Food, water and the meaning of life

Daily writing prompt

What motivates you?

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Let me put on my philosopher hat for a minute…

My first though was, “Well, it depends what action or activity you are talking about.”

• I’m motivated to take a shower because I don’t want to stink.
• I’m motivated to get to my 40 hour a week day job because I want to pay my bills.
• I’m motivated to practice my double bass because I’m a masochist (kidding of course…).
• I’m motivated to write because it keeps me sane

I rattled these four items off quickly, and in the order as they came into my head. When I studied them after the fact, I found it interesting that my list is patterned much like Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

The first represents physiological needs, the second, safety/security. OK, I skipped over love and belonging – shoot me 😉 . Point three – challenging myself to learn the double bass plays into my need for self-esteem and achievement. Lastly, writing is my way of achieving, or at least attempting a crack at self-actualization.

The tree that Maslow was barking up was the idea that we are all motivated based on where we are on the pyramid. If you are struggling for food and water, it’s doubtful you are going to take up flying lessons to bolster your self-esteem. If, however, your belly is always full, you start looking for the next step to the top. What’s next?

So what motivates me to keep climbing? I would love to sound all altruistic and wholesome by saying that I’m motivated by love or helping others, but ultimately, I believe that we are, at the end of the day, still hamstrung to our monkey origins. We are motivated to avoid suffering and seek power (in some form or fashion). We want to be the top gorilla.

Spinoza ties it up rather nicely in his theory that revolves around the concept of “conatus” – the innate striving to persevere. According to Spinoza, true motivation comes from understanding our desires and and aligning them with reason, which leads to a more empowered and joyful life.

Carpe nox