Realizations in My Motivations
MODULE 2
STOP AND THINK. ME, TOO?: What personal experiences and observations are elucidated by the assertions from the incentive theory of motivation? Do you have your own anecdotes that validate the criticisms against the theory? In what ways are the propositions of Maslow and Rogers similar and how do they differ? How do you foresee yourself as an actualized individual? Compare your aspirations to perform and accomplish tasks of different levels of challenge. Find anecdotes when individuals (or yourself) refuse (versus volunteer) to pursue activities and goals based on personal ability beliefs. Recall instances of successes and failures. Identify who you believe contributed to each success and each failure? Find a pattern of your attribution tendencies and use theory to shed light. Use self-determination and self-worth motivation theories to reflect and explain your behaviors and responses to certain achievement situations in the past. How have your desires and decisions to pursue certain goals been influenced by the behaviors or achievements of other people in your immediate circle, as well as those you respect or admire? Do your motivational responses vary, depending on who you refer to as the "other person"?
Learning about the different motivation theories made me realize that my behaviors each have an underlying corresponding meaning to them. It also helped me identify the actions that I have to change, to improve, and to stop.
Personally, the Incentive Theory of Motivation usually works for me most of the time. Having something to look forward to after completing a long and stressful task is really motivating. There are even times that I try to beat my internal deadline to make me feel more accomplished. Aside from the rewards that I set on my own, my family also motivates me by giving incentives such as watching my favorite anime series together, playing with my sister, going out to eat, and the like. Sometimes I feel like this lessens the quality of my performance because I just finish tasks without ensuring that I gave my best and that the output is of good quality just because I already want to reward myself. Despite this, I still try to exert an effort to finish tasks not just for compliance but also for my own personal growth as a student.
The humanistic perspective theories also apply in my academic progress. Both Maslow and Rogers' propositions point to the experience of self-actualization to fulfill one’s potential as a human being. Maslow views self-actualization as something that can be achieved through one’s own efforts, while Rogers posits that an environment that provides people with genuineness, acceptance, and empathy is necessary to realize one’s self-actualization (McLeod, 2014). In my viewpoint, I consider myself as being on the proper path towards self-actualization since I am confident in my skills and capabilities in my different fields of interest. Additionally, I was raised by a loving and supportive family that always ensures that my needs are met, which also helps me to achieve the goals that I want to reach and the aspirations that I want to fulfill. There are still a number of interests that I want to explore when I grow older, but I will be taking my time and I will not be rushing since I want to enjoy the present rather than be overly anxious about the future.
Throughout my life, I have experienced different tasks with different levels of difficulties. Those that are too easy make me feel confident of my abilities since I am able to accomplish them without any sweat. However, there are times when I question myself if those tasks are the only ones that I can do confidently or if only easy activities are my expertise. On the other hand, tasks that are too difficult obviously make me feel challenged because I have to exert an effort to be able to achieve them. These kinds of assignments make me reflect on my capabilities and on my habits since they show me my strengths and weaknesses. There are times wherein some things are too difficult for me to handle, which results in experiencing unhealthy stress or emotional strain but with my family’s guidance and support, I am able to overcome them. Facing challenging but doable tasks make me feel functional in terms of the different aspects of my development as a human being. This is because I find them healthy since they make me exercise my holistic development once in a while, making me assured that I already know a lot but I still have a lot to learn.
"Of course! Why not?"
Being presented with activities wherein I am certain that I will be able to deliver using my abilities make me feel excited to help and to accomplish them.
When I was a new student in my new senior high school, I did not expect to quickly have the opportunity to lead the class. Even so, I was assigned to be the director of various schoolwide activities such as Filipino and English Festivals, the Radio Broadcasting Competition, as well as the Cheerdance Competition. Through this, I was able to share my skills and talents to contribute to the success of our performances and competitions. Trusting in my prior experiences in leading such projects in my previous school, these new opportunities made me feel excited despite how large the workload is and how complex the details will be, considering that it involves quickly learning all of my classmates’ strengths and skills in order to appropriately assign roles to them. This confidence allowed me to enjoy the process and spend the time leisurely getting to know new acquaintances despite the expected stress that such huge projects usually entail.
"I don’t want na."
Sometimes, whenever there are moments when I feel like some activities are a hassle for me and are too complex to be easily accomplished, I feel demotivated.
Back in junior high school, there were certain programs held outside of our school which were particularly far from my house or my school. In cases like this, I tend to be demotivated to participate, especially if there is not much for me to gain from them. Additionally, when there were other programs held in nearer locations or by organizations that I am already a part of and am comfortable with, I decided to join these instead.
Looking back to my successes and failures showed me the people to celebrate with and the people to look out for. When it comes to the subject of my successes, I am able to name a lot of them specifically. However, when it is about my failures, I only have a vague memory of those since I usually tend to forget them as soon as I can. My achievements throughout my elementary and high school journey were all because of my own efforts and of my family’s support. I cannot thank them enough for being present to guide me and to be with me through every step of the way. On the flip side, some failures that I recall were mostly because of groupmates or classmates. I do not exactly see those experiences as failures because we were able to find ways to resolve internal problems before getting to a point when it can already be considered as a failure.
I believe that my past achievements were results of Self-determination and Self-worth theories. My competence in both elementary and high school years were molded by my different experiences when it came to adjusting to my teachers’ set expectations. I have encountered various kinds of teachers, fair and unfair, with or without favoritism, each experience that I gained made me into who I am at present. I realized that performing well at school is not enough because external factors such as the teachers’ personal opinions and preferences need to be accounted for. My autonomy as a student was also exercised since some teachers will really show how much power they have over their class, making choices which are sometimes not for the best interest of students. I have experienced being looked down on by a teacher just because their preference is of the opposite gender as mine. Being belittled and not having my insights heard made me more vocal and firmer in expressing matters that require necessary attention. There are also times when my grades are on the line just because of teachers’ favoritism towards students who are obviously not performing well in their studies but only curry favor through compliments or other underhanded strategies. Contesting this with the respective authorities was also a huge part of the achievements that I have now.
Despite the said challenges, I was also able to lead and represent my class in certain activities with the support of some teachers. Having both teachers and classmates believe in my capabilities made me more confident, especially since I know that they are three to be a source of strength. The Self-worth Theory also explains how it was easier than usual for me to achieve greater heights. My family is composed of achievers in different fields and being a part of this family made me realize that I myself need to step up to become one as well. This is why I consider myself to have a high need for achievement. Consistently ensuring that I am able to achieve several accomplishments sometimes feels stressful and pressuring, especially since I am surrounded by achievers. Nonetheless, day by day, I still try to exert effort to equip myself to be prepared for such times when opportunities open.
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