Some people do not require as much motivation as others. Often top students or employees motivate themselves better than anyone else. These types of people do not require much supervision to get things done. Those who self-motivate have clear goals and a strong determination to reach them. For example, a student who has dreamt of being a doctor her whole life has an overall GPA goal for college. Tangible targets help self-motivators focus, and a clear plan of action leads the way to their ultimate goal.
When you state your goal to others and announce it to friends, family or even the general public, it can motivate you to reach that goal. Fear of public failure motivates most people. The fear and embarrassment that most can picture as the end result of not reaching a goal can spur them on to keep working hard. While it may hinder you to focus on the negative result of not reaching the goal, focusing on the positive result of proving to people you can achieve your goals can motivate most people.
Creating a competition for students, employees or your children works as an effective motivational tool. In the business world, competition drives companies to create more revenue or profit and attain more customers than other companies. This kind of motivation can be used internally in a more structured way. For example, creating a sales competition between salesmen can motivate them to make more sales and bring in more money for the company. Competition certainly can breed success and works as a solid motivational tool, in many situations.
Reinforcement, positive or negative, also works as a motivational tool. It is important to realize that not all motivation works for all personality types. Positive reinforcement, however, whether a reward or a bonus, often drives employees and students to achieve a high level in order to get the prize. Tangible rewards can often bring a stronger effort from those you want to motivate to get better results. Negative reinforcement could be as simple as few hard words or a stern pep talk and can also be appropriate in the right situations.