By Godheard King

An awful number of things are overrated and underrated in our world than we know of. John Maxwell, New York Times bestselling author, coach and speaker who has sold more than 24 million books in 50 languages, says “Winning is overrated. Growing is underrated”. Internet connection, network, fun, friendship, beauty and inspiration are some of the other things that are considered underrated. American sports media personality, Colin Cowherd also adds that talent is overrated while leadership is underrated.

Surprisingly, you and I are sometimes underrated by other people or by ourselves.

It is worthy of note however that ratings are relative: what is overrated to you may be underrated to me. We all see the world through different lenses called perceptions. So while lyrics may mean nothing to you, to the singer-songwriter, Billie Eilish, “lyrics are so important, but they’re really underrated”.

Among the number of things that are overrated and underrated in our world, motivation appears to be either. Derived from the word ‘motive’ (desire or drive), motivation, the reason someone does something or behaves in a particular way is what underlies the process of stirring or stimulating individuals to act in a certain way or to accomplish a goal. Motivation can also mean eagerness and willingness to do something without needing to be told or forced to do it. If you have ever had to ask yourself why you did what you did in the past, then you have questioned your motives or motivation, which lie at the root of your actions, inactions, reactions, and interactions.

Having placed motivation in the context of work and ascribed goal-directed behaviour to it, Prachi Juneja, in the article he wrote for Management Study Guide, creates a link between needs and motivation. According to him, motivation is key to handling and tackling needs purposely, hence his reference to such motivations as pay, success, recognition, job satisfaction among others and to Maslow’s hierarchy.

Even though motivation appears to be the excuse of the lazy and hesitant, the ones unwilling to take risks, the ones lacking ‘the will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential’ that Confucius spoke of, the doubting Thomases, who must stick their fingers through the imprint of the nails in Jesus’ hands before believing, we are undoubtedly wired, nay programmed to have it behind our actions. In fact, we do need it sometimes.

Most of us need a strong motivation to achieve any exceptional feat. Success largely depends on the strength of our motivation to succeed. But we may not necessarily depend on, or become addicted to, motivation, especially the extrinsic, every time; else, it becomes a trap, a snare to us like the comfort zone where the dreams of most people go to die. Wouldn’t you agree with me that it is unreasonable to have to listen to a motivational speaker before taking action?

How many victories would have been won, how many life-changing books were written, how many lives changed, how many digital products were sold and bought, how many potentials tapped, how many nations transformed if only people did not wait to be motivated! Little wonder being proactive tops the list in Stephen R. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Being proactive negates waiting for some external stimuli, or trying to find motivation.

One of the ideas hinted at in Ex Machina (2015) is the exploration of the artist’s motivation. It is hence implied in the conversation between Nathan and Caleb on the sexuality of a robot undergoing a Turing test that Jackson Pollock would never have made a single mark if he had known exactly why he was painting. Do we not have to know why we do things then?

Even if we always have to have a reason for doing things, as we normally do, we need not wait to be motivated to do what we must do. The day we stop waiting to be motivated is the day we stop lacking or losing motivation. If you have to know exactly why you are doing something, then you should not do it.

Since motivation and inspiration are sometimes used interchangeably, even though the former deals more with actions and the latter ideas. I like the way the founder of SpaceX, Elon Musk puts it:

“If you need inspiration, don’t do it”.

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