Core Motivations

©2015 eV8, LLC. All rights reserved.Feedback for Mark Wilson. Taken on July 2, 2015

FEEDBACK SUMMARYPrepared for Mark Wilson

July 2, 2015


INTRODUCTIONThe Core Motivations Indicator™ (CMI™) is a tool that helps provide insight into the motivationsthat underlie a person's actions. Your feedback, based on the responses you provided in thesurvey, follows.

We know that the subject of motivation can be confusing. To start with, motivations are named indifferent ways - what some may call a motivation others may call a need, want, desire, passion, orvalue. Every person also has multiple motivations, which may shift in importance depending ontime of day, situation, role, mood, etc. Complicating things further, the most visible part of ourlives, behavior, doesn't directly reveal motivation - what one person does for one reason, anotherperson may do for an entirely different reason. Sometimes, the reason a person acts is hidden,even from the actor. And, importantly, motivations are ultimately based in emotion, which peoplemay assume is too subjective or random to be clearly described.

Fortunately, with the right tools, the discussion of motivation can be simplified. Although we areeach governed by a unique mixture of motivations and express them in an endless variety of ways,the motivations themselves are few in number, shared by all people, and therefore relatively easyto understand.

The CMI™ creates a system for shared understanding and discussion of this foundational aspect ofhuman experience. Using responses to a series of carefully crafted statements, the CMI™ identifiesand ranks a person's motivations. It provides a visual summary of the respondent's motivations sothat their relative influence can be easily seen, then articulates how the respondent's primarymotivation may influence choices and behavior in life and relationships.

We hope your feedback will help you see some of the "why" behind the "how" of your life andrelationships. As noted above, motivations are labeled in many different ways, so when reviewingyour feedback, it will be helpful to listen for the meaning behind the specific words. Not all of thedescriptions will apply to you precisely, but the concepts and patterns will.

Thank you, and we welcome any comments or questions you may have!

The CMI™ Development Team


YOUR RESULTS

You ranked highest on the ADVENTURE motivation. Below is a graphicrepresentation of how you ranked on all nine motivations.

Low Neutral High Rank

GREATERMEANING 3

GENEROSITY 5

TOGETHERNESS 7

INNER CALM 9

ADVENTURE 1

GROWTH 2

INFLUENCE 4

IDENTITY 6

PHYSICALITY 8


Your Primary Motivationis ADVENTURE

SUMMARYYour answers indicate that ADVENTURE is a strong motivation - you like the heightened sensationscreated when you can move beyond familiar boundaries.

SOURCE OF THE MOTIVATIONThe ADVENTURE motivation moves people to explore new situations. This helps individuals andgroups prepare for and adapt to change by learning about alternate circumstances and potentialchoices before they're needed.

OVERVIEWPeople with a strong ADVENTURE motivation are intrigued by the unfamiliar. They are fascinatedby newness and likely to indulge their curiosity more readily than others do.

ADVENTURE-motivated people seek intensity of feeling as they break new ground, experiment, andprobe new frontiers. They often admire intellectual or geographical explorers and inventors, andare drawn to stories about conquering new territory or boundaries.

Although ADVENTURE is often glamorized, it is important to note that the motivation is oftenpursued in quiet or private ways - by intellectually exploring exotic or radical ideas, for example, ortaking risks within personal relationships.

ADVENTURE-motivated individuals may be as afraid of stagnation as others are of the unfamiliarand unknown, and care more that a new possibility is interesting or exciting than if it is proven.

Although both the ADVENTURE and GROWTH motivations share an interest in going beyondboundaries, the ADVENTURE motivation focuses on the moment and puts a high value on intensityof feeling, while the GROWTH motivation is more purposeful and desires permanent change.

HOW THIS MOTIVATION LINKS TO ACTIONSADVENTURE-motivated people tend to be both action-oriented and excitement-driven. They:

often get physically, mentally or emotionally restless and wander or explore●

resist imposed limits created by authority, precedent, or physical limitations●


are often excited by business or academic innovation or want to push purely personal, internal●

boundaries (e.g., new beliefs, exotic ideas, personal fantasies.)often use experimentation or invention as problem-solving strategies●

are easily bored - and therefore in touch with many ways to fulfill their need for newness●

let go of old bonds and precedent more readily than others, and typically have less trouble●

with transitionsresist pursuits that seem mundane or have little emotional impact●

are sometimes pure thrill seekers who put themselves in situations of intense emotion or●

danger (in the extreme, to enjoy the thrill of "cheating death")may be revolutionaries who set their minds outside old restraints●

may feed their hunger for newness by switching their attention frequently from one subject to●

anothermay have difficulty acting in situations where newness isn't available or needed (for example,●

when repetition is essential)may not act unless they feel challenged by a boundary, and may have trouble maintaining a●

plan

HOW THIS MOTIVATION INFLUENCES RELATIONSHIPSSome ADVENTURE-motivated people think of relationships as a source of companionship duringadventures. For others, relationships are a place to take risks or find boundaries to push. For stillothers, relationships are subordinate to their desire for new experiences. ADVENTURE-motivatedpeople may:

encounter resistance when their fascination with newness is seen as threatening●

have trouble understanding safety-seekers and be impatient with them●

be perceived as unreliable, if others sense that the relationship is valued less than the need for●

