For human beings to do something, especially where change is involved, we must be motivated to do it. There are several theories and models that explain human motivation. To be effective as a leader, you have to understand and use several key motivational theories as you work with people.
We have talked about Daniel Pink’s work on human motivation. He argues that humans are motivated to pursue three things: Mastery, Autonomy, and Purpose. I use the acronym MAP to represent them. People are motivated to learn and master an area that they care about. That is mastery, autonomy and purpose also motivate people.
Simon Sinek has reminded us that great leaders, like MLK, the Wright Brothers, and Steve Jobs at Apple,  inspire everyone to take action because they start with why. They start with why, then how, then what.
The pain and pleasure principle is another common approach to explaining motivation. It says that human behavior is motivated by two things – seeking pleasure and avoiding pain. The pain and pleasure principle doesn’t explain everything about motivation. Humans are very complex and why people do things isn’t always easy to explain. However, the pain and pleasure principle is another way people have explained human motivation.
