Everyone has plans and goals. It seems like we’re always striving towards something.
Jay Shetty breaks down the four main motivators that drive people and how our motivations reveal our true intentions.
At our core, we are all motivated by one of the four main motivators: fear, desire, duty, and love. To find out which one is motivating you at any giving moment, ask yourself the following questions, and answer honestly:
- What am I striving towards with these plans and goals?
- What am I seeking through my choices?
- Am I looking for a thrill, or safety and security?
- Do I want to make an impact and live a life with purpose?
The four motivators can help paint a clearer picture of where we are in life now, where we want to go, and why. These motivations are what drive everything we do, but some of these motivations are stronger and more lasting than others. Jay Shetty writes that learning how to recognize these motivators and how they show up in your life is the key to living with more intention, impact, and positivity.
How do we make the four motivations work for us in our lives instead of feeling like we’re powerless against them? When we are able to understand what is motivating us and what needs we have, we can make specific choices to help us achieve our goals.
Jay Shetty writes that studying what motivators drive us and what lies beneath them is critical to our development. Understanding our motivations helps us dial in on our why and find ways to practically achieve the goals we have. Some motivations are powerful and sustainable, while others are not. As we look at some of these motivators, why not take a look at some of your desires and aspirations and see how the motivators may fit in? Jay Shetty suggests we ask ourselves:
- What do I want?
- What am I looking for in life?
- What makes me feel fulfilled?
- What makes me excited about life?
When we understand what we are looking for and how our desires play into shaping our motivations, we can clearly see whether the path we are on is really serving who we are.
Motivators and Living Intentionally
Intentional living is any lifestyle that is based on your values and conscious beliefs and then lived out in accordance with those values and who you truly are. It is a way of thinking about your life in a purposeful and meaningful way.
Jay Shetty learned about intentional living during his days as a monk. As he began to question why he desired certain outcomes, he discovered that his motivators had much more to do with his desires and his ability to live intentionally than he’d first believed.
Broken down to their simplest level, motivators answer the question, “Why?” Why does someone want to be a CEO?
- Is it to make an impact?
- To be rich and successful?
- To be liked?
