The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for: “How do you stay motivated?” is written by Mary Godwin, VP of Operations at Qumulo.
Over the years I’ve come to believe that great leaders are not self-motivated. Rather, they are selflessly committed. They’re committed to the success of their teams and their company. They’re committed to making their teams successful, and wake up every day thinking about what the team needs to do to solve a problem or get to the next level in performance. Teams that are committed are not looking for the next salary increase to dictate their performance. They are focused on being an awesome team – for the company and for each other, for the long term.
The problem with motivation is that it is temporary in nature. Sure, the recognition associated with getting added responsibilities or projects gets the engines going at first. But what happens when you’re a month into the new project and the reality of the problems and challenges put you back into the daily grind? You have to go looking for the next thing that is going to motivate you into being re-energized. However, commitment stands the test of time. Commitment is powerful. Just try getting in the way of a person or team that is genuinely committed to achieving a goal. They aren’t sitting around talking about what it’s going to take to make them come to work in the morning.
It is also much less stressful than always searching for that next “thing” that is going to motivate you to do something or achieve some goal. Commitment gets rid of all of the distractions and allows you to be focused on the work that really matters and the people who will support you along the way.