Passionate people are often disruptors.

In my last blog, I introduced you to Elizabeth Scharpf, who founded Sustainable Health Enterprises to develop a new system of community-based education, business training, manufacturing and distribution jobs from locally sourced banana fiber.

She had seen a problem in absenteeism in Mozambique, and witnessed in herself and others what really inspired people a mission of passion. For Schadrpf it was to improve lives. Scharpf also realized this passion was good for business.

She was not alone in this realization. In fact, more and more leaders are recognizing this. Indeed, behavioral economists Gretchen Spreitzer and Christine Porath reported in a recent issue of the Harvard Business Review, that in order for organizations to prosper today, their employees need to feel as if they are “engaged in creating the future — the company’s and their own.”

Motivation is sometimes confused with passion. It is related, but different. Let’s define them for our purposes.

Definition of Motivation

Motivation is the psychological feature that arouses an organism to action toward desired goal and elicits, controls, and that sustains certain goal-directed behaviors.

For instance: an individual has not eaten, he or she feels hungry, and as a result he or she eats and diminishes feelings of hunger. There are many approaches to motivation: physiological, behavioral, cognitive and social.

Motivation may be rooted in a basic need to minimize physical pain and maximize pleasure, or it may include specific needs such as eating and resting, or for a desired object. Conceptually, motivation is related to but distinct from emotion.

For example, you could be highly motivated to do well in your job so that you provide well for your family and build your self-esteem, but you can do this without much passion for your work.

In my next blog, we’ll explore different kinds of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic.

In the meantime, what motivates you? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Thanks for sharing.

For questions about this post or for information on becoming a fearless leader, contact Dr. Cathy Greenberg and The Fearless Leader Group at (888) 320-1299 or by email at hello@fearlessequalsfreedom.com.