Motivation
“There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it”
Oscar Wilde
The goal of the project is to give you an opportunity to put into action the knowledge you have gained in the Psychology of motivation, emotion and behavior. You are to use the goal worksheet on the second page of this document to identify areas in your life that you are motivated to change and improve.
1. Choose three areas of interest from the worksheet but make sure one of them is your career interests given your approaching graduation from college. Discuss where these goals come from, are they your goals or someone else’s. How has societal expectations effected selection of your goals? Will achievement of these goals make you happy? Why?
2. For each life area, establish at least one long-term goal and one short-term goal and make sure that both are specific, objective and measurable. List as many subgoals as you think will be needed to achieve your goals.
3. Make it clear what successfully reaching these goals would look like and what failure would look like. Is fear of failure an issue in your selection of these goals?
4. Identify the current expense costs of long-term goals (what are you sacrificing now).
5. Identify which physical and or psychological need that is being met for each of the three goals. Identify which psychological need (the need for autonomy, belonging, meaning or self-esteem etc.) is important to you and why.
6. Outline the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation that is pushing you to achieve your goals.
7. Identify your resources and assets for achieving your goals and also identify the obstacles that may interfere with achievement of your goals.
8. Will you commit to these goals publicly? Will you actively pursue them with passion or only halfheartedly try to move toward them?
Sample Solution
The three areas I have chosen from the worksheet that I am most interested in and motivated to improve are my career interests, financial security, and physical well being. My career interests come mainly from my own passions and desires to make a difference in the world. As someone who is approaching graduation from college, it’s important to me to find work that will not only make me happy but also positively contribute to society as much as possible.
Financial security is another area of interest on the worksheet because I want to be able to provide for myself and others throughout life. Society has expectations that people should be financially well off in order to succeed, so this has played a role in shaping my goals around this subject matter. Achieving financial stability would bring some peace of mind knowing that there are fewer worries about money coming into play with whatever other ventures I choose during life. Although monetary wealth may not equate directly with happiness, having enough money can help eliminate certain stresses associated with everyday living which could possibly lead towards more satisfaction overall.
Lastly, physical well being is an area that is very important for me both mentally and physically because it helps keep me feeling energized and productive throughout my day-to-day activities. This goal ties in closely with the idea of self-care through proper nutrition and exercise regimes which ultimately affects how much energy one feels when trying reach their goals or complete tasks at hand (Oxford Academic). If I maintain good health habits along with achieving my other two goals mentioned previously, then yes it could bring some happiness considering how far reaching its effects on daily life can extend outwards.
In conclusion, all these three areas hold importance within our lives as they give us an opportunity to grow while helping us pursue what we want out of life – whether it be having financial stability or more energy during our days – which if achieved will potentially create more joyfulness over time.
