An Equation of Motivation
What’s the equation of motivation to go to work as a holiday approaches? I had this discussion with a couple folks yesterday.
Purely theoretical:
m = ct / hf
where:
m=motivation
c= constant desire not to be at work [employee-dependent, empirically evaluated]
t= number of days until the holiday begins
h= number of hours worked in a week
f= magnitude of importance of the holiday to the employee’s family
It may not be linear.
All I know is that I’ve got little motivation to go in today.
Posted November 26th, 2003 in Fooftatsic.
Amen. I’m only here for a half day today and I’m already thinking of ways that I can procrastinate from doing any real work today.
November 26th, 2003 at 7:53 amHush. I’m here all day.
November 26th, 2003 at 8:24 amIf h=91 and it’s still wednesday, there is no amount of other constants that can offest that m approaches a big fat goose egg!
November 26th, 2003 at 8:28 amI question your sanity for even being at work today, Todd.
November 26th, 2003 at 8:33 amI think you need a special term in there for Fridays. Fridays a few weeks before Christmas are especially worthless….
November 26th, 2003 at 9:03 amI will be working late tonight, again, and not getting any comp time!! God, I love being a private sector consultant IE. Why the hell did I go to college for 4,5,6…OK, 8 years and get myself deeply in-debt to net $11 an hour? (Yeah I am a true IE, I did the math). Geof, need to add a factor in there to take into account how far behind you will get if you take a day off. Also have to factor in if you like what you do. (Which I don’t- I love it!!) If I was independently wealthy (Which I am not and this job is certainly not going to get me there), I would do the job anyway. But your formula is simplistic enough that C could be said to factor all that in (Pure genius Geof- you should get an honorary doctoriate for that formula) Happy Thanksgiving!!
P.S. Geof, I was the only person to show up for the 9am meeting- ha ha ha ha ha, this place amuses me. Now I am wasting company time like they wasted mine this morning. Am I being passive aggressive?? I think I’ll go have HR fire someone to make me feel better. I am no longer to referred to as the RHOLMFw/FH, just call me Mr. Scrooge!! (That was a joke!!) Peace out, yo!!
November 26th, 2003 at 9:49 amLadies and Gentlemen:
The Red-Headed Stepchild has, undoubtedly, lost his frickin’ mind.
Not that he ever had it.
November 26th, 2003 at 9:55 amAnt-dawg you never cease to crack me up! You’re definitely not right, but the RHOLMFw/FH reminds me of the day when my little stepmother was affectionately referred to as MFSWIYTM.
November 26th, 2003 at 12:25 pmI’m pondering whether I should be nice and explain RHOLMFw/FH for anyone who doesn’t know…
November 26th, 2003 at 1:12 pmMotivation Wanes
Yeah, so I’m unmotivated today. Tomorrow and Wednesday will be even worse. At least I have some busy-work to do updating some data for a project that’s been not-so-critical the last few months.
It’s pretty sad when my most intellectually …
December 22nd, 2003 at 1:34 pmUgh
August 16th, 2004 at 7:45 amI am extremely unmotivated to go in to work today. Not only do I have a two-hour meeting this afternoon that’ll be about as much fun as pulling teeth—I mean, hey, I like my dentist—but I’m close to taking off for a while, and this brings up my m…
Motivation Wanes Again
:yawn: I don’t know about you, but me … I’m getting pretty doggone unmotivated.
It’s time to break out my empirical equation of motivation for another year.
November 17th, 2004 at 11:41 amMerry Christmas to Bored Office Workers
For those of you office workers who are unmotivated today, Christmas Eve Eve, I present: Macromedia’s Holiday 2004 Penguin Diving Competition.
Yes, now you can launch penguins into the sky, make them spin, and enter the water with the skill and éla…
December 23rd, 2004 at 1:53 pmI think you are really on to something here. I have taken Dilbert’s advice and started a cubicle company. Now I can force myself to go to work only so that I can work on my cubicle company. Fortunately, I can do my cubicle business anywhere, so once I am making more in my cubicle business than I am making in my cubicle, I’ll be on the beach with my laptop raking in the dough.
August 31st, 2005 at 10:16 pmMotimivation
Todd reminded me that it’s that time of year again … An Equation of Motivation.
November 21st, 2005 at 11:45 amRight now, my c is pretty low—I really do enjoy what I’m doing—but the f is pretty high.
[If you’re asking, “Is Geof going to b…
Unmotivated
Heading into a five-day weekend with an event on tap that my family really cares about, is it any wonder that my level of motivation is really, really low this morning?
Man, I wish I was still in bed.
…
February 17th, 2006 at 12:07 pmHoliday De-motivation…
Time to go back to the well yet again: An Equation of Motivation.
November 21st, 2006 at 7:06 amThis year, I have a pretty high c—things have been going well, even if I’m tired and frustrated—but my h factor is pretty high. [Especially as I think about work prett…
[...] nerd that I am, I decided an “equation of insanity” would be appropriate. (Geof’s equation of motivation was an additional piece of [...]
February 11th, 2008 at 11:50 amBlah…
I think I need to refine the Equation of Motivation for that pre-vacation period when you don’t feel like doing diddly-crap. I would, but I’m too apathetic [and have too much to do before I leave here tomorrow as it is].
July 24th, 2008 at 10:06 am……