Is It a Lack of Motivation Or…? Part 4 of 4

Welcome to our fourth and final blog post in our series unpacking motivation. 

I propose that what looks like lack of motivation in students might be something else entirely, and we’ve explored seven different options for what might be going on instead. 

First, I proposed four “low hanging fruit” options that are always the first I consider when working with a new student or a new challenge:  a brain-based difference,  having the wrong tools on hand,  lack of clarity about the assignment, and/or  a faulty environment. Usually students and I can easily identify one or more of these root causes and start working on “low hanging fruit” solutions.

Second, there is usually a skill weakness contributing to the feeling of lack of motivation, and in the second post in our series I explored three different ways students often need to build their abilities in order to feel more consistently motivated. 

Third, I proposed three options from Self-Determination Theory that are often at play when a student complains of lack of motivation: the need for more autonomy, competence, and/or relatedness.

Today we will discuss three final (for now) “root causes” for feeling unmotivated:

1. Is it a lack of motivation, or MISMATCHED REWARDS?

To reward or not to reward; that is the question! This is a controversial topic. Many parents swear by rewards. Schooling is entirely based on a structure of rewards and consequences. But do they help build a students’ intrinsic motivation to follow through on tasks and push towards achievement? Most of the science says no. Rewards are an externally driven incentive, and so by nature they build mostly external rather than internal motivation. 

That said, well-chosen incentives can be a wonderful jumpstart for new behaviors that need to be built from scratch, especially for students with learning differences and executive function challenges. 

Here are four considerations when assessing whether rewards (or lack thereof) are connected to the student’s lack of motivation:

• Is there no incentive for the student to take action?

• Is there an incentive, but it doesn’t match the task (usually it’s too small for what’s being asked of the student)?

• Is there an overreliance on rewards to the extent the student won’t take action without them?

• Is there an overreliance on consequences which de-motivate students?

The topic of incentives and rewards is complex, and an entire book is necessary to unpack the ins and outs of rewards. 

For now I’ll end with this: I have extensive experience collaborating with students (through trial and error!) to develop reward systems that motivate them. Based on this experience,  the most important skill for a student to build is the ability to (a) understand which incentives are motivating for them, and (b) to be able to reward themselves or initiate receiving the reward from others. 

When a student develops competence at initiating their own reward systems, they build their sense of autonomy and strengthen their relatedness to others. (See what I did there? Self Determination Theory again. Everything is connected!).

2. Is it a lack of motivation, or the need for an IDENTITY REFRAME?

Phew! Identity––another big topic that requires a book and not a blog post to unpack. Nevertheless, we shall try. 

It is often true that a student's self-image is part of what makes them feel unmotivated to take action. We touched on this in the last blog post in our discussion of Competence. 

A student's past experiences with failure and success lead to beliefs about what they are or aren’t capable of, as well as how hard they do or don’t need to work to achieve their goals. 

Anyone who works with students––whether you’re a teacher, coach or counselor––would benefit from exploring what limiting beliefs have calcified around the student’s self-identity and are keeping them stuck. 

Here are three helpful discussion points when exploring identity with students:

• I am a person who… (fill in the blank)

• I am a person who doesn’t… (fill in the blank)

• I know my “why.” I am willing to take action because (fill in the blank)

One of the coaches in our Anti-Boring Learning Lab works with a student who loves to put sticky notes up around her college dorm room to remind her of her preferred self-identity. She prefers them worded in the negative, so her sticky notes say, “I am a person who doesn’t procrastinate.” These reminders are really working for her.

Similarly, as I write these blog posts, it is the beginning of 2024 and I need to strengthen my body, which was compromised by my big jaw surgery last year. I’m finding it helpful to repeat to myself, “I am a person who exercises regularly to get strong.” 

3. Is it a lack of motivation or COMPROMISED SELF-CARE?

Speaking of exercise… it is always a good idea to discuss self-care with students. I don’t know of a single student (or person, for that matter) who doesn’t benefit from reflecting about how they nourish themselves. 

The three big topics to explore around self-care include sufficient:

• Sleep

• Exercise

• Nutrition

Students often can easily identify if they have challenges around sleep, although they usually aren’t interested in shifting their sleep patterns much. However, it’s still helpful to teach students that often their motivation problems are affected by not getting enough high quality sleep, and to collect some data around this so they can start to see the patterns. Sometimes when we see the patterns (remember the scorecard?!), we are more willing to shift our behavior.

Students are often surprised to discover how connected their nutrition is to their sense of motivation. One student I worked with complained of hating his third period math class. He was such a Debbie Downer about it! One day we accidentally discovered that, actually, he is STARVING before third period, and doesn’t have time to walk across campus to his locker to get a snack. Once we solved this dilemma––voila! He was loving the math class he used to hate. 

And then there’s exercise and the power of  moving our bodies to inspire us to get in gear! This can also be a tricky topic for students, many of whom are too busy with academics and other extracurriculars to get significant exercise (except for the athletes in our midst; in my experience they’re better at nutrition and exercise but do need help with sleep). However, it’s worth exploring with the less athletic students what kinds of movement would feel joyful to them, and to help hold them accountable for moving more regularly. 

Final Tips for Discussing Motivation with Students

Motivation is a complex topic for which there is no magic wand, unfortunately. However, my hope is that by laying out these eleven different options for what could be going on when students feel unmotivated, it gives you a practical place to start. 

I recommend you do the following:

1. Don’t assume the student is lazy or has a bad attitude. Instead, explore the deeper root causes for their negative affect. 

2. Don’t assume you know what would help the student be more motivated. Instead, engage them in a conversation about what they think might help:

1. First, check out the four “low hanging fruit” reasons with the student. Do they respond to one or more of these reasons?

2. Second, explore what skills the student feels would most impact their ability to move forward in school.

3. Third, explore whether any of the elements of Self Determination Theory might impact their ability to take action.

4. Finally, explore identity reframes, rewards, and self-care. 

3. Once you’ve talked through each of these, you have a formula for what skills and beliefs to work on to help the student move themselves into more sustained and effective action around their goals. 

If you would like a free tool to help you  have these conversations with students, check out The Motivation Checklist at www.antiboringlearninglab.com/library. I’ve created a worksheet you can use with students to help them devise their motivation formula for themselves. 

Good luck and have fun!