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Intrinsic motivation is a powerful force. That's a key message in Dan Pink's book, Drive.  I reviewed the book yesterday.

Pink does a great job of describing the magical powers of intrinsic motivation. But he doesn't tell you much about actually putting those powers to work.

The most important thing to understand about intrinsic motivation is that it's, well, intrinsic. There's no lever to pull or button to push. Intrinsic motivation comes from inside.

Your only hope is to create an environment where intrinsic motivation is more likely to kick in. Top management has some responsibility.

People are not likely to get excited about work if they feel like they're being underpaid or don't have at least a "good enough" benefits package. Worrying about getting laid off doesn't help either. It's top management's job to meet those basic survival needs that Maslow talked about.

But in the day to day world of management, the C-suite fades into the background. There are companies with great salary and benefit packages that are also soul-killers.

There are also teams that are examples of high productivity and high morale in even the most awful company. When that happens it's almost always because the team leader creates an environment where intrinsic motivation kicks in.

I know what those places look like and I've described them in my post on the "8 Characteristics of Highly Effective Workplaces". Here's the view through the Drive lens.

Pink says that three things need to be present for intrinsic motivation to happen. Team members need autonomy, the ability to pursue mastery, and a purpose that's bigger than they are.

If you're the boss, you have to pay attention to how autonomy and the pursuit of mastery interact. When people are in the early stages of learning a task or the work of a new position or mastering a new domain of knowledge, they require the kind of attention that limits autonomy.

Most people understand that. The big challenge comes when they start to develop skill and get to a point where they need to make decisions on their own.

What happens most of the time is a mismatch of perceptions. The learner usually imagines their performance as more developed than it actually is. And the boss usually thinks they need to be watched more closely than they actually do.

Here's the rule to beat that situation. Unless catastrophic failure or physical harm is a possibility, let them try it their way. You'll be surprised how often their perception is more accurate than yours. And if it's not, you will have set the stage for a productive debriefing.

If you're the boss, you're also the conveyor of purpose. Tell your team members why what they do is important. Make sure they know how it contributes to the team and how the work of the team contributes to the organization.

Boss's Bottom Line

No matter how lowly your spot on the organizational chart, if you're a boss, you're the one most responsible for an environment where intrinsic motivation can do its magic.

Check out:

My review of Dan Pink's book, Drive

The post "Putting Drive to Work: Getting more of what you want"

The Post "Putting Drive to Work: Getting less of what you don't want"

More on my Working Supervisor's Support Kit
 

Wally's Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training. Click here to check it out.