drive

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Pissed off Gene

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In Ignore Everybody, Hugh MacLeod talked about the Pissed off Gene that cause us to be dissatisfied no matter how well things are going. It's the urge that motivates us to create, improve and enhance our lives. He argues that we all have it in us. It's built-in since the caveman days.

The only people who can change the world are people who want to. And not everyone does.

Sadly, not everyone act on this urge and most will happily trade it for cash. If you are annoyed at how some things appear to be broken, use it as the drive to create something new. Apparently, it's okay to be pissed off sometimes.

What drives and motivates us

Humans like animals have a biological drive that motivates us to eat, drink and copulate. It's the most basic form of motivation that keep us alive and well. We are also motivated by extrinsic elements like rewards and punishments. These extrinsic motivations are the basis of our business world. You want something done better and faster, you pay more. If you want to prevent a certain behavior, you punish them.

The third drive is by far the most powerful form of motivation. It's intrinsic motivation that drives programmers to release open-source software and made Wikipedia the best encyclopedia in the world. They are doing it for the enjoyment of the task itself. The performance of the task is in itself the reward.

This is the reason why you should be doing things that you love. Intrinsic motivation is both renewable and limitless.