In my experience most people can’t tell you what motivates others and only have a cursory understanding of what motivates themselves. The most common answer when asked in a work setting is “I have to pay rent.” or something along those lines. Most people aren’t doing what they want to be doing and they’re just doing whatever they can to survive. In many ways the world is set up to keep you from having time to even think about what motivates you outside of the needs of survival. Knowing what you want, having a goal, and a general plan of how to get there increases your chances of attaining that goal because you subconsciously work towards it all the time. It’s no guarantee, but it increases your odds. Of course sometimes your goals change on the fly and you spend 3 years pursuing a goal only to realize that you don’t actually want to do whatever thing you were shooting for. As I often say, it’s important to be flexible in the moment. Don’t get tunnel vision. Take a loot at your goal from time to time, but keep an eye out for other opportunities. Your goal might not even change, but you might spot a way to jump a hazard or avoid an enemy. It’s a lot to juggle all the time while you’re just trying to not become homeless.

Anyway, this is my attempt to avoid homelessness and it’s worked out okay, although I don’t own the home I have. I’m just tolerated because people love me despite all evidence that doing so is a bad idea.

It irritates me when content creators say “I love you.” to their audience. It’s a manipulation tactic. They can’t reasonably love thousands of people in the generally accepted way we define love. They love the vague concept of their audience as a mechanism for their success. Which is why I don’t say it to you. I appreciate you but I can’t give you the attention or affection that love implies. I think it’s disrespectful to pretend that I can. There isn’t a word for the love a creator has for their audience. I present my work in hopes that it will improve your life by experiencing it. I suppose the closest word is philadelphia. Not the place, but the actual concept the name comes from. The love of brothers, or fellow humans to extend it to a more wide scope. That’s why Philadelphia is called the city of brotherly love by the way. A name that is unfortunately ironic in my experience. I make this work out of love for you while not loving you personally. That doesn’t mean there’s no chance I could love you individually though… *wiggles eyebrows* XD

Anyway, I hope your fondness for my work draws you back on Friday. God willing I will have more of it here for you then. Until then, keep squeezin’ them monkeys.

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Interesting comic today, I definitely agree that most people don’t think on this stuff too deeply and most managers couldn’t really answer this question beyond “money”.

I don’t even think it’s them being incompetent or malicious, just something that is kind of default assumed.

The proof in the pudding will be if Mike can offer up a solid answer after having time to think, even if that answer is “I don’t know them well enough, I should change that”.

The organisation that I escaped from (it was a good place to work for a long time, but went downhill over the last few years) seemed to believe that the only way to motivate staff was with the prospect of promotion, so people like me who found an adequate level to occupy were to be encouraged to move on.

A bit less than a year ago I got laid off from my old job, and I really struggled with this when it came to finding a new job. Whenever an application or interview asked why I was passionate about wanting the position, or if a recruiter asked what my dream job would be, all I could really think was “Well, I want a job that I’m good at, find decently interesting, and has good pay and benefits. I’m not going to be passionate about any job.”

They write applications and conduct interviews like they’re trying to find a fucking unicorn. I swear the suits sit around dreaming of finding people who will work themselves to death, for no money, and do so while singing the praises of the company.

Oh wait. It’s slavery. That’s what they want. I just described slavery, except the slaves are also insane and happy to be enslaved.

Ah, they’re trying to induce Stockholm Syndrome in their employees. That makes an unfortunate amount of sense.

Hmm, I’m kind of thinking that you missed a good opportunity to have a STAR WARS joke with Uncle Owen.

My motivation to work, is purely monetary.For survival and to be able to do my hobbies and wvebtually have enough saving to go on a early retirement,because no way in hell I am going to get on an actualnone with how they keeo raising the retirement age, never mind believing the wellfare system is still up then.

As for what motivates my team(yes I am middle management, feel free to boo), money, potential promotion down the line, not being unemployed. Standard stuff, what keeps them motivated is thanks, praises, occasional team events(going to a brewery tour in a month) and treating them like I wish I would be when I was in their position.

I loved my job for years – almost 2 decades – then we got a new VP who not only didn’t believe in my department’s function (EHS) but who I’m pretty sure disliked me personally. Cue years of bad (and bad faith) management, which is still ongoing. I would have left – in fact I had an interview for my function at a larger institution in my hometown – but COVID turned all that on its head. Now I’ve reached the point where companies don’t want to hire someone in my age group, so I’m stuck here, waiting for retirement (which is still some years away).

When people ask me what I think of my employer, I usually respond with “I wouldn’t piss on that place if it were on fire.”

It’s true, you can’t love everyone deeply. You’ll go insane. Happened to me, anyway.

I showed this comic to my friend and he laughed and said, true.

wow, I really left this tab open to read the blog “later” for a month and a half

but yea, I’ve witnessed a lot of the same on that front. I’m currently working with my therapist to zero in on what motivates me so that I can maybe find an avenue out of my burnout. unfortunately it’s seeming that there’s no overlap between my motivators and my necessities, and my necessities have been eating up all of my energy, which is probably why I’ve been stuck in burnout for so long

also had a small laugh that you chose 3 years of all years, as I had some decently elaborate goals that I was going to be pursuing from early/mid 2013 to late 2015, though the thing that knocked me off that path wasn’t realizing I no longer wanted it, but rather that my partner at the time was integral to those goals and the romantic contract was dissolved, which left the goals high and dry

2697 It’s Got A Bad Motivator.

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