MOTIVATION.

The term motivation has been derived from the word “Motive”. Motives may be defined
as drive or impulses within the individual. It implies something within a person which
prompts him into action. Motives are expressions of a person’s needs or wants and
hence they are personal or internal.

Different scholars and schools of thoughts have given varying definitions of motivations.
These definitions are closely related because most of them talks about a force or
impulse or what pushes someone to act inorder to achieve a goal.

Motivation may be defined as the process that motivates a person into action and
induces him to follow a course of action untill the goals are finally achieved. Motivation
includes; Motives, behaviour and Goals.

GOALS MOTIVES BEHAVIOUR

According to Remez Sasson, motivation is the inner power that pushes you towards
taking action and towards achievements. Motivation is powered by desire and ambition,
and therefore, if they are absent, motivation is absent too.

According to H.W Benard, Motivation refers to all those phenomena which are involved
in the stimulation of action towards particular objectives where previously there was
little or no movement towards these goals.

According to Lovell, “Motivation is defined more formally as Psychological or internal

process initiated by some needs which leads to activities which will satisfy those needs.
The key concept in Lovell’s definition is “need”.

Nature of Motivation
The foregoing description reveals the following characteristics of motivation.
i. Motivation is a personal and internal fealing; It is a psychological
phenomenon that arises in the mind of an individual when his needs and
wants are satisfied. Motivation is related to need satisfaction because all
 conscious behaviour on the part of human being is directed towards the
satisfaction of needs.
ii. Motivation is a continous process; Human needs are unlimited and a person
always feels a need. People must at all times be provided with a stimulus to
work. Satisfaction of one needs leads to a feeling of another and the process
goes on.
iii. Human needs are interrelated; and influence human behaviour in different
ways. A person cannot be partly motivated as he is a self-contained and
inseparable unit.
iv. Motivation causes goal directed behaviour; Feeling of a need creates tension.
A person works for the goal to obtain rewards that satisfy his needs.When
the need is satisfied, tension is removed and the person feels motivated to
work for the common goals.

Motivational Process
Motivation is the result of an interaction between human needs and incentives. A
person feels motivated when available incentives leads to the satisfaction of his motives
or needs.
The various step in the process of motivation are described below;-
1. Awareness of Needs; Awareness of unsatisfied needs creates tension in the mind
of a person.
2. Search for action; Inorder to achieve his tension and satisfy his needs, the
individual looks for a suitable action. He develops a certain goals and makes an
attempt to achieve them.
3. Fulfilement of Need; Incase the individual is successful in his attempt, his needs
is satisfied and he feels motivated. If the attempt is unsuccessful the need
sremain unsatisfied and the individual engages himself in search for new action.
He will engage himself in constructive or defensive behaviour.
4. Discovery of new needs; Once one need is fulfilled, some other needs will
emerge and the individual will set a new goal. This process continues to work
within an individual because human needs are unlimited.

TYPES OF MOTIVATION
There are two major types of motivation.
1. Intrinsic Motivation
2. Extrinsic Motivation
INTRINSIC MOTIVATION
It is the type of motivation in which the motives originates from inside the human body.
It refers tp the internal driving state stimulating and individual to behave in a specific
way.

It includes the following motives;-

 Biological drives; e.g. hunger, thirst, relief from pain, sleep, temperature regulation.
 Curiosity
 Internal fears e.g. fear of rejection
 Psychological e.g. need for being accepted and appreciated by others.
 Internal desires e.g. desires to gain power or dominance.

EXTRINSIC MOTIVATION
In this type of motivation, the motives originates from outside the human body. The
driving forece exists outside the human body that stimulates the individual forcertain
actions. Though these motives are external to the human bodybut they have a
rewarding or punishing impact for the individual.
It includes the following motives; Incentives, Bonuses, Allowances, Promotion and
demotin etc.

THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
The importance of motivation of human life can be judged by the number of theories
that have been propounded to explain people’s behaviour. They explain human
motivation through needs and human nature. Prominent amongst these theories and
particularly relevant to entreprenuership are; Maslow’s Hierachy theory and McClelland’s
Acquired needs theory. These are explained below;-

MASLOW’S NEED HIERACHY THEORY

Abraham Maslow was an american psychologist who developed a theory of motivation
on the basis of human needs.

In his theory, he identified five sets of human needs arranged in a hierachy of their
importance and priority. He concluded that when one set of needs is satisfied, it ceases
to be a motivating factor. Thereafter, the next set of need in the hierachy takes its
position. These needs in the hierachy can be compared to a pyramid.

Assumptions of Maslow’s Need Hierachy

The theory is based on the following assumptions;-
 a- Man is a perpetually a ‘wanting animal’ and his needs are never fully satisfied. As
soon as one need is satisfied, another needs takes it place. This process
continues from birth to death of a person.
b- Human needs differ in importance and therefore can be arranged in a series of
levels, a hierachy or a pyramid. Some needs are more significant than the
others..
c- An individual’s needs at a particular level on the hierachy emrges only when the
lower level needs are reasonably well satisfied.
d- Satisfied needs do not motivate behaviour. Once a certain need is satisfied, it
ceases to be a motivating factor.
e- The lower order needs/physiological and safety are more finite than the higher
level needs. Ego and self Actualisation needs are likely to be dominant among
persons at higher levels of management.

According to Malsow, Human needs can be clasifed into five Categories;-

SELF ACTUALISATION
Self Fulfilment

ESTEEM NEEDS
Self-Esteem, Respect, Achievement

SOCIAL NEEDS
Friendship, Acceptance, Family etc

SAFETY/SECURITY NEEDS
Personal security, Financial security, Health and Wellbeing

PHYSIOLOGICAL NEEDS
Breathing, food, water, sex, sleep, clothing, shelter
Physiological Needs; These are the basic needs for sustaining a human life. These
needs includes;- food, shelter, air, rest, sleep and sexual satisfaction. These needs lie at
the lowest level in the hierachy of the needs as they have priority over all other needs.
These needs can not be postphoned for a long time. An organisation can help
individuals satisfy their needs by providing good pay, proper working conditions and
other benefits.

Security/Safety Needs; They imply protection agaianst danger, sicknesses etc.

Incase of serious laws and order problem, an entreprenuer either closes his enterprises
for a day or even thinks of shifting it to another place. Successful functioning of an
enterprise is a source of safety of the entreprenuer.
Social Needs/Belongingness and Love Needs; Man is a being, he needs to be
accepted by others, need to receive attention from others etc they need to love and be
loved. Every human being wants to build meaningful relationships with others.

Esteem/Ego Needs; Esteem needs are of two types;- self esteem and estem of
others. Self esteem implies the need for self respect, self confidence, feeling of personal
worth and independence. Esteem of others refers to need for recognition, status,
power, prestige, achievement etc. An entreprenuer introduces an enterprise to satisfy
most of his self-esteem neds ownership and control of a successful enterprises provides
him status, personal reputation and sense of independence.

Self-Actualisation Needs; This is the highest level of needs in Maslow’s hierachy.

These are the needs for realising one’s full potenial. These refers to the need for
becoming everything that one is capable of becoming, for accomplishing more and
more than one is capable of accomplishing.At this level, the entreprenuer seeks
challenging assignments that allows for creativity and opportunity for personal growth
and development.

Evaluation of Maslow’s Theory

Maslow’s classification of human needs is helpful in analysisng and understanding
human behaviour. The thoerypoints out that a person’s behaviour is regualted by
multiple motives. It help explain why people behave differently in the same situation.
The Maslow’s theory extends to all areas of human life and is not limited to the work
situation only. It shows that people are motivated by unsatisfied needs and satisfied
needs have no motivation power. It also postulates that as lower level needs are
fulfilled, higher level needs replace them and governs a person’s behaviour.

