Those who find happiness by becoming more powerful or gaining the ability to create massive change will almost certainly be fueled by power-based motivation.

This type of motivation energizes persons to seek more control, typically through the use of their title or position in employment or an organization. On the flip side, power motivation can also be used to gain personal independence and power over one’s own life.

Examples of power-based motivation include:

- A person who works to be promoted to a manager at their place of work so that they can work to create a more efficient system from the top down.
- An entrepreneur who works 80 hours a week to get their company off the ground so that they can be their own boss.

An extreme case of power-based motivation can be seen in real-world horrors like Nazi Germany and other times when the hunger to control outweighs any other moral obligation. However, when scaled back, power-based motivation can encourage a person to be intentional in their thoughts and actions so that they can play the main role in manifesting the life they want.

What’s one way that you might be able to harness power motivation to improve your life?

Dr. Thomas F. Scotton