The Self-Motivator


"He who does not live, is being lived."

Michael Birkenbihl (bbb)


Renald Hennig

One of the things we admire in leaders is their seeming ability to pick themselves up out of the gutter, somewhat like Baron Munchhausen who saved himself and his horse by picking himself up by his hair and pulling himself out of the water he was about to drown in. Self-Motivation it is called, enhancing on the subject of "moving" others covered earlier.

How does one know whether one is self-motivated - or someone else?

Is it self-motivation when the employee gets up in the morning to be in time for work? No one forces him too. But there are consequences associated with not getting up.

As there are with everything we do.

In common parlance the word self-motivated is usually used for someone who is engaged in a particular cause, without an immediate benefit in sight. This definition is far from complete, but may give us a first grip on the subject matter.

Jesus certainly was engaged. So: How did he do "it"? The record only rarely reflects the thoughts and feelings of Jesus, leaving us with external indicators only. Some are identifiable:

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, 'Who do people say the Son of Man is?'  (95)

He was actively seeking external feedback from those who knew him best.

'Why were you searching for me?' he asked. 'Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?'  (96)

He did understand the importance of symbols like the temple, anchors so to speak.

Jesus . . . withdrew again to a mountain by himself. (97)

He also used time for himself, to regenerate, to ponder and to pray.

This was all the more necessary as he was constantly giving, when surrounded by people, which sapped his strength:

And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, "If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed." Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. (98)

There was and is no such thing as the perpetuum mobile - including leaders. They need to find their own sources of renewal.

And something mentioned at the very beginning of this treatise:

"Are you the king of the Jews?" asked Pilate.

"Yes, it is as you say," Jesus replied. (99)

The high priest said to him, "I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God."

"Yes, it is as you say," Jesus replied. (100)

This, I feel, is the essence of the power he had, including the power of self-motivation: He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt who he was.

Modern authors go about (self-)motivation somewhat differently. Perhaps the most differentiated in recent times is McClelland (ccc).

He found three major internal "motivators" for managers: inhibition, meaning that company's benefits are more important for him than personal gain; affiliation, reflecting the need to be liked; and power needs, that is the desire to have impact, to be strong and influential. McClelland later added that the need for achievement may actually be stronger than even the need for power. Depending on the individual's needs, different types of managers can be defined, each type with its own set of characteristics. The positive message is that maturing is possible.

This finding is supported by Goleman (ddd), though coming from a different approach:

"If there is one trait that virtually all effective leaders have, it is motivation . . .those with leadership potential are motivated by a deeply embedded desire to achieve for the sake of achieving."

As to the how of self-motivation there are amazing numbers of books, tapes, seminars and videos available that proclaim to teach just that. Some of them may actually be helpful to some. To name just some of the authors: Robbins, Ziglar, Mandino, Hoeller, Schaefer, Birkenbihl (that is mainly the daughter, Vera), Geoffroy, Ratelband etc.

This would be the topic of an own Ph.D. thesis.

To support the claim of the need for regeneration for self-motivation, here at least one quote: "The self-renewal process must include balanced renewal in all four dimensions of our nature: the physical, the spiritual, the mental, and the social/emotional." (eee)

There is a range of other areas that I feel also connected to this chapter's topic, e.g. the importance of values, and the ability to consistently keep promises - including those made to oneself. But one just needs to exercise self-restraint, as McClelland points out.

Whether Jesus was motivated by a need to be influential is difficult to ascertain, but there was a feeling that he wanted to achieve. He put his own desires behind those for his cause - and I think the record gives no indication that he wanted to be liked.

And yes, he was self-motivated.


"You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." (101)


Next: The Visionary