Drive, Motivation, and Vanilla ice cream

I am taking a break from the normally scheduled programming of being a food blogger.  Warning this post has NO PICTURES!  OK, maybe one at the end, but that is all.

Have you ever heard of Meyer Friedman?  Me either.  Then I had to do a type of book report for work, a professional development book report.  I picked was given Drive: the Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us, by Daniel Pink.

Now I am not going to go into the details but here is the very brief recap.  Humans are motivated by more than money/rewards and avoiding punishment.  Shocker, right?  It was a bit for me – I like my money. 

Pink outlines three types of motivation:

1.       Biological Drive: hunger, thirst, sex.   Your basic survival instincts.

2.       Carrots and Sticks: rewards and punishment.

3.       Motivation 3.0: autonomy, mastery and purpose.

Basically business models today are set up for the Carrots and Sticks motivation.  Pay people more and they will work harder and business will be more productive and successful.  Science however has proven this model wrong.  More and more they say allowing workers autonomy, mastery of their skills, and a higher purpose will yield better and faster results.  Interesting, huh?  The book has some really neat case studies of legit business trying to incorporate this new way of thinking.  Ever heard of Google and Best Buy?

But back to the main reason for this post, one of the chapters takes about Meyer Friedman, a doctor who noticed similar traits in patients he treated for heart disease.

“a particular complex of personality traits, including excessive competition drive, aggressiveness, impatience, and a harrying sense of time urgency.  Individuals displaying this pattern seem to be engaged in a chronic, ceaseless, and often fruitless struggle – with themselves, with others, and with circumstances, with time, sometimes with life itself.”

Does that sound familiar to you? My first reaction when I read this was, “Wow, that fits me to a T.”

Then Mr. J read it.  He laughed, told me it sounds just like me, and then went on to lecture me about how I need to calm down.  How it is not good for my health. 

I then reread the statement and determined it is not like me.  J   At least not to a T.  I am not the most patient person.  I do tend to be a bit competitive.  I always have a sense of urgency.  My question to you is…is this bad?  I am quite motivated, successful, and get a lot accomplished.  When did being Type A become a bad thing?

Who wants to be Type B?

Now my all time favorite summer dessert, vanilla ice cream and fresh raspberries.