drive-motivation

# Drive Motivation Framework Design motivation systems for products, teams, and organizations using the science of intrinsic motivation. ## Core Principle **The secret to high performance isn't rewards and punishment — it's the deeply human need to direct our own lives, learn and create new things, and do better for ourselves and our world.** For any task requiring even rudimentary cognitive effort, external rewards either don't work or actively worsen performance. Intrinsic motivation — Autonomy, Mastery, Purpose (AMP) — drives lasting engagement. ## Scoring **Goal: 10/10.** Score any motivation system (product features, team incentives, gamification, engagement loops) against the [Quick Diagnostic](#quick-diagnostic): start at 5, add 1 for each of the first five rows answered "yes," then **subtract 2 if the sixth row is also "yes"** — an "if-then" reward doing the motivating crowds out the rest. Bands: - **9-10** — autonomy, mastery, and purpose all present; no if-then crowding-out. - **5-6** — one pillar carries the system; the other two are weak or extrinsic. - **≤3** — relies on rewards, mandates, or controlling behaviors; intrinsic motivation absent. Always state the current score, which diagnostic rows failed, and the specific fixes to reach 10/10. ## Motivation 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 | Version | Core Assumption | Approach | Era | |---------|----------------|----------|-----| | **1.0** | Humans are biological | Survival drives | Pre-industrial | | **2.0** | Humans ...