CHAPTER 3
SELF-MOTIVATION AND GOAL SETTING
CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES
You have to be well motivated to achieve success in work and personal life. Being well
motivated facilitates achieving high productivity and quality, and is also necessary for
career survival. Chapter 12 deals with motivating other people.
I. HOW NEEDS AND MOTIVES INFLUENCE MOTIVATION
are defined as inner drives that move a person to do something.
A. The Need Theory of Motivation
every truly satisfy people.
B. Important Needs and Motives People Attempt to Satisfy
motives. This section as well as the information about Maslow’s need
hierarchy lists important needs.
1. Achievement. A strong achievement need leads people to find joy in
2. Power. People with a high need for power feel compelled to control
resources such as other people and money.
3. Affiliation. People with a strong affiliation need seek out close
relationships with others and tend to be a loyal friend or employee.
4. Recognition. People with a strong need for recognition want to be
acknowledged for their contribution and efforts.
6. Risk Taking and Thrill Seeking. People with a strong need for risk taking
7. Conscientiousness. Although technically classified as a personality trait,
the desire to be dependable, responsible, and persevering can also be
regarded as a psychological need. Because conscientiousness is
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consistently related to job performance, Self-Assessment Quiz 3-1 could
be valuable for students.
C. Maslow’s Need Hierarchy
Maslow’s need hierarchy is the best-known categorization of needs. People
strive to satisfy the following groups of needs in step-by-step order: (1)
physiological, (2) safety, (3) social, (4) esteem, and (5) self-actualizing. See
forth substantial effort if they think the goal they pursue will satisfy an
important need. However, they must first identify the need or needs they
really want to satisfy.
D. Engagement as a Part of Self-Motivation
If you are strongly motivated, you are engaged in your work, or committed to
solving a problem tend to feel that they are acting independently.
Self-determination and engagement. Self-determination theory contends that
we are most deeply engaged, and do our most creative work, when we feel
that we are acting according to our will and pursing goals we find meaningful.
An important focus of self-determination theory is that doing exciting work
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Goals are useful because they: (a) provide a consistent direction, (b) improve
the chances for success, and (c) serve as self-motivators and energizers. As
1. Desire for Feedback. People with a learning-goal orientation are more
likely to seek feedback on how well they are performing.
2. Impact on Work Performance. Attempting to master skills often leads to
better results than does attempting to impress others. A study of sales
representatives in the medical supply field demonstrated that a learning-
goal orientation was associated with higher sales performance. In contrast,
a performing -goal orientation was unrelated to sales performance. An
important implication of this study is that a focus on skill development,
even for an experienced workforce, is likely to lead to higher performance.
3. Better Relationships with Supervisor. A goal of mastery often prompts
workers to develop better relationships with their superiors based on
better job performance and satisfaction.
Another reason learning goals are important in the workplace is that they
stimulate a person’s imagination, and the desire for new learning.
C. Goal Setting on the Job
Virtually all organizations have come to accept the value of goal setting in
well. Integrating personal goals and career goals helps one achieve balance in
life.
1. Types of Personal Goals. Personal goals can be subdivided into social and
family, hobbies and interests, physical and mental health, career, and
financial.
E. Action Plans to Support Goals.
An action plan specifies the steps that must be taken to reach the goal.
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Without a plan for achieving what you want, the goal is likely to slip by.
Some immediate goals, however, do not require an action plan.
. F. Guidelines for Goal Setting.
Suggestions for setting effective goals include:
1. Express Each Goal as a Positive Statement. Expressing your goals in
positive statements is likely to be more energizing than focusing on the
negative, such as avoiding certain outcomes.
2. Formulate Specific Goals. Vague goals may delay action.
3. Formulate Concise Goals. Use a short, punchy statement.
4. Set Realistic Goals as Well as Stretch Goals. A realistic goal represents
the right amount of challenge for the person pursuing the goal. The higher
a person’s self-efficacy, the more likely he or she will think that a goal is
realistic. Several goals that stretch your capability might be included in
your list of goals as well.
5. Set Goals for Different Time Periods. Include daily, short-range, medium-
range, and long-range goals. Short-range goals make an important
contribution to attaining goals of a longer duration.
G. Problems Sometimes Created by Goals.
Despite their values, goals can create problems.
1. Inflexibility. A major problem is that goals can create inflexibility, leading to
obsessive behavior and neglect of aspects of work not related to the goal. It is
helpful to recognize when you are pursuing the wrong goal. (The power of
positive quitting should be recognized.)
2. Loss of interest in the task. Performance goals can sometimes detract from an
interest in the task. The loss of interest is most likely to occur when the task is
difficult.
3. Engaging in unethical behavior. A tight focus on goals can also encourage
unethical behavior and a disregard for how the goals are attained. People will
sometimes falsely claim that they attained a goal.
4. Slacking off after the goal is reached. Goals sometimes backfire because the
worker who has attained the goal then slacks off.
