Ever wonder how motivation works and what drives our behaviour? The motivation matrix reveals just that. It demonstrates the forces behind our motives in a simple and accessible manner.
But to understand the motivation matrix we first have to examine the different types of motivation factors.
Intrinsic vs Extrinsic factors
All factors underlying motivation are either intrinsic or extrinsic.
Intrinsic factors are internally sourced drivers of behaviour coming from within oneself. When you’re doing something as a result of intrinsic motivation, you’re doing it because it’s worthwhile in and of itself.
Extrinsic factors are externally sourced drivers of behaviour derived from the outside world. Actions stemming from extrinsic motivation are due to seeking external rewards or avoiding outer punishment.
As you can probably already tell, intrinsic motivating factors tend to be more powerful and self-sustaining than extrinsic ones. When the act of doing a behaviour is rewarding in itself, you’re more likely to continue doing it without a lapse than if you rely on something outside yourself to keep you going.
Nonetheless, it’s wrong to believe that all motivating factors can and should become intrinsic.
For one, it’s unrealistic to assume that everything that motivates us in any aspect of life can be internally sourced at the same level of intensity. Take school for example. You didn’t have equal passion and aptitude for every subject (hence why you select certain ones by high school or university) yet you still needed to study and complete them all to graduate. Part of the desire to graduate is external.
Second, extrinsic motivation can be useful as a means of achieving short-term aims (micro goals) towards a long-term objective (macro goal). With the example of school, you may not have liked studying certain subjects but to reach your long-term goal of graduating with desirable grades, you probably knuckled down and did the homework and tests year after year. A combination of extrinsic factors such as positive reinforcement when passing plus fear of condemnation from teachers and parents when failing helped you get there.
Carrots vs Sticks
We might believe we’re a high brow species but at heart we’re still animals enticed by the gain of rewards (pleasure) and evasion of punishment (pain).
Cue carrots and sticks — fundamental drivers of behaviour that form the other half of the motivation matrix.
Carrots incentivise behaviour based on potential rewards or gains. They leverage positive or negative reinforcement as an underlying motivational stimulus.
Sticks incentivise behaviour based on the threat of pain or undesired consequences. They employ positive or negative punishment as a basis.
Like with intrinsic and extrinsic factors, it’s tempting to think that between carrots and sticks, carrots hold the greater motivational potency. But this isn’t strictly true, there are many instances when aversion to negative outcomes carries greater weight. You only have to recall a time your fight or flight response kicked in out of primal fear to danger to have known this.
The Motivation Matrix
So what is the motivation matrix and how do the factors covered so far apply?
As you may have guessed, the motivation matrix maps out all the motivation factors showing the relationship between the two groups: ‘intrinsic vs extrinsic’ and ‘carrots vs sticks’.
The aim of the matrix is to illustrate your underlying motivations behind pursuing particular actions in areas of your life and serve as a reminder of why you’re doing what you’re doing in times of doubt and uncertainty. By mapping your motivations on the matrix, you’ll learn just how many motives you actually have towards a pursuit (probably more than you realise) plus which motives drive you the upmost.
If you haven’t begun your endeavour yet or are experiencing doubts about it, the matrix acts as a visual reference that prompts you into tilting the scales into why doing the endeavour is good vs not doing it. I encourage you to create your own motivation matrices and map out your motives on them.
Here’s an example of the motivation matrix applied to someone looking to get fit:
As you can see, there are plenty of reasons to get in shape and stay fit. Someone looking to improve their health and fitness won’t be at a loss of motives about why it’s important in life. If they were to create this matrix or a similar one pertaining to them and stick it on a wall or desktop, it’ll constantly remind them of the fundamental reasons for why the action is important and make them more likely to obtain their goals.
As discussed, in an ideal world the factors falling under the ‘Intrinsic’ column will resonate the most as long-term satisfaction and habit formation develop best when behaviours are self-driven. So have more intrinsic factors than extrinsic ones if you can but don’t underestimate the push extrinsic factors can give you.
Let’s take a look at another example motivation matrix:
As with the example on fitness, mapping out reasons to improve one’s dating life hit deep. Once again, if someone whose dating life was subpar were to create their own motivation matrix and put it in a place where they’d always see it, they’d refrain from being complacent about their situation and take active steps to improve it.
Summary
We assume that we know our motives for why we do what we do but in reality, we often don’t know all the reasons that drive our behaviour nor how they do so. If we outline our reasons explicitly, we’re more likely to start, keep course, and reach our goals in areas of life we wish to improve.
Enter the motivation matrix — a tool that uncovers your underlying drivers and ensures you’re reminded of them to spur you on. The motivation matrix is comprised of two types of motivational factor groups: ‘intrinsic vs extrinsic’ and ‘carrots vs sticks’. Having motives that fall under each category is essential to getting anything done in the long run.
So what are you waiting for? Clarify your pursuits and therefore your life by creating your own motivation matrix today.