ADVENTURE

RELATED IDEASExploration, wanderlust, sometimes curiosity, boundary-pushing, risk-taking, danger-seeking


Your Secondary Motivationis GROWTH

SECONDARY MOTIVATIONYour responses indicate that GROWTH is your secondary motivation - the way you pursue yourprimary motivation is shaped by the fact that you like to feel that you are getting better over time.

Every person has multiple motivations. Overall, a person's primary motivation guides his or herchoices and behavior most often and most deeply, but secondary motivations are also influential.Very importantly, secondary motivations shape personality. Two individuals with the same primarymotivation will be similar in many ways but not identical. The differences between them can oftenbe explained by looking at their secondary motivations.

Secondary motivations "color" the way individuals act on their primary motivations. A person●

with a primary motivation of GREATER MEANING has a nearly infinite number of ways of actingon that motivation. If she also has a secondary motivation of GROWTH, however, she is morelikely to act on her GREATER MEANING motivation in ways that give her a sense of spiritualprogress. If her secondary motivation is INNER CALM, she will still focus on spirituality, but islikely to do so in a way that is oriented toward finding or creating peacefulness.A person may also express primary and secondary motivations in different roles. Someone who●

is primarily ADVENTURE-oriented and secondarily GENEROSITY-oriented for example, maypursue employment that offers constant change and exploration but approach relationshipswith a significant caregiving emphasis.Finally, when a person's primary motivation is fully satisfied, a secondary motivation will often●

come to the fore and guide behavior - for example, after a rich day of learning, a person who isprimarily GROWTH-oriented may want to indulge his or her secondary motivation ofTOGETHERNESS by doing something with family or friends that is reassuring and familiarrather than developmental.

WAYS YOUR SECONDARY MOTIVATION MAY BE EXPRESSEDWhether it is coloring the way a primary motivation is expressed or temporarily standing in for it,the GROWTH motivation frequently leads people to:

move beyond their current boundaries to experience a sense of progress●

use learning as a way to solve problems●

see boundaries as challenges and enjoy outgrowing them●

avoid stagnation, complacency and too much "sameness"●

seek people with special insight or knowledge●


keep relationships interesting by introducing new ideas, habits and experiences●

assume that others share their motivation, and be disappointed if others aren't motivated to●

growbe more comfortable than most with change●

REINFORCING, CONTRASTING AND COMPLEMENTARY MOTIVATIONSThe motivations of the Core Motivations Indicator™ are loosely organized on a spectrum, based onhow people navigate the natural tension between individuality and belonging. The Connection-Seeking motivations are grouped at one end, and tend to make people see themselves as similar toothers in the groups and relationships they're a part of. The Self-Defining motivations are at theother end of the spectrum, and tend to make people see themselves in contrast to the groups andrelationships they're a part of. While no combination of primary and secondary motivations isbetter than another, noting the relationship between a person's two strongest motivations can beuseful.

When a person's primary and secondary motivations are near the same end of the spectrum,●

they are reinforcing. The two motivations have a similarity that is likely to make theindividual's personality and choices seem consistent, and the two motivations may amplifycertain mindsets and behaviors, turning them into either great strengths or great weaknesses.When a person's primary and secondary motivations are at different ends of the spectrum,●

they are contrasting. Contrasting motivations have a fundamental difference that maysometimes make a person seem unpredictable to others (depending on which motivation holdssway at different times) and may help create a complex internal life, or one with conflicts thatmust be resolved.When a person has one motivation that is in the middle of the spectrum and one that is at an●

end of the spectrum, the motivations are complementary. Such a combination creates abalance of reinforcing and contrasting influences.

Your two most important motivations, GROWTH and ADVENTURE, are reinforcing. Both motivationsare in the experience-centered part of the spectrum, and tend to amplify each other to create amindset that is confident, optimistic and undaunted by boundaries. This combination of motivationsmay be expressed in either positive ways (for example, lifelong learning and curiosity) or negativeways (habitual dissatisfaction or an inability to settle down).


