🕹️Pushing your own buttons
“Oh, I like that, pushing your own buttons. It makes it sound like someone else has control over you, and instead you can learn how to control yourself.”
That’s what Yu-Kai said to me during our podcast on gamification and how to make ourselves do hard things. Not just do them, but want to do them, AND have fun doing it.
We hear it all the time, “Motivation isn’t reliable. You need discipline.”
But I’d argue, and Yu-Kai, world's top gamification guru, agrees, nothing happens without motivation.
Even discipline runs on fuel. And that fuel? It’s motivation. More specifically, the core drivers that move you into action.
Pushing your own buttons means knowing which drivers work best for you, and then designing your life to activate them.
When Yu-Kai needed to finish writing a book while juggling client work and family, he didn’t rely on willpower. He used social pressure. He told people at an upcoming workshop they’d be getting his book. The fear of losing face worked better than any calendar reminder, or discipline. He wrote. He delivered.
That’s what pushing your own buttons looks like.
Here are the 8 Core Drivers Yu-Kai uses to help companies design engaging products that customers can't stop using, or environments where employees do their absolute best without anyone pushing them, and that you can use to design your own motivation system to create the life you want:
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Epic Meaning & Calling
You’re part of something bigger than yourself. Purpose beyond the task. -
Development & Accomplishment
Progress. Mastery. The win you earn. -
Empowerment of Creativity & Feedback
Make choices. Express yourself. See impact. -
Ownership & Possession
You care more when it’s yours. -
Social Influence & Relatedness
Recognition. Connection. Status. Community. -
Scarcity & Impatience
The ticking clock. The exclusive spot. The “almost gone.” -
Unpredictability & Curiosity
Surprises. Mystery. What’s next? -
Loss & Avoidance
The pain you don’t want. The risk you won’t take.
Which ones spark action in YOU? Which ones get you to follow through even when it’s hard?
Your long-term goals won’t be accomplished by discipline. They’ll be accomplished by knowing what drives you, and pushing the right button at the right time to activate one of the core drivers.
PS Can you imagine Elon Musk waking up every morning saying, “I have to be disciplined today to build a rocket and send it to space”?
