Your motivation profile (0–100) — simple on purpose

Think of motivation like “fuel.” Different activities use different fuel types — and when you’re using the fuel that matches you, doing the thing feels lighter, more automatic, and less like a battle. When the fuel doesn’t match, even easy tasks can feel like pushing a shopping cart with a wobbly wheel.

This calculator converts eight common motivation drivers into a profile. It doesn’t claim to diagnose your personality or predict your future. It’s designed for practical self‑reflection: understand what energizes you, then redesign your goal, routine, or environment to fit.

• Intrinsic Core: Autonomy + Mastery + Purpose
• Extrinsic Core: Rewards + Recognition
• Achievement: Challenge, speed, measurable wins
• Connection: Belonging, teamwork, shared momentum
• Security: Stability, clarity, reduced uncertainty

For most people, intrinsic drivers (autonomy, mastery, purpose) create the most durable motivation over months and years — they stay strong even when nobody is watching. Extrinsic drivers (rewards, recognition) are powerful too, especially for short sprints, accountability, or when a task is boring but important. Achievement, connection, and security influence how you engage: you might thrive on competition, or prefer steady progress, or need a supportive team.

To keep the tool usable (and viral), we use a straightforward weighted model:

• Intrinsic score (0–100): 40% of the overall profile
• Extrinsic score (0–100): 25% of the overall profile
• Achievement score (0–100): 15% of the overall profile
• Connection score (0–100): 10% of the overall profile
• Security score (0–100): 10% of the overall profile

Each slider is rated from 1 to 10. We first convert each slider to a 0–100 number using: scaled = ((value − 1) / 9) × 100. That means 1 → 0, 10 → 100, and 5 → 44 (roughly “mid”).

Then we combine drivers:

• Intrinsic = 40% Autonomy + 35% Mastery + 25% Purpose
• Extrinsic = 55% Rewards + 45% Recognition
• Achievement = Achievement slider
• Connection = Connection slider
• Security = Security slider

Finally, we compute an overall “alignment score” (0–100) that estimates how well your current activities and environment match your strongest drivers:

Overall = 0.40×Intrinsic + 0.25×Extrinsic + 0.15×Achievement + 0.10×Connection + 0.10×Security

Your Motivation Type is the highest of the five category scores (Intrinsic, Extrinsic, Achievement, Connection, Security), and your Secondary Type is the runner‑up. Most people are a blend — the “top 2” are usually the most useful.

Example 1 — The Builder: Autonomy 9, Mastery 8, Purpose 7, Rewards 4, Recognition 3, Achievement 6, Connection 4, Security 5. Intrinsic dominates, so your best strategy is ownership: choose projects where you can decide the “how,” learn fast, and see real impact.

Example 2 — The Achiever: Achievement 9, Recognition 7, Rewards 6, Autonomy 5, Mastery 6, Purpose 4, Connection 4, Security 3. This profile thrives on clear goals, competition, public milestones, and measurable progress.

Example 3 — The Stabilizer: Security 9, Connection 7, Purpose 6, Autonomy 4, Mastery 5, Rewards 5, Recognition 3, Achievement 4. You’ll do best with steady routines, predictable expectations, and supportive people — and you may struggle in chaos‑heavy environments.

• For goals: Attach your goal to your top driver (e.g., autonomy → “choose your own plan,” achievement → “scoreboard”).
• For habits: Make the first step tiny, then add a driver-aligned reward (intrinsic → satisfaction, extrinsic → treat).
• For work: If you feel stuck, you may have a driver mismatch — not a character flaw.
• For relationships: Different people are motivated differently. Labeling less, designing more.

Reminder: motivation is not moral virtue. It’s a design problem — and your profile gives you design inputs.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is a “motivation type”?

  It’s a shorthand label for the driver that most reliably turns intention into action for you right now. Some people are pulled by freedom (autonomy), others by growth (mastery), meaning (purpose), rewards, recognition, challenge, connection, or stability. This tool groups those drivers into five easy categories so you can use the result.

• Is intrinsic motivation “better” than extrinsic?

  Not morally. Intrinsic motivation tends to be more durable over time, but extrinsic motivation is extremely useful for short sprints, boring-but-important tasks, accountability, and momentum. Most high performers use both on purpose: intrinsic for direction, extrinsic for execution.

• Why are there sliders like security and connection?

  Because motivation isn’t only “what you want.” It’s also the environment you can tolerate. High security needs often mean uncertainty drains you. High connection needs mean momentum increases when you have people. These drivers help explain why the same goal feels easy in one context and impossible in another.

• Can my motivation type change?

  Yes. Motivation shifts with sleep, stress, health, role, and life season. A new job might make recognition more important. Burnout might make security jump. Growth phases might increase mastery. Use this as a snapshot, not a permanent label.

• How should I interpret a “mixed” profile?

  Mixed usually means either (1) you genuinely have multiple strong drivers, or (2) your current environment isn’t consistently meeting any one driver. If your top 2 are close, treat them as a “combo.” Example: Intrinsic + Achievement → set hard metrics and give yourself autonomy over the method.

• What’s the fastest way to use my result today?

  Pick one task you’ve been avoiding and rewrite it using your top driver: autonomy → “choose the approach,” mastery → “learn one new thing,” purpose → “who benefits,” rewards → “small treat after,” recognition → “share progress,” achievement → “beat a timer,” connection → “do it with someone,” security → “make a clear plan and reduce risk.”

• Is this a clinical or workplace assessment?

  No. It’s not diagnostic and it doesn’t measure mental health. It’s a lightweight self‑reflection tool. If you need clinical advice, talk with a qualified professional.

• How often should I take it?

  Weekly or monthly works well. Use “Last 7 days” for consistent tracking. If you’re changing habits or starting a new role, you can check more often for a few weeks — then slow down.

How to use this responsibly

Use your motivation profile to design better habits, choose better projects, and communicate needs more clearly. Don’t use it to judge yourself or other people. If you’re struggling with persistent low mood, anxiety, or burnout, consider talking with a qualified professional.

• Pick one goal for the week.
• Attach it to your top driver (and one “backup” driver).
• Make the first step tiny (under 2 minutes).
• Track one metric and review at the end of the week.