The primary scientific idea in the field of motivation is that rewards of any kind, or so-called external stimuli, are helpful and work only if the rules are simple and the direction is quite apparent. Daniel Pink talks about the degree of influence of external factors, reward, and punishment, on people’s motivation (Pink, 2009). In his speech, he relies on the famous Karl Danker test for experiments in the field of productive thinking (Pink, 2009). The described investigation was a surprise to me because I never realized that people become narrow-minded when it comes to getting a reward. All they see is a target, which they should reach, and it simply restricts their creative thinking. Pink emphasized that this kind of managerial style no longer works because employees are not asked to decide anything. Therefore, he came up with the idea that managers should apply a new model based on mastery, autonomy, and purpose.
These three tenets are vital for a supervisor to abide by in order to motivate their employees to do their tasks with pleasure. For instance, giving autonomy of the subordinate will allow them to express their ideas and work on their projects. They can perform better and feel more valued by providing the freedom to choose rather than limiting people to the goal-achievement process. The primary idea of Pink’s talk is to boost intrinsic motivation, which would urge individuals to pursue a more excellent aim (Pink, 2009). I think this knowledge can be implemented in my life too. For example, if I ever become a leader in a team project, I will certainly listen to my partners’ thoughts and try to create a better space for realizing their potential.
Reference
Pink, D. (2009). The puzzle of motivation [Video]. Ted Conferences. Web.