In college, each student’s motivation is to succeed with a combination of things.
That’s why it makes sense for students to discover and utilize the motivators that effectively push them forward, toward their most important goals. Here are some of the motivators that help students find success.
1. Self-Realization – College is a time when students can discover, become, and experience the person they want to be. They will find college to be a fun and exciting time, a time when they can explore a variety of courses, join new clubs, participate in campus activities, meet interesting people, explore their capabilities and identify their passions. As they begin to learn and grow, they will be motivated to push those limits and find the person who resides inside.
2. Personal Satisfaction – Some students take pride in facing the challenges of college and coming through it all having done well. They are motivated internally and get a great deal of personal satisfaction from doing a good job.
3. Challenge – Challenges motivate some students. They see college as a big challenge, one that requires them to fight for success. Students who have the personality, operating style, and self-confidence to face and overcome challenges will do well in this environment because they won’t allow themselves to fail.
4. Fear – For some students, fear is a good motivator. These students do well in college because they don’t want to lose their scholarships, don’t want to graduate without a job, don’t want to fail out, and still have large loan repayments and don’t want to anger or embarrass their families.
5. The Joy of Learning – Some students truly love the college environment. They enjoy learning and devour information on subjects that turn them on. They strive to become knowledge experts, thought leaders, and information repositories. The need for information motivates them.
6. A Clear Purpose – When students head off to college with a clear and single-minded purpose, they are usually motivated to do well. They see college as a means to an end, one that is important to them. On the other hand, students who enter college with no purpose in mind are less likely to perform well. They don’t place a high value on a college education because they don’t see how a college education will help them get where they want to go. It serves no purpose for them.
7. Approval – Many students seek and are motivated by praise, encouragement, and recognition for good work. When students are good at something and achieve exceptional results, their status in that environment goes up. When people compliment them, point them out as examples, and look up to them, they shine.
8. Life Goals – Students frequently see their college years as a launching pad to their futures. A good education can lead to a good job, money, security, and all of the trappings of success. They are motivated to do well because college will help them build a better future.
9. Aid Others – The need to help others motivates some students. To reach their goal, they must perform well in college. A college education will enable them to fulfill their dream of serving others. They know that nurses, teachers, caregivers, counselors, and other helpers can only get started with a good education.
Something motivates everyone. A combination of factors drives most college students. Therefore, wise students recognize and utilize their motivators. They understand that motivated students will always perform at a higher level than students who are unmotivated and uninspired.
