What motivates people to work hard?

In the closing stages of a recent client meeting, the conversation turned to pay. In this case no significant bonus was in play and many frustrations with the way in which head office dealt with it's country organizations had been expressed. So I asked the obvious question: 'What motivates you to do try your hardest, rather than do just enough to keep your job?'. The answer was pretty vague but seemed to be a mixture of personal pride and the potential to do something special in the market place. It got me wondering and since then I've asked a few other people the same question.

You can look at all the motivational research you like and the more recent consulting perspectives on 'Employee Engagement' and you're likely to be more confused rather than less by the wide array of models on this subject. From my totally unscientific sample, once you separate out fear of job loss, and the potential to make a huge bonus as factors encouraging people to go above and beyond, it strikes me that for most people it's a question of built in disposition more than anything. In other words, intrinsic rather than extrinsic factors are the key that unlocks the door to sustained higher levels of performance. You can throw money or great employment conditions at someone, and they will take it - but the motivational effect will wear off and you will have to keep upping the ante to keep them turned on and feed their insatiable sense of entitlement. However, if you can find people who combine the right intrinsic qualities and sufficient talent, then you may save yourself a lot of effort and even money. People who are purely motivated by extrinsic factors, may be best suited to environments that are very short-termist (like trading) and can (in good times, at least) afford generous payouts. But, for the long haul, intrinsically motivated folk may well serve you better. The workon intrinsic motivation of Steven Reiss at Ohio State University seems to come closest to explaining this in a comprehensive theory that has a sound research base. It is worth a look if you are interested in this line of thinking.