Intrinsic Motivation vs Economic Advantage

A quote from Daniel Pink, author of A Whole New Mind: Moving from the Information Age to the Conceptual Age. It tackles working out of intrinsic motivation versus people doing "things that confer economic advantage" in our American workforce. This one hits home for me so I thought I would share it with you.

The sorts of abilities that matter most now it turns out are also the sorts of things that people do out of intrinsic motivation. Relatively few people become accountants out of a sense of intrinsic motivation. But intrinsic motivation is what propels people to become creators and empathizers, to become designers and storytellers and counselors and consultants. This weekend there will be accountants painting watercolors in their garages. There will be lawyers writing screenplays. But I guarantee you that you won't find any sculptors who on weekends will be doing other people's taxes for fun. In other words, there is a growing congruence between the sorts of things that people do because they love doing them and the sorts of things that confer economic advantage.

Of course not everyone can do what they love and earn a living doing so. But it is sad to see that people are soo drawn by the economic advantages of a job title that they ignore their hearts desires or don't even attempt to explore a more refreshing lifestyle. Like a computer science major who switches focus because of a passionate professor in an unfamiliar subject, you should give it some thought.