Overcoming A Motivation Vacuum

When it comes down to it, we all have times where we have a lack of motivation to do our jobs. There are various reasons for this to happen, but a few stick out more than others. Richard E. Clark and Bror Saxberg wrote an article in the Harvard Business Review which highlights four reasons and how you can address them.

The first reason in which they talk about is “I don’t care enough to do this”. This is often found in work environments where the manager only thinks about what interest themselves and not their employees. This results in the employees having a lack of interest to keep them motivated to work. As a Sport Management major I have a high interest in sport related jobs, this gives me confidence that I will never lose motivation in my field. However, this does not apply for everyone. Clark and Saxberg explain that in order to help combat this issue, a manager should be able to show value in the task and to find out what interest the employees.

The next reason is “I don’t think I’m able to do this”. This lack of motivation comes from ones low confidence in themselves and their work. As a leader it is extremely important to support your follows and provide them with help if they need it. Doing so may give them the confidence boost they need in order to accomplish their task.

Clark and Saxberg’s third reason is “I’m too upset to do this”. A large reason for this absent of motivation comes from an employee’s emotions. Often we let our own emotions alter our effort and work. I believe that one of my greatest tools is my ability to listen to a person without showing any sign of judgement. Sometimes all we need is to get things off our chest without being critiqued, however it is also helpful to know someone is there to help if you need any. This is why I believe being a good listen as well as providing help to employees is a great way to avoid this type of motivation vacuum.

The last reason is “I don’t know what went wrong with this”. This is probably one of the biggest reason I have found myself finding a loss of motivation. I cannot remember how many times I have found myself being stuck on a particular assignment or problem and not knowing what happened to get there. A good leader should be able to offer a hand to find the problem and think of a way to overcome it.

Like I said earlier these are not the only reasons that we lose motivation, but there is always a way to overcome the problem and regain our motivation to complete our task.