What drives you?

Extrinsic or intrinsic reward? Which one drives you to move toward a goal? The annual bonus offered to an employee is like the carrot tied to a stick in the hope that sufficient motivation is created for the task. Is it enough?

In a National Public Radio interview with Neal Conan, author Daniel Pink declares that while extrinsic reward can and does work in certain circumstances, the driver that trumps all is the intrinsic need for freedom to self-direct.

One of the important drives that we have – this third drive to do things because they’re interesting, because we want to do them – is this drive for autonomy and for self-direction. This…comes out from the research of two brilliant scholars at the University of Rochester named Edward Deci and Richard Ryan. And what you’re seeing now in a lot of companies, and plenty of companies you haven’t heard of, is that providing individuals with enormous amounts of autonomy leads to a more satisfied, more engaged, more productive, more innovative work force.

For more on Pink’s analysis, check out his book, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us.