APPLYING YOUR CMI™ RESULTSYour CMI™ feedback report identifies your primary and secondary motivations, tells you how they mayinfluence your choices and actions, and introduces ideas about how your two strongest motivations worktogether to create certain aspects of personality.

The following exercise will help you put the insights gained from your CMI™ feedback into practice. It willrequire some thought, introspection, and imagination, but isn't meant to result in a specific detailed planof action - it's meant, instead, to familiarize you with a way of thinking about motivations that allows youto adapt, improvise, and reframe situations so that you and others have better outcomes.

A few things to remember as you work through the exercises:

The purpose isn't to change your motivations. The purpose is to become more aware of the influence●

of motivations in your life, so that your choices and actions are more rewarding and meaningful. Nomotivation is inherently good or bad, but all motivations can have both healthy and unhealthyexpressions. The best things happen when the right motivation informs the right action in the rightway at the right moment.You can't change what motivates others. You can, however, better understand what makes others●

think and act the way they do, so that you can live and work together more constructively.Be careful when trying to know the motives behind another's actions' people have a great capacity●

for empathy and intuition is essential to understanding others, but flawed assumptions about other'smotivations are often insulting or hurtful. Don't assume anyone acts for the same reasons you do,and always be ready to revise your thinking as you learn more about them.

1. Using your feedback report as a starting place, identify and write down several positiveways that your primary and secondary motivations function in your overall life.

Do your primary and secondary motivations function in your life in any negative ways? (Forexample, do you ever over-invest because of a strong motivation? Or take a motivation into asituation where it doesn't really help?) If so, write them down.


2. For each "area of life" below, make a mark along the line for how generally satisfied youare:

PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS

Very dissatisfied ------------------------ An equal mix ------------------------ Very satisfied

WORK/SCHOOL

Very dissatisfied ------------------------ An equal mix ------------------------ Very satisfied

3. Provide a few specific examples of how your primary and secondary motivations haveinfluence in each of the above areas of life.

Some questions, if you need help getting started:

Which motivation most shapes your choices and actions in each area?●

Are your motivations the same in both areas? Different? Overlapping?●

How do your motivations move you forward in each area? (Does your primary motivation give you●

focus? Do your primary and secondary motivations give you a broad set of interests? Etc.)Are there any ways your motivations hold you back? (For example, do you have contrasting●

motivations that sometimes make you act in contradictory ways? Do you overdo certain things,because a motivation is especially strong, or because two motivations reinforce each other? Do youpursue any motivations in negative ways? Etc.)

PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS


WORK/SCHOOL

4. Write down a NEW GOAL for either your personal life OR your work/school life.

5. Explore how MOTIVATIONS can help you achieve your new goal.

This will require more thought than the preceding exercises, so don't try to be too thorough. The purposeis just to gain insight that will shape your planning and actions later. Some questions, if you need helpgetting started:

How will your primary motivation help you succeed?●

How will your secondary motivation help you succeed?●

Will either motivation ever limit your progress? If so, what can you do to make use of the motivation●

in a more constructive way?Will your primary and secondary motivations provide enough "drive" to sustain you until you achieve●

your goal? Will you need to replenish or renew them? If so, how will you do it?Do you feel like you're lacking a necessary motivation of some kind? (A full list of the nine CMI™●

Motivations is below.) If so, where will you get the drive to achieve your goal? Find it in yourself?Lean on someone else?


Your goal may be directly related to one or more relationships, but even if it isn't, other people are likelyto be involved in helping you achieve your goal. An understanding of their motivations can be helpful.Some "starter thoughts":

Who might help or hinder you in achieving your goal?●

What kinds of help might you need from others?●

How will you get them to participate or to care about helping you? (What are their motivations? You●

can use the list below to try to identify each person's motivation.)How can understanding others' motivations reduce misunderstanding, conflict or competition that●

might interfere with achieving your goal?

THE NINE CORE MOTIVATIONS™9 GREATER MEANING: A desire to be connected to things that are beyond human comprehension

8 GENEROSITY: Wanting to help, share with, provide for, and/or give to others

7 TOGETHERNESS: The desire for friendship, love and/or connection to other people

6 INNER CALM: An emphasis on maintaining a peaceful internal equilibrium

5 ADVENTURE: Longing for the heightened sensations created by moving beyond familiar boundaries

4 GROWTH: The desire to improve over time

3 INFLUENCE: Wanting to shape things and/or people in one's world

2 IDENTITY: A special emphasis on the pursuit of individuality and uniqueness

1 PHYSICALITY: An attraction to aspects and sensations of the body

Core Motivations

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