Intrinsic Motivation: The Key to High Performance and Employee Retention

Creating an environment that works to achieve high performance can be extremely difficult. Leaders often use promotions, pay raises and sometimes even instill fear to increase work productivity. Although this may get the job done, it does not build true motivation from within an individual; instead, this tactic drives motivation through the use of external factors.

Continue reading to learn why adapting to a new leadership style can motivate employees and boost overall employee retention. After all, 2023 McKinsey research suggests employee relationships with leadership account for 86% of workers’ job satisfaction.

What is intrinsic motivation?

Intrinsic motivation is best described by Industrial Psychologist Jacqueline Deuling as, “the inner drive that propels us to engage in activities for their inherent satisfaction.” In simpler terms, intrinsic motivation is expressed when someone finds joy in completing the task; for example, someone completing the daily crossword in the morning newspaper.

As discussed, employees most often display extrinsic motivation to complete everyday tasks and long-term projects. One example of extrinsic motivation is providing excessive rewards for fulfilling assignments (e.g., gift cards). Although temporarily effective, this method negatively impacts employees’ intrinsic motivation.

Daniel Pink, a multi-New York Times bestselling author, wrote Drive, a book that explores the three elements of intrinsic motivation: autonomy, mastery and purpose. Check out how he explains each section and its part in converting someone into an intrinsically-motivated individual.

• Autonomy is best explained as the desire to have complete control over decisions rather than being controlled by others.
• Mastery refers to an individual’s aspiration to continuously grow and improve. External rewards, like a gold medal, mean nothing unless continuous improvement is observed.
• Purpose describes the demand to understand the role played in the “bigger picture.” Knowing what is being done in the grand scheme of things is beneficial in building intrinsic motivation.

Fostering intrinsic motivation

There is no true blueprint in creating an intrinsically motivated environment. Every individual has methods that work uniquely to them, but there are some tactics that can help push employees in the right direction. One of these strategies is simply creating a supportive environment. Words of affirmation are a great way of doing so. A simple, “if you need help, don’t be scared to ask. We are here to see you succeed,” can go a long way.

As stated previously, giving employees a sense of autonomy is extremely beneficial in creating intrinsic motivation. Allow employees to make some decisions on their own. Ways that this can be done is by providing them flexibility within their schedule. Establish necessary boundaries, but overall provide them with complete control of decisions that affect them.

Perspective can also have a great amount of influence over an individual. Informing employees of the importance of their outlook on work and everyday tasks can help motivate them to do better. Regardless of what method is used to cultivate this environment, ensuring that your employees see a leader who is also working through a form of intrinsic motivation is key to garnering the best results.

Facing challenges

Executing a new work culture will have its difficulties. Employees often lack intrinsic motivation due to many different fears within the workplace. These can be displayed in the form of failure, discipline or communicating.

Although it is important to personally help employees overcome challenges, knowing when to step back and let them do the work themselves can be equally beneficial. Informing all team members of “fear-setting” is one way to foster self-development within the company.

Similar to “goal-setting,” “fear-setting” involves laying out a worker’s fears in regards to the business the person is employed at. Using this method is a great way to move your company closer to an atmosphere of intrinsic motivation.

First introduced by author/entrepreneur Tim Ferris, this method outlines fears in three steps. Although it consists of multiple parts, utilizing the first page alone can help eliminate potential fears, thus improving the chances of an increase in intrinsic motivation.

Define

In the first column, have the employees outline fears regarding one’s contribution to the company. This will help better understand precisely what challenges need to be overcome.

• “What if I underperform?”
• “What if I make a mistake on this big project?”
• “What if I miss deadlines?

Prevent

The second column calls for the individual to list proactive decisions that could be made as preventive measures. This practice allows the employee to begin preparing for all possible scenarios that may occur in the future.

• “I can observe those around me to see if my work productivity meets or exceeds what is being done.”
• “I can double-check the list of objectives and what exactly is required of me to do my part correctly.
• “I can make a to-do list to help keep me better organized on all upcoming deadlines.”

Repair

The final section discusses the actions that are needed in the event that the “what if” does occur. Although it may catch an individual by surprise, the employee will be able to act quickly and correct the problem at hand. Here are some actions to correct those mistakes using the same past scenarios.

• “I will set up quarterly meetings with my department head to discuss my work and any action that needs to be made to boost my performance.”
• “I will communicate with our project manager to see what I did incorrectly and how to avoid it better in the future.”
• “I will work to manage my time better, ensuring projects are completed four hours before the deadline.”

Benefits of Intrinsic Motivation

Although the journey may be long, the benefits your team will gain from building this culture will be worth the time and effort. There is no external pressure, which can cause the individual to reach a happier state of mind with the company they work for, thus resulting in boosted performance and employee retention.

In regards to its correlation with employee retention, creating an environment surrounding intrinsic motivation results in employees looking at their job not as something they HAVE to do, but rather something they GET to do. It is not something that is paying the bills, but rather something that the employee looks forward to each and every day. In fact, McKinsey research reports that those who work with intrinsic motivation have approximately 46% more satisfaction with their job than those who work extrinsically.

If creating this culture is something that makes you feel overwhelmed, EWF International provides leadership development programs to help you or your emerging leaders gain some helpful skills that can produce an environment that works out of intrinsic motivation. Contact us today to boost work productivity within your organization: https://ewfinternational.com/contact/.