A while ago, I has posted a link to a great TED talk on the science of motivation. The RSA has taken that talk and turned it into a brilliant animation that illustrates the truth behind what motivates us.
As long as the task required mechanical skills only, higher incentives derived better performance. However, when the task required even rudimentary cognitive skills, higher incentives led to poor performance.
I am not surprised one bit that monetary incentive only goes so far. If we don’t love what we do, if we’re not passionate about what we do, if there is no purpose to what we do, no amount of monetary compensation is going to change that. Creativity and passion cannot be bought; it has to come from within, driven by a purpose.
Make sure to watch the whole video…