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Motivation at Work: Myths, Models, and Measurable Impact · The Science of Leading

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  Welcome back to The Science of Leading.
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  I'm Claire Monroe, here-as always-with Edwin Carrington.
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  Today, we're diving into something that seems like it should be simple
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  to define, but somehow it always slips sideways the moment you try to
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  pin it down at work: motivation.
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  And more specifically-what actually drives
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  people to show up, lean in, and,
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  like... actually care.
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  Edwin, kick us off-how do you explain motivation
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  in organizational psychology terms,
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  compared to just... I don't know,
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  engagement?
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  That's a good distinction to start with.
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  Motivation is about what fuels behavior from the inside-the psychological
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  engine, if you will.
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  It's why someone chooses to give effort here,
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  instead of over there.
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  Engagement,
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  on the other hand, is more external-it's the visible behavior.
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  Are they attentive?
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  Are they putting in effort?
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  But you can have people who look engaged and
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  are secretly drained.
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  Because if the motivation underneath is fear... or pressure... that energy
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  won't last.
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  It burns out.
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  Right-so it's like... you've got a launch team sprinting like
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  crazy, but it's only because they're terrified of missing the deadline.
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  Not because they believe in the product or the purpose behind it.
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  So even
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  if engagement looks high on paper,
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  motivation kinda tells you if it's real,
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  or if it's gonna fall apart later.
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  Is that what you mean?
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  Exactly.
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  Motivation is what predicts persistence.
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  Why people stick with the hard things.
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  And when people are motivated from
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  the right place, everything changes-creativity,
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  performance, resilience.
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  Amabile's research showed that.
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  And we've seen it firsthand at OAD-those people stay longer,
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  contribute more, and raise the game for everyone around them.
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  Okay,
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  so let's go deeper-because anytime motivation comes up,
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  there's this... split.
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  Some folks are like,
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  "Make the work meaningful!"And others go,
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  "Nope-just give bonuses."But the truth is,
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  it's more layered than that, right?
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  Can you unpack the difference between
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  intrinsic and extrinsic motivation-and maybe bring in some of those classic
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  frameworks, like Self-Determination or Herzberg?
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  Sure.
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  Intrinsic motivation is when the work itself feels rewarding.
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  You're not chasing a prize-you're engaged because it's interesting,
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  or meaningful, or it helps you grow.
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  Self-Determination Theory really
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  lays that out-autonomy, mastery,
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  and relatedness.
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  Then you've got Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory.
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  That says some things-like pay,
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  or decent working conditions-just prevent dissatisfaction.
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  But they don't spark motivation.
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  The motivators?
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  That's where you find purpose,
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  growth, recognition.
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  And if you look at Vroom's Expectancy Theory,
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  motivation also depends on whether people believe their effort leads
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  to real results-and whether those results actually matter to them.
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  Maslow
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  reminds us of the basics: if someone's dealing with psychological insecurity
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  or poor belonging, you're not going to motivate them with stretch goals.
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  Yeah...
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  that really tracks.
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  When I think back to the jobs where I thrived,
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  it wasn't the perks.
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  I mean, yeah-fair pay matters-but it was the places where I had real
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  freedom.
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  I remember one role where they let me choose my projects.
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  Experiment.
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  Take stuff from idea to execution.
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  I felt like I owned the work.
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  And then there was another job-great salary-but
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  I was just... grinding through Jira tickets.
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  No say in what mattered.
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  And even though I should've felt motivated... I didn't.
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  So,
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  same tasks, maybe, but totally different emotional experience depending
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  on the setup.
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  That's it.
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  You can have two engineers with identical skill
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  sets-and one's innovating while the other's coasting.
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  The difference?
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  One feels trusted, valued, connected.
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  The other doesn't.
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  And it's not about micromanaging behavior-it's about
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  building the kind of environment that lets people plug into purpose.
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  That's the only way motivation sustains beyond the next project deadline.
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  So
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  let's land this in the real world.
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  We've got all these theories-Self-Determination,
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  Herzberg, Expectancy, Maslow... but what does any of it actually look like
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  if you're a manager, or a team lead,
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  trying to fire people up on, like,
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  Monday morning?
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  Great question.
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  One place to start is Goal-Setting Theory-Locke and Latham's work.
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  If
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  you set clear, challenging goals with your team-not for them-you see commitment
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  go up.
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  Back that with real feedback and autonomy over how to hit the goals,
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  and now you've got a motivational engine.
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  Layer in growth support-mentorship,
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  upskilling, reflective check-ins-and you're not just pushing for output.
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  You're developing people.
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  And that sticks.
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  Yeah... and sometimes it's about space,
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  too, right?
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  I think about Google's "20% time"-that wasn't just a perk.
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  It was a signal: We trust your curiosity.
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  Or Netflix,
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  where recognition is built into how people operate.
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  Like, not just bonuses, but real-time feedback and clear praise for great
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  work.
