What drives you in your career today might not be what motivated you five years ago – or even last year. As you grow and evolve, so do your priorities, goals, and sources of motivation. Understanding why and how it shifts over time can help you stay engaged, focused, and on track for your career goals.
Remember, motivation generally falls into two categories:
- Intrinsic motivation comes from within, driven by a sense of purpose or passion. You’re motivated by doing what you love or because you think it’s worthwhile.
- Extrinsic motivation is external, fuelled by rewards like promotions, bonuses, or recognition from others.
Neither one is better than the other, and what drives you may change, influenced by factors such as:
- Life stages (leaving home, starting a family, caring for elderly parents)
- Career changes (promotions, industry changes, redundancies)
- And even evolving personal values.
And each of us will react to these stages in different ways!
Early in your career…
For example, early on in your career, you might still be living at home with your parents. One person might decide this gives them the freedom to work in an industry that they love but which pays poorly. Somebody else in the same situation might frame their options in another way, only pursuing roles with financial rewards and promotion opportunities so they can strike out on their own as soon as possible.
These decisions are shaped partly by circumstance and partly by individual desires. In either case, having clarity over what you’re doing and why enables you to have better insight into what you want and what you might do to achieve it.
Later on, as experience builds…
Let’s consider these examples again later in their career.
- Perhaps the passionate summit seeker is now thinking, “Okay, I’ve managed to learn a lot in a role I love – now, how can I shift what I’m doing so I can make money or gain recognition for my expertise?”
- Maybe the goal climber has hit their targets and is taking a moment to reflect, thinking, “I’ve done well, but now I want to make a difference.” They might start putting energy into retraining or mentoring.
Again, both individuals are making perfectly valid choices, using their experience in the workplace to help redefine what success means to them.
Remember to re-evaluate
The point is that we all change, and it’s important to acknowledge that so we can reassess our choices every so often. If you become too fixated on a goal you had five years ago, you may be disappointed when you reach it, only to find it doesn’t satisfy you like you thought it would.
Your motivation at work is like a compass – it may shift over time, but it always points towards what matters most to you. By staying attuned to these changes and embracing them, you can create a career path that evolves with you so that you can be fulfilled wherever you find yourself.
If you haven’t done it already, why not take our myMOTIVATIONcompass quiz and uncover your motivation type? If it’s been a while since you did the quiz, consider taking it again!
