4 Types of Growth Motivation

I recently had a unique opportunity to attend a one-day immersion workshop with author Jim Collins. While I have appreciated his work for decades, it was the first time I had been with him in person.

One of the principles from his research on companies that made the transition from "good" to "great" is what he terms the "Level 5 Leadership" hierarchy:

Individuals can progress through each of these levels in development, and indeed, even the "just good, not great" companies studied were led by leaders deemed Level 4 - Effective Leaders in their own right.

However, if one chooses to work on the skillsets needed to grow in this hierarchy, a question of motivation arises. Why should or would someone want to develop from level 1 to level 2? From 2 to three? And so on?

Why Do The Work?

In our work, we engage with CEOs and teams of growth-minded organizations to provide them with tools and systems to leverage their resources in order to grow or scale up. When we meet interested parties, one of the topics we like to explore prior to engagement is the questions, "What is it you believe you need our support in?" and "Why do you want to do this work together?"

Often, the reason for engaging with us evolves after an engagement, and often, we hear feedback like, "We engaged with Cadence Growth because (whatever the reason), but within the first year, we discovered the real thing we needed was (something different.)"

Sometimes, this motivation grows, but sometimes it diminishes.

This has led us to ask more questions, especially up front, to understand the motivations behind why people think they want to grow as an organization. Understanding this early on is helpful because the work is often hard, and without a clear reason for pressing through the pain, it can be difficult to continue at times.

With over three dozen teams and CEOs we had the privilege to support over the past six years, we have observed some patterns for the various reasons folks want to grow. And especially as we see individuals choose to move upwards in Collins' Level 5 hierarchy, registering these motivations can be especially helpful.

Four Motivations

We have observed that individuals are motivated in at least one of the following four ways:

1. Lifestyle

A “lifestyle” motivation for growth in a leader results in an appetite for growth to the extent that it improves their lifestyle. This might mean achieving a certain level of income, being able to provide certain opportunities for their children, or making it possible to do certain things as a result of the growth.

Lifestyle motivation may result in significant ambition - especially depending on the circumstances an individual finds themselves in. This motivation is related to the first two or three levels of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, including basic needs and psychological needs.

Lifestyle-motivated leaders tend to be more inwardly focused on themselves, or they may be focused on external factors that affect their lives but may not be deeply connected to any cause or purpose beyond their own sphere.

Their big question is, “How can I better my situation or protect my position?”

2. Opportunity 

An “opportunistic” motivation for growth in a leader results in an appetite for growth if the right opportunities present themselves. They may look for opportunities, but the motivation tends to end there.

Opportunity motivation often presents itself within the realm of "stewardship" philosophy. Being a good steward of one's resources suggests finding opportunities to increase the "talents" one has. The more opportunities are taken advantage of, the better steward one is, while the stewardship philosophy may mask whatever ambition is present. This motivation may be related to some forms of psychological or self-actualization in Maslow's Hierarchy.

Opportunity-motivated leaders tend to be less inwardly focused on themselves and worry less about their lifestyle, understanding it will take care of itself if they simply apply themselves with diligence and pursue the right opportunities.

Their big question is, “What opportunities exist for us to leverage?”

3. Aspiration

An “aspirational” motivation for growth in a leader produces an appetite for growth connected to a cause or a goal. These leaders are about something bigger than themselves, and they are evangelists for whatever that is.

Aspirational motivation can appear unabashedly ambitious, and these leaders are good at rallying people, teams, groups, and communities towards the achievement or accomplishment of the cause or mission at hand. Winning and healthy competition are important to these leaders and may be a source of the cause itself. This motivation may be related to the need for esteem but is more commonly related to self-actualization within Maslow's Hierarchy.

Aspiration-motivated leaders tend to see opportunities everywhere and understand lifestyle as taking care of itself - as long as they accomplish the goal or mission. 

Their big question is, “What is the mission, and how can we accomplish it?”

4. Transformation

A “transformational” motivation for growth in a leader produces an appetite for growth necessary for creating a future that doesn't exist yet. These leaders are able to articulate how the world will become a better place as a result of their mission, cause, and/or purpose being fulfilled.

Transformation motivation is often described as "visionary" - at least in retrospect. While these leaders are also good at rallying people towards a common goal, the goal itself is expressed as being driven by a purpose, or it is understood as requiring a series of big goal accomplishments to fulfill the transformation. This motivation begins with self-actualization in Maslow's hierarchy and proceeds on from there.

Transformation-motivated leaders are certainly ambitious and "goal-oriented," but their goals are oriented around a cause or purpose that extends beyond their personal ambition. They tend to recognize that lifestyle will take care of itself, that opportunities abound, and that life is a series of missions or goals all leading towards an improved state of being.

Their big question is, “What is the future we are creating?”

Observations

We have observed that each subsequent motivation type envelopes the paradigms preceding it. Progressing outward from the motivation of "lifestyle" to "transformation," there is an increasing sense of abundance, magnanimity, largess, etc. Also, the further outward this orbit goes, the bigger the cause and the less the leader appears to be “at the effect” of external circumstances.

Moving outward produces appetites for growth that, paradoxically, becomes bigger and bigger while it becomes less and less about the leaders themselves. It is like a spacecraft moving away from the gravitational pull of a planet - the planet of self-interest - and into the vastness of space - space to dream and be fulfilled.

When the going gets tough, types "lifestyle" and "opportunity" tend to withdraw, tighten their belts, retreat, and scale down to meet whatever circumstances exist; types “aspiration” and “transformation” tend to press forward, advance, and scale up to prevail over whatever circumstances exist.

Between motivation types “opportunity” and “aspiration," there seems to be a shift from “reactive” to “creative” leadership attributes, from a fundamentally “victim consciousness" to a fundamentally “consciously empowered” style or way of being.

Perhaps it could be said that when leaders work on their creative vs. reactive tendencies or immerse themselves in being victors vs. victims, their causes and dreams get bigger, while opportunities (and even luck events) appear. And matters of lifestyle become increasingly less of a concern.

Reflection

While these motivation categories or even Collins hierarchy, while rooted in clear thinking and sound data, are certainly flawed, we have found asking ourselves the question:

"Which of these motivations do I most resonate with at this time?"

...is a fantastic beginning to the work of leadership development.

I will leave you with that question. Please feel free to reach out at dale@cadencegrowth.com if your interested in exploring your growth motivations. It would be great to hear from you!