III. SELF-MOTIVATION TECHNIQUES
Identifying your most important needs could enhance motivation. Seven other
techniques are also important.
1. Set goals for yourself. Goal setting is fundamental to motivation.
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2. Find intrinsically motivating work. Intrinsic motivation refers to the
natural tendency to seek out novelty and challenges, to extend and use
one’s capacities, to explore, and to learn. Intrinsically motivating work
often takes the form of meaningful work, or work that has personal
meaning to you based on your values and interests.
3. Get feedback on your performance. Feedback acts as a reward.
4. Apply behavior modification to yourself. In using behavior modification,
remember that self-rewards may be more effective than self-punishments
in sustaining the right behavior.
5. Improve your skills relevant to your goals. According to the expectancy
theory of motivation, people need confidence in their skills to be
motivated. They will be motivated if they believe that their efforts will
lead to desired outcomes.
6. Raise your level of self-expectation. The Galatea effect is the technical
term for improving performance through raising one’s expectations for
oneself.
7. Develop a strong work ethic. If you are committed to the idea that most
work is valuable and that it is joyful to work hard, you will automatically
become strongly motivated.
IV. HOW TO DEVELOP THE SELF-DISCIPLINE TO ACHIEVE GOALS AND
STAY MOTIVATED
Achieving goals and staying motivated requires self-discipline, the ability to
work systematically and progressively toward a goal until it is achieved. Self-
discipline incorporates self-motivation because it enables you to motivate yourself
to achieve goals without being nagged or prodded with deadlines. The
components to the self-discipline model are as follows:
1. Commitment to mission and goals.
2. Intense concentration and focus. (This is the heart of self-discipline.)
3. Minimization of excuse making (Self-disciplined people concentrate their
energies on goal accomplishment rather than making excuses for why
work is not accomplished.)
4. Delay of gratification (Quite often delay of gratification entails treading a
lesser reward for a bigger reward later.)
Students can learn about their degree of self-discipline by completing the Self-
Discipline Quiz self-assessment 3-4 in the text.
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ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION AND REVIEW
3.1 Instead of worrying about self-motivation, why not just wait for your manager or
employer to motivate you toward superior performance?
3.2. One of the biggest concerns of workers is that they want employers to pay more
of their health-care insurance. What does this issue tell us about the importance of
satisfying the lower-level needs of workers?
3.3 Identify two business-related jobs for which a high need for risk taking and thrill
seeking would be an advantage. Also identify two business-related jobs for which
a high need for risk taking and thrill seeking would be a disadvantage.
3.4 At last report, a 102-year-old man was working in the lawn and garden
department of a Walmart store, and a 100-year-old woman was working as a
greeter. (Both appear to be popular with customers.) What do you think keeps this
man and woman motivated to stay members of the workforce?
3.5 Identify any self-actualized person you know and explain why you think that
person is self-actualized.
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3.6 Which aspects or factors related to any job you have help make you feel work
engaged? Explain your reasoning.
3.7 Why does a learning-goal orientation often contribute to more peace of mind that
a performing-goal orientation?
3.8 Many students have observed that it is easier to be self-motivated after you have
decided on a major. Why might this be true?
3.9 Explain how you might be able to use the Galatea effect to improve the success
you achieve in career and personal life.
3.10 Ask a person who has achieved career success how much self-discipline
contributed to his or her success.
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COMMENTS ON EXERCISES AND THE CASES
Human Relations Self-Assessment Quiz 3-1: The Conscientiousness Quiz
Mulling over the questions provides useful insight into conscientiousness. Many aspects
of conscientiousness seem mundane, but taken together they contribute to success in
almost every occupation. The quiz statements that reflect not being conscientious are also
worth keeping in mind, such as Number 10, “I would strive for excellent performance
only if I thought it would lead to a salary increase or bonus.”
Human Relations Self-Assessment Quiz 3-2: My Standing on the Need Hierarchy
A contribution of this instrument is that it translates needs into twenty five specific
attitudes and behaviors. Also, students may enjoy the complexity of a scale that does not
focus on agreeing with items or questions, but reacting to their importance. It is
conceivable that a student might attach high or low importance to all five need categories.
The need hierarchy is often interpreted as meaning that having strong higher-level needs
results in having weak lower-level needs. The results of this inventory might demonstrate
that need categories are not related to each other in see-saw fashion.
Human Relations Self-Assessment Quiz 3-3: My Engagement Drivers
Given that employers place so much emphasis on employee engagement, it is helpful to
think about which job factors might be engaging. Also, understanding job factors that
lead to engagement might help a person emphasize work within a job that might lead to
high performance. In some circumstances, a person might be able to choose a job in
which many of these engaging factors were present.
