Inside Out. Leaders Must Rethink How They Motivate
You cannot build lasting motivation with bonuses, slogans, or performance scores.
Real motivation doesn’t come from what leaders give - it comes when people have a sense of satisfaction, enjoyment, or belonging gained from their work.
If your leadership approach relies on external rewards to drive effort, you will create short-term compliance, not long-term commitment.
In this newsletter, I’ll explore why the best leaders focus on intrinsic motivation — and what that means for how you lead, recognise, and build engagement in your teams.
Intrinsic Motivation
It was in 2009 that Daniel Pink’s groundbreaking book “Drive – The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us” was published.
He drew on four decades of scientific research on human motivation and exposed the mismatch between what science knows and what business does.
Daniel describes the three intrinsic motivators: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. Traditional reward systems, such as pay and bonuses, are less effective than these intrinsic motivators. While employees still seek monetary rewards for their work, autonomy, opportunities for mastery, and a sense of purpose can significantly enhance their motivation and engagement. When organizations prioritize these intrinsic motivators over extrinsic (external) ones, they create a robust and sustainable driver of behavior and performance.
Despite “Drive” being published over 15 years ago, many organisations are still focused on the external motivators and ignoring the intrinsic motivators. An MIT Sloan Management Review article, “What Leaders Get Wrong About Employee Motivation,” from Marylène Gagné and Rebecca Hewett, sums up the situation.
“Research shows that top performance comes from intrinsically motivated, highly engaged employees, but many managers assume that only carrots and sticks will ensure that people do their jobs, and their motivational toolbox overrelies on rules, monitoring, and rewards.”
“Since managers started managing, they have questioned how to motivate employees to be productive and do good work, and, for most, their answers are still shaped by assumptions formed long ago. While modern leaders understand that the best performance comes from intrinsically motivated, highly engaged employees, many still use traditional management practices that assume people won’t work hard unless they are incentivized and monitored to make sure they deliver.”
So, how can leaders focus on building self-driven extrinsic motivation to develop teams that are more engaged, innovative, and committed to long-term success?
Education
Leaders must be educated about the difference between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. They must understand the benefits and the changes they will have to make to their leadership style and behaviours.
Extrinsic versus intrinsic
Extrinsic motivation is when we are driven to perform a task or a behaviour because of external rewards or consequences, rather than for the task itself. The motivation comes from outside you, not from personal interest or enjoyment.
Extrinsic motivators include working to earn a salary, receiving a reward, striving for recognition, securing a promotion, or avoiding punishment.
Intrinsic motivation is when we are driven to perform a task because we find it personally meaningful, engaging, or enjoyable, not because of any external rewards or pressures. This motivation comes from within us.
Intrinsic motivators include a love of learning, pursuing a passion, personal mastery, curiosity, a sense of purpose, working in a team, and volunteering.
Benefits
· People lean in, not check out. When individuals enjoy what they’re doing, they engage fully. This leads to better focus, increased effort, and greater persistence.
· It feels enjoyable, not forced. When people genuinely enjoy their work, they don’t require external rewards or pressure. The sense of achievement stems from performing the task well.
· You achieve better outcomes. People perform better when they genuinely care. They contribute their best ideas, creativity, and higher-quality work.
· Motivation endures longer. You don’t need to dangle rewards in front of them constantly. Intrinsic motivation persists as long as the work feels meaningful and engaging.
· Creativity flows more freely. When there is no pressure to meet targets solely for rewards, individuals are more likely to experiment, take risks, and try new things.
· Learning goes deeper. People remember what they care about. When they are interested, they learn more, explore more, and retain the information more effectively.
· It enhances well-being. Work feels less like pressure and more like personal growth. This is beneficial for mental health and job satisfaction.
· It fosters ownership. People feel more in control when they choose to engage, rather than when they are pushed or forced.
· It strengthens relationships. People share their passions, connect with others, and build stronger teams and communities.
· It makes people more resilient. When motivation stems from within, individuals can bounce back from setbacks because they believe in what they’re doing.
Leadership behavior
Leaders must recognise how their behaviours align with either extrinsic or intrinsic motivators. The aim must be to meet the latter.
Leaders must not lead with command and control as their primary method. They must not micromanage. They must not monitor, regulate, and incentivize people to work harder. This can lead to unintended negative consequences.
There are many examples. In 2013, Wells Fargo employees in South Carolina engaged in aggressive tactics to meet their daily cross-selling targets. They opened new accounts and issued debit or credit cards without the customer's knowledge or consent. The bank’s practice of setting daily sales targets put excessive pressure on employees, and they responded.
In the 1990s, Sears, Roebuck and Co., one of the oldest and most trusted names in American retailing, faced allegations of systematically cheating automobile repair customers. Employees overcharged customers and performed unnecessary repairs. These practices stemmed from a Sears policy that set sales quotas and exerted pressure from higher-ups on employees to engage in fraudulent activities.
Daniel Pink quotes other examples in this article.
“Enron sets lofty revenue goals – and the race to meet them by any means possible catalyzes the company’s collapse. Ford is so intent on producing a certain car at a certain weight at a certain price by a certain date that it omits safety checks and unleashes the dangerous Ford Pinto.”
