Summary
Highlights
Dr. Guillén argues that traditional theories overlook crucial motivations. He brings in Aristotle's distinction between useful goods, pleasant goods, and moral goods. This allows for the inclusion of a third column for moral motivations, emphasizing the desire to receive and achieve moral goods like truth, justice, and respect. He highlights that ignoring these motivations can lead to 'selfish' and 'proud' individuals.
The speaker, Dr. Manuel Guillén, is introduced as a respected researcher and director of institutes focused on ethics and organizational communication. He is thanked for overcoming a recent injury to deliver the lecture on human motivations and the meaning of work. He expresses gratitude to the event organizers and the audience, both in person and online, for attending a discussion based on his recently published book.
Dr. Guillén shares his long-standing dissatisfaction with traditional motivation theories taught in universities, which he found to be 'not useful' and 'inhumane.' He aims to present a more human vision of motivations, drawing from his teaching experience and collaboration with institutions like Harvard. He recounts an anecdote with an immigration officer who succinctly summarized the essence of his book: 'If you love your job, you'll be motivated.'
The speaker introduces his motivation map, which starts from well-known theories like Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Herzberg's two-factor theory. He explains how these theories, while useful, often present an incomplete picture, focusing on extrinsic (receiving) and intrinsic (achieving) motivations. He critiques the idea of separating motivations into just two categories (extrinsic/intrinsic vs. lower/higher levels) and proposes integrating them into a matrix.
He emphasizes the importance of 'giving' (dar) as a core motivation, drawing from Adam Grant's work on 'Give and Take.' True happiness and professional success, he explains, often come from proactive giving. This introduces a fourth column to the motivation map (after receiving and achieving), covering the desire to provide useful, pleasant, and moral goods to others. He shares an anecdote about a student who inspired him to consider spiritual motivations.
Dr. Guillén extends the framework to include spiritual and religious motivations. He explains that spiritual goods, such as peace, joy, and wisdom, are universal desires within the human spirit. For those with faith, this extends to the divine, leading to religious motivations like serving God, expressing gratitude, and giving glory. He stresses that these motivations, often overlooked in modern psychology, are deeply human and move millions.
He advocates for an interdisciplinary dialogue among sciences, humanities, ethics, and faith to understand human motivation fully. To simplify the complex map for his students, he distills it into four core aspects: being loved (receiving goodness), loving oneself (personal growth), loving others (giving goodness), and loving God (returning goodness). He connects these to personal and professional fulfillment.
Dr. Guillén introduces his website, findmeaningfulwork.com, an application designed to help individuals discover their work motivations. He explains how the motivation map provides a diagnostic tool to understand whether one views their job merely as employment, a career, a vocation, or a higher calling. He discusses how different motivations lead to different 'senses of work' and emphasizes the role of free will in choosing one's motivations.
He outlines a 'roadmap' for personal and professional growth, encouraging individuals to move beyond viewing work solely as employment or a career towards a vocation, and ultimately, a divine calling for those with faith. He emphasizes that this journey involves 'growing in love' – loving others, oneself, and God – and aligning actions with these higher values. He concludes by stressing the importance of good theories for good practices and thanks the audience.
Ginés Marco, the conference moderator, asks Dr. Guillén to elaborate on his statement that 'bad theories lead to bad practices,' especially considering the perceived disconnect between theory and practice in academia. Dr. Guillén passionately agrees, sharing his own experiences of being labeled a 'theorist.' He cites research highlighting how flawed management theories can lead to detrimental practices, arguing that human sciences directly influence reality due to human freedom. He emphasizes the university's role in fostering critical thinking and creating good theories for societal benefit.