What motivates you? What drives you to be your best, and gives you that extra push to get there? Why do you do what you do? Is it money? Admiration? Personal satisfaction or enjoyment? All of us are motivated in different ways, and by different things, but there are two general categories of motivation: intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation.
Intrinsic motivation refers to an internal form of motivation. We strive toward a goal for a sense of personal satisfaction or accomplishment. For example, and internally motivated person may want to play really well in order to win and reach a personal goal they have been aiming for. Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, is an external form of motivation. It could be a person, or some other outside obligation or reward that requires the achievement of a certain goal. For example, an externally motivated person may want to play really well in order to make more money or have fans’ admiration, both of which are outside factors.
I think that there needs to be a balance of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in our daily lives. It would be amazing if everyone performed tasks simply because they enjoyed them, but that is a little unrealistic. We need deadlines and due dates and standards, all of which are extrinsic motivators, to ensure that even the mundane and unenjoyable things get done. In sports, though, I feel that things are a little different.