What is the difference between extrinsic and intrinsic rewards

Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work.

And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. Figure 1. Intrinsic motivation comes from within the individual, while extrinsic motivation comes from outside the individual. Although intrinsic motivation is personal, its characteristics are universal and include: [4].

A manager does, however, have control of situational factors. Privacy Policy. Skip to main content. Module 8: Compensation and Benefits. There are many ways you can apply intrinsic motivation at work. For example, providing and receiving positive feedback is one of the best ways to increase motivation.

To support intrinsic motivation among your team, be intentional with your feedback. Share consistently with managers or leaders when and how their feedback helps you to be motivated.

Also, give them positive feedback when their guidance was beneficial. Work for the rewards that please you, but be aware of your limits and take breaks when you need them. Make sure you also set aside time to explore new skills and activities you are interested in for the sake of enjoyment or to learn something new. Extrinsic motivation involves completing a task or exhibiting a behavior because of outside causes such as avoiding punishment or receiving a reward.

While both types of motivation are important, they have different effects on how you work. Intrinsic motivation is when you feel inspired or energized to complete a task because it is personally rewarding. In other words, you're performing the activity because of some internal drive as opposed to an external reward of some kind.

With intrinsic motivation, the behavior itself becomes the reward. Examples of intrinsic motivation include:. Extrinsic motivation is when you are inspired to perform a task to either earn a reward or avoid punishment. In the case of extrinsic motivation, you're not completing the task because you like it or find it satisfying. Instead, you're completing it because you think you'll avoid something unpleasant or you'll get something in return.

Examples of extrinsic motivation include:. The main difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation is that intrinsic motivation comes from within and extrinsic motivation comes from outside. The two types of motivation can, however, differ in their level of effectiveness. Extrinsic motivation is beneficial in some cases. For example, working towards gaining a reward of some kind can be helpful when you need to complete a task you might normally find unpleasant.

Intrinsic motivation, however, is typically a more effective long-term method for achieving goals and completing tasks in a way that makes you feel fulfilled. While extrinsic motivation is helpful in certain situations, it may eventually lead to burn out or lose effectiveness over time. Sometimes intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can work together to help you complete a task. As an example, if you have a job and you're working to complete a project, you might be extrinsically motivated to finish it to earn a raise, and you might be intrinsically motivated to finish it because you enjoy the project and want to do a good job.