Using strengths to increase motivation

Many organizations are all for employee well-being, engagement and positive interventions. However, the bottom line for many of these organizations is – are we making profit? (Steeneveld) (07 June 2015). The term PsyCap means to have a positive psychological capital. This attribute is the cornerstone for hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism. I believe that if a person can improve their PsyCap, they may have the ability to increase the satisfaction that they have on the job. They may also be able to increase their personal well-being and help reduce the stressors of their work.

I do agree with the theory of PsyCap. I took the test and it describes me perfectly. It scored my efficacy at 18. That is the highest rating for the test and I almost always get my desired result from my work. I am nearly always satisfied with what I have done, however I think that my Obsessive Compulsiveness makes me think about things in hindsight and second-guess myself. Being Obsessive Compulsive is a fault in me that I have been dealing with for years.

My results in the hope section of this assessment was at 18. I am always full of hope that things will work out or have worked at not only in the workplace but my personal life. I believe that without hope, there is no peace. We all must be at peace with ourselves as well as others to be able to work in harmony. If there is a lot of turbulence in the workplace, the employees are not focusing on their work but other distractions and this is counterproductive. Hope sometimes is hard to find for everyone, but we all have to strive for it.

I am very resilient person. This test proved that I am a reliant person. I have worked in many high stress environments and I have come out of the task completed. I firmly believe that if a person works hard and does not allow anyone to hold them back, they can do what it takes to complete the job, “ Adapt and Overcome.”

I did not score on the high end of the optimism chart. I scored a 15 and this is the lowest for me on the scoring chart about of all the attributes. I sometimes not as optimistic about the job or even life as I should be. I guess sometimes I let other people get under my skin and I know that I should not allow that. I have to force myself back on track and raise my head up and say I or we can get this done, again “ Adapt and Overcome.” I learned that in the Marine Corps, we were allowing adapting and overcoming adversity.

Extrinsic motivation refers to behavior that is driven by external rewards such as money, fame, grades, and praise. (Cherry, K. 2017) I do not drive off of extrinsic motivation. Like I say, I do not make enough money to do what I do. The benefits of my workplace are descent; however, they are not a driving factor for me either. What drives me is the ability to help my coworkers and the public. I live for protecting and serving the people of the community. I was raised to put in an honest day work for an honest day pay and I am firm believer in this. But extrinsic motivation will make people work harder, especially if they are paid a good salary and have good benefits. Some extra perks where I work are days off with pay for a good job, cash bonuses, and a yearend cash bonus. There are also good writeups put in an employee’s personnel file. This drives a majority of the people in my workplace to work a little harder.

I have intrinsic motivation. That is, I strive to be good and have the ability to reward myself from within. I do not need perks at the job such as days off with pay as an incentive to work above and beyond my capabilities and my job requirements. Having the ability to make a difference in people’s lives can make an employee’s day that much better, it makes my day to help someone. I do not care if that someone is a customer, an employee, or a supervisor. I work with a great group of people and I have seen their motivation go up when they get satisfaction from helping. This is a morale booster for them and everyone around them. If I did not need to money that I make at my job, I would do it for free. I do love my job even though sometimes I do not love my bosses. This is the attitude that I have and so many of my fellow employees have that same attitude. This creates a good work atmosphere. Motivation is key in my workplace, because sometimes we see the worst in people and it can get us down if we did not have comradery.

In closing the PsyCap is well thought out and it works. If more companies or employers would allow their employees to grow and be treated like human beings the workforce would improve. The production would improve as well. We all need to be rewarded and awarded in some way or fashion. “ PsyCap also plays an important role in developing intrapreneurial teams – those teams who act like an entrepreneur while working within a large organization and allow for innovation and development to occur.” (Salicru) (2015)

References

• Steeneveld, M. (2015, June). Psychological Capital: Training the 4 Positive Capacities, Retrieved from https://positivepsychologyprogram. com/psycap/
• Salicru, S. (2015, 26 February). Resilience & Psychological Capital (PsyCap) – What Is It and Why Does It Matter?, Retrieved from https://www. linkedin. com/pulse/resilience-psychological-capital-psycap-what-why-does-salicru
• Cherry, K. (09 June). What Is Extrinsic Motivation?, Retrieved from https://www. verywell. com/what-is-extrinsic-motivation-2795164