Money Or Something More

Money is the main reason people go to work. It is not the only reason, but the main one. The rational-economic theory is basic Taylorism. Once the basic survival needs are satisfied there are social needs as well. The Human Relations school promote the social view. Maslow's hierarchy is well known. Self-actualisation is as the top of the pyramid. It may also be seen as a goal. Blocked motivation can produce either frustration and negative responses, or positive constructive behaviour.

Goal achievement at work and in life depend partly on career choice. Many people want to achieve something in life. They feel they have some kind of role to play. Arnold, Cooper and Anderson suggest that understanding your self, attitudes, abilities and interests, ambitions, limitations, knowing the requirements of the career, the conditions of success, the advantages and disadvantages, opportunities and prospects and the many different lines of work together with how they all relate to each other are key to successful career choice. How we construct our world and make sense of it also has an influence over our decisions.

These cognitive abilities are important in our learning processes. Most cognitive psychologists recognise three stages in the learning process. The perception stage involves our attention to stimuli, the mentally active stage is when we make sense of all the information coming in and the last stage is the restructuring and storage phase of information processing. Learning is about constructive changes in behaviour and adding to knowledge as we go through life. Kolb's learning cycle says that there is no end to learning. We need to study and explore. He also emphasised the importance of reflection and internalisation. The new knowledge gained is also useful in identifying problems in the learning process.

If there is something you want to achieve, whether you realise what it is or not yet, the right motivation can help achieve it. Your cognitive abilities will help you realize it when you find it.