Human Relations Self-Assessment Quiz 3-4: My Self-Discipline Tendencies
Taking the self-discipline quiz can be illuminating because the popular notion of self-
discipline is that it involves considerable self-sacrifice, even self-punishment. As with
most of the self quizzes in Career and Personal Success, the statements or questions in
the quiz are based on symptoms of people displaying the construct (concept or
personality dimension) being measured. The rationale underlying individual statements
might be worthy of discussion. Here are two examples:
8. “My days rarely turn out the way I hoped.” For the self-disciplined person, days
19. “I get bored easily.” Self-disciplined people are almost never bored because
they always have important goals to pursue. However, if blocked from reaching
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Applying Human Relations Exercise 3.1: Goal Setting and Action Plan Worksheet
It may arouse student interest to point out that this exercise can be a turning point in
one’s life. It is based on the fact that setting goals improves the chances for success.
Dividing goals into time periods, such as long-term, intermediate-term, and short-term
remains a useful perspective. We have provided sample goals and action plans for each
time category of goals because setting goals and action plans is more complicated than
would appear on the surface. A major problem many students have is being specific
enough about goals and action plans. Many people say, for example, that they hope to
open their own business in the future. Yet they have not even identified the field in which
they would like to operate the business, or what skills and contacts they would need to
ever own a business.
Applying Human Relations Exercise 3.2: Setback in Goal Setting and Action Plans
Dealing with setbacks in goal setting or planning is a valuable set of behaviors.
Individuals as well as organizations frequently fail to attain their goals. Contingency
planning is therefore quite important, and is often necessary in career planning. For
example, a person might develop this contingency plan: “If I cannot pass the CPA exam
in three tries, I will become an income-tax preparer.”
Human Relations Class Activity: How Important is Need Satisfaction to People?
This class activity provides an opportunity to apply a self-quiz to other people in an area
of intrinsic interest to most students. Searching for participants from different
demographic groups helps communicate the importance of heterogeneous samples for
obtaining useful research results. Calculating which needs are the most satisfied, and
those most frustrated, might prove of interest to the class.
Human Relations Case Study 3.1: Charlotte Struggles to Get Involved
This case illustrates a frequent workplace scenario: Not being truly excited about the
work one is performing.
3.11 What do you recommend that Charlotte do to become more engaged in her work,
and at the same time has stronger self-motivation?
3.12 What do you recommend Jordan do to help Charlotte become more engaged in
her work and become more committed to the welfare of Atlantic Steel Structures?
Human Relations Role-Playing Exercise: Getting Charlotte More Engaged
3.13 What is your evaluation of the effectiveness of the goals set by Trevor?
3.14 What suggestions can you offer Trevor to make his goals more likely to be
attained?
As just implied, Trevor should make his goals more specific and mention action
network about their potential storage needs.”
3.15 How relevant is a program of goal setting for Mike’s company?
SUPPLEMENTARY CLASS ACTIVITY: ARTICLE REVIEW ASSIGNMENT
Students seem to relate well to the concepts of self-motivation and goal setting, and are
often interested to learn how they can improve their skills in these areas. Following is an
article review assignment designed to give students an opportunity to examine their own
techniques for self-motivation and goal setting and to explore new ideas to enhance their
skills.
ARTICLE REVIEW
1. Choose an article in a newspaper, magazine, or on the Internet that discusses self-
motivation and goal setting.
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2. Submit a 3 page report detailing the following:
a. Summary of the article
b. Description of how the article relates to human relations (especially
chapter 3)
c. Your reactions to the article
d. Effective techniques you have previously used in self-motivation and goal
setting for yourself
e. New ideas you will try in the areas of self-motivation and goal setting
after reading chapter 3 in the text and your article
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Article Review Grading Rubric
Score
Section A
Review the Article
5-6 points
Explained the major points in detail, in own
words, incorporating course terminology as
appropriate
3 – 4 points
Explained major points in own terms
0 – 2 points
Explained the main point of the article – no detail
Section B
Relate Article to Human Relations
5 – 6 points
Explained how the major points related to the
course in detail incorporating course terminology
and concepts as appropriate
3 – 4 points
Explained major points with some use of course
terminology and concepts as appropriate
0 – 2 points
Explained at least one application to the course
Section C
Personal View of Article
5 – 6 points
Thorough explanation of personal views of the
article concepts and author’s perceptions vs. own
3 – 4 points
Explained personal view of at least 2 of the
author’s concepts that you agreed or disagreed
with
0 – 2 points
Explained at least one reason that you agreed or
disagreed with the author’s concepts
Section D
Your Self-Motivation and Goal Setting
Techniques
5 – 6 points
Thorough explanation of techniques previously
used and new ideas
3 – 4 points
Explained at least two previous techniques and
one new idea
0 – 2 points
Explained at least one previous technique and/or
one new idea
Section D
Submission
5 pts.
Submitted on the due date
2 pts.
Submitted late, but within one week of due date
Section E
Nuts & Bolts
1 pt. ea.
Correct grammar, punctuation and spelling
1 pt. ea.
Neat, clean, readable presentation
1 – 2
Meets minimum page requirement of three pages
Total Pts.
Maximum 33 Points