LIMITATIONS OF MASLOW’S THEORY

Maslow’s theory suffers from the following limitations;-
1- Firstly, a person often seeks to satisfy several needs at a time. Even before the
safety need is completely satisfied, the ego needs may arise. Maslow’s theory
faisl to explain this phenomenon of multiplemotivations.
2- Secondly, the need priority order can not in all cases be generalised as it
depends on cultural values and personality of a person. What is a higher level
need for a worker in Uganda may be a lower level need for a british worker.
Workers in britain do not worry ,much about their physiological and safety need
and they tend to operate at higher level needs.
 3- Thirdly, movement in the needs hierachy is not always upward. The need
hierachy may not always follow the sequence stipulated by Maslow. For instance,
in some people the need for selfesteem and the drive for creativeness are more
potent than the needs for love. Some people like to lose their jobs (security)
rather than their respect.
4- Fourthly, the same need may cause different types of behaviour. Similary, some
need satisfier may affect more than one need level. For instance money may
satisfy physiological, safety and social needs.

MCCLELLAND’S ACQUIRED NEEDS THEORY

According to David Mcclelland a person acquires three types of needs at any time.
These are;-
i. Need for achievement.
ii. Need for power
iii. Need for affiliation.

Need for achievement refers to the desire to accomplish something with one’s own
efforts. It is the urge to excel or the will to do well.

Needs for power means the desire to dominate and influence others by controlling
their actions and use of pysical objects.

Need for affiliation implies the desire to establish and maintain friendly and warm
relations with others.

McClelland says that regardless of our gender, culture or age, we all have three
motivating drivers andoneof these would be our dominant driver. This dominant
motivator is largely dependent on our culture and life experiences.
These characteristics are as follows;-
Dominant Factor Characteristics of a person
Achievement  Has strong need to set and accomplish
challenging goals.
 Takes calculated risks to accomplish their goals.
 Likes to receive regualr feedbacks on their
progress and achievements.
 Often likes to work alone.
Affilliation  Wants to belong to the group.
 Wants to be liked and will often go along with
whatever the rests of the group wants to do.
  Favours collaboration over competition.
 Does not like high risks or uncertainity.
Power  Wants to control and influence others.
 Likes to win argument.
 Enjoys competition and winning.
 Enjoys status and recognition.

Using the theory.

McClelland’s theory can help you to identify the dominant motivators of people in your
team. You can use this information to influence how you set goals and provide
feedbacks and how you motivate and reward your team members.

For examples; Let us take a closer look at how to manage team members who are
driven by each of McClelland’s three motivators.
i. Achievement
People motivated by achievement needs challenging but not impossible
project. They thrive on overcoming difficult problems or situations, so make
sure you keep them engaged this way. When providing feedback, give
achievers a fair and balanced appriaisal. They want to know that they are
doing right and wrong so that they can improve.

ii. Affilliation
People motivated by affilliation works bests in a group environmnet, so try to
intergarte them with a team. They also don’t like uncertainity and risks.
Therefore, when assiging projects, save the risky ones for the other people.

When giving feedback, remember that these people don’t want to stand out,
so it might be best to praise them in private than in front of others.

iii. Power
Those with a high need for power works best when they are in charge.
Because they enjoy competition, they do well with a goal oriented project or
tasks. They may also be very effective in negotiations or in situations in which
another party must be convinced of an idea or goal.

When providing feedback, be direct with these team members and keep them
motivated by helping them further their career goals.

FACTORS THAT MOTIVATES ENTREPRENUERS INTO BUSINESS.

