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What motivates an individual to perform incredible tasks? Might this quotation be the key? "The only basis for living is believing in life, loving it, and applying the whole force of one's intellect to know it better." – Emile Zola, Le Docteur Pascal, 1893. How might this apply to graduate students? Certainly, you need some intelligence, knowledge base, study skills, and time management skills, but if you don't have motivation, you won't get far. Think about this analogy. You have a car with a full tank of gas, a well-tuned engine, good set of tires, quadraphonic CD system, and a sleek, polished exterior. There it sits. This car has incredible potential. (Have you heard that before?) However, until a driver sits behind the wheel, puts the key in the ignition, and cranks it up, the car doesn't function. You guessed it; the KEY is MOTIVATION. Here is how another organization views motivation.
"Different people have different styles of working. For example, some people
need competition to do their best, while others work better at their own pace.
Respect your work style and arrange the conditions you need to do well. If you
have a long, hard task, make it as comfortable for you as possible. Do it in
short bits (but stay with it), do it wearing comfortable clothes, among
friends, in familiar surroundings, with whatever you need to keep your spirits
up while you work at it. Pure, unadulterated motivation is rare (most of the
time); you just have to keep plugging away. If necessary, pause every now and
then to remind yourself why you have chosen to take on certain work, what you
expect to get out of it. Give yourself a pep talk. When you've done something
you feel good about, reward yourself with a treat: you deserve it! Completed
tasks keep interest and motivation at a higher level. Try to complete a task,
accomplish a sub-goal, before you quit for the day. For more from the
University of Texas at Austin go: Content Theories
Process Theories
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