This is an incredibly interesting presentation. The carrot and stick method of motivating people does more harm than good. Rewards narrow our focus and restrict our possibilities whereas working completely autonomously increases creativity. If your a manager of people in any field, watch and learn!
Career analyst Dan Pink examines the puzzle of motivation, starting with a fact that social scientists know but most managers don’t: Traditional rewards aren’t always as effective as we think. Listen for illuminating stories — and maybe, a way forward.
The traditional “Carrot & Stick” method typically shows:
- Higher rewards as a motivator led to poorer performance
- Higher incentives as a motivator led to worse performance
- Financial results as a motivator can result in a negative impact on overall performance
These approaches are outdated, unexamined and rooted more in folklore than in science.
Scientists who study motivation give us a totally new approach. Intrinsic motivation. It’s based around a desire to do something that matters, something with purpose, something we like and something that is important. This motivation strategy has three key components:
- Autonomy – the urge to direct our own lives
- Mastery – the desire to get better and better at something that matters
- Purpose – the yearning to do what we do in the service of something larger than ourselves
Watch the entire presentation. You will get a better understanding of what motivates you.
[Recovered from Wayback Machine on 2026-05-10] Original: http://daviddaniels.com:80/2009/09/the-science-of-motivation/ · view snapshot