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  It's structured, but it's also... alive.
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  Those systems feel motivating.
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  Exactly.
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  They're scaffolding intrinsic motivation.
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  What too many organizations
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  do is rely on blunt tools-bonuses,
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  gimmicks, pizza parties.
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  I remember a manager who thought the annual bonus
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  was the holy grail.
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  He optimized everything around it.
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  And guess what?
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  His team did the minimum required to qualify.
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  Turnover went up.
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  Trust went down.
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  He built a compliance culture-not a motivated one.
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  Totally.
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  And sometimes those rewards actually backfire.
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  I've seen teams work themselves
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  into the ground for a year-end bonus... and then totally disengage after.
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  It's
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  like-you created a sprint, not a system.
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  The best leaders I've worked with?
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  They're not dangling carrots.
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  They're asking, "How do we create clarity,
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  challenge, and meaning consistently?"But it's so easy to forget that,
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  especially under pressure.
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  That's the trap.
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  When you're under the gun,
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  short-term levers feel tempting.
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  But over time,
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  extrinsic rewards without the deeper layers create noise,
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  not momentum.
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  People stop solving problems-they start gaming systems.
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  So,
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  if you want to build durable motivation,
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  it has to rest on trust, growth,
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  purpose.
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  Not perks.
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  Right.
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  Because if the foundation's shaky-no clarity,
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  no trust, no real connection to the work-then all the bonuses in the
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  world won't save you.
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  Especially when things get rocky.
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  That's when people start checking out.
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  Quietly.
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  And we've seen it-teams look productive on the outside,
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  but underneath?
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  Disengagement, burnout, resentment...Exactly.
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  Motivation isn't something
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  you "solve." It's something you tend.
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  Smart organizations treat it like
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  an operating system: you measure it,
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  tweak it, improve it-continuously.
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  Okay-so for anyone listening who's
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  thinking, "Alright... I get it in theory.
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  But what can I actually do about this?"Where do they begin?
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  Like, what are the levers-at the org level,
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  manager level, team level?
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  At the organizational level,
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  it's about alignment.
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  Do your systems-performance,
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  feedback, recognition-match the culture you say you want?
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  If you preach
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  innovation but punish risk-taking,
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  people won't stretch.
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  Psychological safety is foundational.
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  Without it,
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  motivation shifts into survival mode.
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  And managers?
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  Where do they most often trip up?
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  Skipping the basics.
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  No clear role expectations.
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  No coaching.
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  No recognition beyond the generic.
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  Managers who check in regularly-not
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  just on progress, but well-being-see the difference.
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  And when they coach
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  instead of control, it builds trust.
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  Even something as small as recognizing
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  the why behind someone's work-versus just the output-changes how it lands.
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  And
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  teams-oh man.
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  The best ones I've seen kind of self-regulate.
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  They have their
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  own shared norms, feedback rhythms,
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  ways of lifting each other up.
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  There's ownership-but also shared pride.
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  Exactly.
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  Teams that reflect together, not just work together,
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  tend to outperform.
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  Peer feedback.
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  Learning moments.
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  Shared wins.
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  It's cultural.
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  And on the individual level,
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  motivation's a muscle.
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  Self-awareness,
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  goal setting, feedback-seeking... these are skills,
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  not traits.
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  Yeah-and the big trap is thinking motivation belongs to HR.
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  Like
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  it's someone else's job to "fix."But when everyone assumes someone else
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  will do it... no one does.
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  And that's when you get the illusion of engagement-but
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  no depth.
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  Right.
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  The data backs it up.
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  Once basic needs are met,
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  money stops being the main driver.
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  And fun perks?
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  They fade fast.
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  Real motivation sticks when you build systems that listen-pulse
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  surveys, check-ins-and actually act on what they reveal.
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  Connect those
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  insights to performance, retention,
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  growth... and now motivation becomes a strategic lens.
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  So maybe the real
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  question for leaders is-"How aligned is my culture,
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  my leadership, my everyday behavior... with what actually drives my team?"Not
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  what looks good on paper.
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  Not what worked five years ago.
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  And maybe ask yourself:"When was the last
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  time I asked the team what fuels them-and actually changed something because
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  of it?"That's it.
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  Motivation isn't a fire you light once-it's one you tend.
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  Consistently.
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  Intentionally.
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  And when you do,
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  it pays off-far beyond this quarter's targets.
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  Alright-that's a wrap for
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  this episode.
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  Thanks, Edwin-for the insights.
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  And thanks to all of you listening.
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  If
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  you're wondering how to put this into action... you can test out OAD's tools-like
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  behavioral assessments-for free at o-a-d-dot-a-i.
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  It's a really practical
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  way to improve team fit and understand what drives your people.
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  Thanks,
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  Claire.
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  Always a pleasure.
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  Until next time,
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  take care-and keep leading with intention.