Motivation and Story

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs provides a framework to consider what stories will resonate. If the group to which one is talking, is starving they are less concerned with the higher as they may fail to satisfy the most important rule – survival. Hence an agricultural surplus can provide the lowest level of needs and move on to the next level. A tribe can provide safety in numbers. Early unarmed Homo Sapiens are no match for large predators but in a group, armed and coordinated hunting party can ward off predators and successfully hunt game larger than themselves. The hunting party and the tribe can satisfy love and belongingness as well as self-esteem as the hunting party had to be successful for hunter gatherers to survive and thrive. The hunting party could be used for self defense (or attack) against other tribes. (Wow! This is not hard to see how the hunting party would have higher status. There are many concepts not yet discussed such as Status, Power, Leadership, Politics, Economics etc. …later….) 

Human beings have survived because they are social animals.  Our earliest ancestors were small and weak compared to the animals with which they competed.  Early and present humans did not possess obvious advantages such as incredible strength, the sharpest fangs or claws, sensory skills like smell or sight or even quickness. What kept us alive was banding together so our lack in every regard was compensated by the many AND the ability to convey what one saw to the group. This helped develop sensitivity to emotion, facial and verbal language. The advantage they had was a superior intellect and the ability to be able to work as a team. 

What draws us to certain individuals or to certain groups?  At its primal level -- survival.  At a higher level, is a feeling of belonging.  Progressively it may be advancement, betterment, or curiosity with a sense of belonging. People need constants and a simplification of purpose.  The traditions that groups of people have reinforced their sense of oneness. (Perhaps a quote, but I can’t find the source). 

Motivation is literally the desire to do things. It's the difference between waking up before dawn to pound the pavement and lazing around the house all day. It's the crucial element in setting and attaining goals—and research shows you can influence your own levels of motivation and self-control.  https://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/motivation 

Motivation is simply what drives people to a particular end.  One of the biggest problems in human interactions is the belief that one can determine the motivation of another.  In simpler terms, "I know why you did what you did." (Perhaps a quote, but I can’t find the source). However, if an individual can figure out "I know why you did what you did." AND he/she can manipulate that to serve another end, a leader has been hatched (Leadership will be discussed later in more detail). Simplistically a leader tells a story that motivates a particular action. For example. A hunting leader can direct the hunt. A storyteller can conjure up a tale PRIOR to the hunt to motivate the group. 

Humans as per their drive to survive have always been interested in connecting with something greater than themselves. In prehistoric times, there is evidence that tribes had one of their group that could claim to connect with the spirits.  There were likely several reasons for this.  One was to gain advantage in the hunt. The spirits were called upon to help the tribe find and kill game.  The second may have been a form of propaganda.  If the tribe believed that connection to spirits would improve the odds of their success.  It was likely a self-fulfilling prophecy.  Henry Ford once said, if you believe you can, or you believe you can't, you're probably right.  If this propaganda was a successful it would help the tribe.  It would also add to the power of the individual who claimed to connect with the spirits.  Whether he did or did not wasn’t important.  It was the perception that he did or did not.    

Often in motivation - story (belief) is considerably more important than fact. 

This is as important now as it always was. Consider the present political divide. Either side often accuses the other of falsifying the issues. Say side A accuses side B of falsifying the issues. Even if side B is proven correct it is often the case that few if any of side A will be moved to change their view. My conclusion is that is because side A’s view is a belief (and facts can be ignored). It is hard to change beliefs with facts. ©