Leaders must understand that individuals are naturally intrinsically motivated and thrive when their basic psychological needs for autonomy, mastery, and purpose are satisfied. They can fulfil those needs by providing employees with clear strategic direction, meaningful feedback, and a sense of connection to their work and the organisation. When they do this, they internalise goals, leading to alignment with their interests and those of the organisation, without leaders having to offer incentives and monitor employees.
Marylène Gagné and Rebecca Hewett write:
“Research supports the effectiveness of this approach: Employees whose psychological needs are met are intrinsically motivated by finding meaning and enjoyment in their work, which leads to not only better performance but also improved well-being.”
A study by Guo found that when employees feel trusted to make their own decisions, they are more motivated and engaged. The research revealed that granting employees ownership over their work results in increased job satisfaction and long-term commitment. Instead of micromanaging, leaders should focus on empowering their teams and helping them feel more invested in their work.
The challenge for many leaders is relinquishing some control, providing clear direction, and then trusting employees to complete their tasks effectively. Leaders must empower employees and refrain from micromanaging or closely monitoring their work. They must provide scope for experimentation and innovation. Employee must be able to make decisions without constant recourse to their leader.
If organisations wish to embrace the benefits of intrinsic motivation, they are likely to have to invest in leadership education and coaching. In many cases, leaders will have to unlearn and relearn, which is not a small undertaking. As Adam Grant said:
“It takes curiosity to learn. It takes courage to unlearn. Learning requires the humility to admit what you don't know today. Unlearning requires the integrity to admit that you were wrong yesterday. Learning is how you evolve. Unlearning is how you keep up as the world evolves.”
Autonomy
Autonomy is when employees feel they have ownership of their work. They are given the choice and self-direction over how they achieve their goals. They feel empowered and trusted. They have clear goals and the flexibility to decide how to achieve them.
Several years ago, I wrote an article called “Future of Work Redesigned – Empowerment.” I not only explored empowerment but also autonomy and trust. The trilogy is inextricably linked with trust, holding the trilogy together.
This is what I said about autonomy and leadership.
Autonomy refers to self-directing freedom. Your employees have the liberty to make their own choices regarding how they perform their work. Offering this autonomy is essential in a hybrid working environment. Autonomy entails the freedom to decide when, how, and where you work. The traditional 5-day, 9-to-5 workweek is a relic of the past. Autonomy allows employees to arrange ‘work’ around the rest of their lives rather than the other way around.
It is your responsibility as a leader to communicate your expectations clearly and ask for employee input on how to achieve the outcome and their approach. Define the boundaries and guardrails. Ensure your employees have the necessary resources, including your support, and then step aside.
Providing employee autonomy is not ‘management by abdication.’ You are there to offer support and eliminate obstacles as needed. You are there to guide, not control. You are there to coach, not coerce.
This serves as a wake-up call for many bosses: if the work gets done, is completed on time, and meets the expected standard, it is the employee’s decision how to carry it out.
Autonomy increases employee motivation and engagement and decreases levels of talent attrition. Employees feel valued as individuals rather than a cog in the workforce mechanism.
“Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity” - General George S. Patton.
Mastery
Mastery is the desire to improve, learn, and grow. It is the desire to develop, not because someone is watching, but because it feels good to make progress.
Leaders must foster environments that encourage growth, development, and challenge. They must provide opportunities for learning and skill development, offer constructive feedback, and recognise achievements, reinforcing the drive for continuous improvement.
Leaders must provide meaningful challenges and stretch goals, but they must be achievable. Employees must receive specific feedback on what they are doing well and where they can improve. They must be provided with learning opportunities, including training, secondments, and new projects, that will increase their mastery.
There must be opportunities for employees to apply their new skills and capabilities in meaningful work.
Celebrate employee progress towards their goal. Improvement is just as significant as outcomes.
Purpose
Employees want to know that their work and contributions matter, and that what they do has meaning. Purpose is the desire to accomplish something bigger than ourselves.
Leaders must provide a sense of purpose by connecting individual and team goals to organizational goals. Do not assume that your employees have an inherent sense of purpose. If the organizational purpose is discussed only once a year during an all-company presentation, it bears no relation to individual purpose.
Leaders must align daily tasks with the bigger picture, individual effort with collective impact, and clarify “what” people do and “why” it matters. Purpose must be visible, reinforced, and personal, and it must be lived.
Stories, examples, or customer feedback that demonstrate the impact of employees' work should be shared, and successes should be celebrated.
Employees should be asked what makes their work meaningful to them, and leaders should help them understand how their personal contributions connect to something greater.
Organisational goals should be discussed regularly and highlighted in team meetings, one-on-ones, and performance reviews. Employees must be consistently reminded of the significance of their work.
Conclusion
If you want your people to perform at their best, you must address their intrinsic motivations. When you do, performance, productivity, and enjoyment of work will be greater.
Move beyond rewards, incentives, and pressure, and create an environment where your employees feel:
In control of their work (Autonomy)
Proud of their progress and growth (Mastery)
Connected to something bigger than themselves (Purpose)
Do this by
Trusting your employees to shape how they deliver results
Stretching their skills and celebrating their learning
Telling the story of why their work matters every single day
When you give people ownership, growth, and meaning, you don’t have to push them – they will lean in.