ESSAY: Motivation

The focus of this week’s reading is motivation. We are all familiar with the idea of motivation, but I am sure you are beginning to realize that it is not a “one size fits all” process. Finding a way to motivate a group of individuals can be a challenge! What motivates you to perform well? Does your manager motivate you, or are there company policies that motivate you? Maybe you motivate yourself. If you find that you cannot answer these questions, what could your company do to increase your motivation? While you are not required to formally cite your sources within the forum, you should make sure that you are incorporating information from the readings into your responses. Your responses should clearly show that you have read the material.

ANSWER

            Motivation is an essential component of individual and organizational performance. Different people are motivated to perform by diverse factors. I believe that it is essential that before I look at the external incentives provided by the company that I work for, I should internally motivate myself to complete the tasks assigned to me. I was brought up in a family where hard work and determination are emphasized in realizing individual goals. I have carried these ethos to my school and place of work. I believe my progression in the career is entirely dependent on my ability to perform beyond what I am expected. I also motivate myself by buying myself a gift once a given task is complete, or at the end of each year from the bonuses that we receive.

 However, that does not mean the institution does not have mechanisms for motivating the employees. On the contrary, the line managers within the organization that I work for have been given the latitude to spend a certain amount of money on employees’ motivation. At the end of each month, we usually have departmental employee of the month who are provided with different type of gifts. At the end of each year, one employee of the company is rewarded with a fully paid holiday to a destination of their choosing. Similarly, the company offer employees with bonuses at the end of each year; although there is little transparency on the criterion used for awarding the cash rewards. I believe there should be more transparency on the criteria the company uses to award the cash bonuses as some have complained about the disparities between the senior employees and other staff. Nonetheless, all these are successful motivation techniques.