Several factors have been considered to be the motivators of entreprenuers into
undertaking business ventures;- These factors includes the followings
i. Motivating factors.
Several research studies have been conducted to identify that factors that inspire
entreprenuers. These factors were grouped into two categories;- internal and
external.
Factors internal to the entreprenuers;-
a) Strong desires to do something independently in life.
b) Achievemnet needs.
c) Be recognised for one’s contribution.
d) One’s educational background.
e) One’s occupational backgroud and experience in the relevant field.
Factors External to the entreprenuers;-
a) Government assistance and support.
b) Availability of labour and raw materials.
c) Promising demand for the product.
d) Profit margin.
e) Encouragement from big businesses.

ii. Entreprenural ambitions;

Another study suggests that entreprenuers are motivated into a businessas a result
of their ambitions/dreams.These entreprenuarl ambitions includes;-
a) To make money.
b) To fulfil desire to self/wife/parents.
c) To contune family business.
d) To secure self employment/independent living.
e) To gain social prestige.
f) Other ambitions;- making of a descent living, desire to do something creative,
provide emplyment.
iii. Compelling reasons;
Sometimes it is compulsion rater than ambitions that leads man to success.
Therefore, it is necessary to examine the reasons that might have compelled
entreprenuer to pursue entreprenuership. These includes;-
a) Unemployment.
b) Dissatisfaction with the job.
c) Making use of the funds.
d) Making use of technical/professional skills.
e) Maintennance of large families.
 iv. Facilitating factors;-
At times entreprenuers are inspired by the moral support from the near and dear
ones. The following factors are considered to be facilitating factors that drives
entreprenuers into entreprenuership;-

a) Previous asociations.
b) Previous employment in the same or other line of activity.
c) Success stories of other entreprenuers.
d) Property inherited.
e) Advice or influence.

Exercise
1. Define Motivation and explain the different factors that motivate people to
become entreprenuers.
2. Explain the meaning of Internal and External factors of motivation.
3. Explain Achievement Motivation.
4. Explain the following;-
a) Phsyiological Needs.
b) Security/Safety Needs.
c) Social Needs
d) Esteem Needs
e) Self-Actualisation Needs.

5. Discuss the limitations of Maslow Needs theory.

QUALITIES OF A SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENUERS
To be successful in buisness, an entreprenuer should possess the folloing
characteristics;-
1. Risk Taker; A person who can take risks can become an entreprenuer. Risk
taking is the hear of entreprenuership. Those who are not inclined to take risks
cannot become entreprenuers.
2. Imagination; One of the most important qualities of an entreprenue is the
imagination. All invenmtions, innovations, manufacturing processes, great books,
great works of art etc are due to imaginative power of men.
3. Technical Knowledge; It implies knowlegde about the product, process or
technology used in manufacturing. In addition, an entreprenuer should be well
versed with the legal, financial and administrative matters relating to business.
4. Energitcic; A person having physical and mental stamina to cope with hard
work. At times, a business man may have to work 24 hours a day.
5. Patience; It means steadiness, endurance and perseverance in the performance
of a task. A good amount of patience is necessary in any type of occupation.
Patience means doing the work and then waiting for the result. In otherwords, a
businessman should not wait to take action but certainly wait for the results of
his efforts.
6. Decision Making; To be successful, a person should have the ability to take
and implement decisions, quickly but not hastily. A successful business man is
one who takes a right decision at the right time and implements it efficiently and
effectively.
7. Desire to achieve goals;-A successful entreprenuer is one who sets
challenging but realistic goals. To him, problems and prospects are two sides of
the same coin. He has a strong desire to locate an opportunity in a problemand
determination to solve it. He always lists out priority of objectives and makes it
possible to achieve them.
8. Open Mindedness; It means free and frank approach in accepting one’s errors
and then making efforst to rectify the same. A successful entreprenuer is willing
to learn from his past experience and misktakes and moulds himself for a better
future.
9. Good Organiser; Successful entreprenuers are good organisers of resources of
men, machines, materials and money needed to start and run the business
smoothly. They need to convincve employees, investors, and customers; and
coordinate acrivities of individuals and groups in the accomplishmemnt of
business objectives.
10. Human relations; An entreprenuer comes in contact with employees, investors,
customers and other social groups. Business is a social activity and its success
 depends on maintaining good relations with employees, customers, creditors and
the community as a whole. An entreprenuer who undertsands the psychplogy of
people has gppd prospects in business.
11. Communication skills; It means the ability to share informations with others
effectively with employees and outsiders is more successful in business.