’s lives motivates me to do it well. I work in a hospital lab and if I screw something up someone else can pay the ultimate penalty. The thing that bothers me sometimes though is that nary a one of the patients know what I am doing for them or even that I exist most of the time. Sigh. 
Of course it would be nice if my boss knew what I do.
The times I feel good about my job are when I puzzle out a tough specimen that helps the doctors nail the diagnosis.
A time when I feel exceptionally bad would be, oh, right about now. When I get passed over for a position that I know I could do very well because I don’t kiss ass as well as the guy that got the job. But I shouldn’t complain because in recognition of my ten years of damned good work I got a nifty little bubblegum machine pin stuck in mailbox.
(Sorry, I know you didn’t ask for a rant. :o )
Apart from the fact that I need to feed myself and so forth, self-enjoyment and an occasional panic attack motivates me. I enjoy my job such that I usually go to work every day. My office mate and I are usually there together on the weekends so I don’t think this is unusual in my line of work. I often learn something and even if it is just a little bit of trivia, I find that very enjoyable. I really get a kick out of explaining a statistical concept to a grad student and seeing the bulb light up (and not seeing the concepts get through is very frustrating because I know I haven’t found the right words). Getting data analyzed and making sense out of a research problem is my goal and thus very satisfying. I feel exceptionally good about my job when I get a publication accepted but half the fun is getting there.
On the other hand, collaborations and deadlines make the fear demon jump out and that is a powerful motivator. Because I dislike that feeling tremendously, I try to avoid it by making sure I get things done on time. The worst I feel about my job is when I make a mistake that costs a bird its life. I guess this is my biggest fear demon. (I don’t see how those of you who work with humans in critical situations can take that stress. I really admire your fortitude.)
1)As a temp worker I find that I get a great deal of satisfaction out of coming into a company that I have no knowledge of and being able to improve on the standard of of the person I am replacing. It would definately be a recognition of a job well done that motivates me to some degree.
2)When I was treated as a piece of furniture. My opinion appeared to have no value and when a job was well done it was rewarded with more work and no recognition. (Hence why I moved to temp work)
I’m much more motivated when I have a time limit imposed by the person wanting the job done. If it’s just my own personal desire, it’ll never get finished. But if it’s important for somebody else, then I’m motivated to get it done. Usually.
The things that motivate me are
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Doing a job that requires a lot of skill and the ability to focus my attention in several different directions at once, and staying on top of the situation.
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Discovering the limits of what I am able to do, then going beyond them
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Knowing I’m making a living doing something that has absolutely no redeeming social value
4)THE ADRENALIN RUSH
Things that motivate me:[ul][li]Having the hard work I put into a project bragged about by my boss to his boss.[/li]
[li]Having the boss recognize my efforts in front of co-workers.[/li]
[li]Getting a chance to satisfy my curiosity or increase my knowledge as part of doing the job.[/li]
[li]Getting a chance to earn extra money (hey, I’ve got bills, too!) or time off by tackling a special project.[/li]
[li]Being asked to tackle a sopecial project because I’m considered “the right man for the job”.[/ul]I’m sure there’s more motivators, but I always hated working for people who never gave out praise because “That’s your job”.[/li]
~~Baloo
What motivates me?
Fear: When the boss asks a question that I don’t have the answer to, or needs something done that I don’t have done. When my customers are not satisfied, and I know that we could have done it right if we’d just tried harder.
Pride: I am good at my job, and I enjoy doing it well.
I am the General Manager of a restaurant, and my bosses give me credit for everything good that happens, and blame for every problem. It’s up to me to see to it that everyting works the way it should, and I’ve been given almost unlimited authority to change anything I want to.
I’ve found that, in the long run, it is easier to do the job well than poorly. I will spend the same amount of time working each week. If I exert the effort to do the job well, then the job itself becomes easier.
I am greatly motivated by money. I work on a salary plus bonus structure, where the bounus is a percentage of the bottom line profits of the company. In theory, my income is 20% bonus, but there have been times that it was as high as 35%.
My best moments come when I am challenged by circumstances beyond my control, and I, through effectivly deligating, and motivating and supporting my staff, pull off the “impossible”.
My biggest frustrations come when I give my staff all the support, education, and tools they need, and through lack of caring or attention, the job still does not get done.
My worst moments are when we perform to the best of our ability, and due to circumstances beyond our control, we fail to meet our or our customers’ expectations.
I often think of the plaque I once saw on an office wall. It said something like:
“We the uninitiated
Led by the incompotent
Have done so much for so long with so little
That we are now in a postion to attempt the
Impossible with nothing.”
People do not realize how hard it is to quickly, effectively, and accuratly feed 200-300 people at the same time. It is very rewarding to have people tell me how good a job we did.