The science shows that . . . typical twentieth-century carrot-and-stick motivators — things we consider somehow a “natural” part of human enterprise … - Peter Diamandis

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The science shows that . . . typical twentieth-century carrot-and-stick motivators — things we consider somehow a “natural” part of human enterprise — can sometimes work. But they’re effective in only a surprisingly narrow band of circumstances. The science shows that “if-then” rewards . . . are not only ineffective in many situations, but can also crush the high-level, creative, conceptual abilities that are central to current and future economic and social progress. The science shows that the secret to high performance isn’t our biological drive (our survival needs) or our reward-and-punishment drive, but our third drive — our deep-seated desire to direct our own lives, to extend and expand our abilities, and to fill our life with purpose.