Motive Matters - Change Your World View! by Van Benson

Everyone has a world view.

Dr. Henry T. Close writes in his book Metaphor in Psychotherapy, "World views are formed gradually from the moments of birth, by the untold thousands of experiences a person has in life.

Dr. Taylor Hartman writes in his book, The People Code, "Red, Blue, White, or Yellow, (Power, Intimacy, Peace, or Fun) everyone is motivated by an internal driving core personality that completely colors how he or she views and experiences life."

So, which is it?

Is our world view determined by our driving core motive, or by our life experiences?

Is it nature, or nurture?

It is both.

I have an important question for you, however.

Which comes first? (Ponder this for a moment.)

In Motive Theory, we teach that we all came here with an innate personality. We had it before we took our first breath. Ask any woman who has carried more than one child in the womb. They will inform you they could tell a difference in those kids, in the womb!

Amazing.

Motive is an innermost impulse to action.

So, what comes first, the action, or the impulse (the motive)?

The answer is, the impulse, the motive. (True, many times the impulse is not recognizable to the conscious mind. The action may be almost instantaneous, a result of the workings of the amygdala, the emotional control center of the brain. When you are startled by an unexpected sound you may physically react in as little as 30/1000 of a second.)

The word motive, and the word emotion, come from the same root word which means "to move". For this reason, if we are to understand why we do what we do, and why we see our world the way we do, we must understand the core motive which drives our personalities.

In my experience, I have found that my core motive of "Fun" operates, for the most part, in my subconscious. I am not aware of it's force which exerts itself upon my thoughts, my attitudes, or even my behaviors. This is why Motive Matters training in The Color Code is so valuable, important, and life changing. Through training, I gain knowledge which provides the power of awareness. When I am aware of my motives, I am much better equipped to control and manage them. I can begin to live emotionally intelligent, rather than just operating in my automatic mode. This is what we call personal power.

Color Code training goes right to the heart of the matter of my personality, and my world view.

I see the world through "Yellow" glasses. If I am not enjoying life, what is the use? I can do certain things, which are required, such as working, studying, concentrating, but if too much time goes by, without something, about what I am doing, being FUN, I will lose interest and focus. If I am forced to continue, over an extended period of time, doing something that is no fun at all, I can build up a lot of inner turmoil, even anger. I will seek escape.

Reds are so different in the way they see life. They see through RED glasses. Motivated by "Power", if they are not moving from A to B, being productive, and getting things done, they are not happy campers.

Whites are motivated by Peace. They seek an inner sense of calm and tranquility, avoiding conflict at all cost. Without peace, life is no good.

And, our Blues are driven by Intimacy, deep, close, personal, trusting connections of the heart. A life without purpose, and deep connections is no life at all. That's the way they see the world.

We see the world differently, don't we?

Well.............who is right?

I can hear all of you, in all your different perspectives and colors saying in unison, "I am!" (Especially you Reds! :)

Our world views tend to be self validating. We are not very objective when it comes to our world view. We look for, and seek out, people, situations, circumstances, knowledge, that will confirm, or validate "OUR" world view. Because of this tendancy, our world view often becomes a "self-fulfilling prophecy". As Dr. Close puts it, "If I think people don't like me, I may tend to be less socially engaging. This may result in my having few close friends. Therefore, my world view must be right. I am not very likeable."

Is the world view correct in the afore mentioned example? Is it based in truth? Is it reality?

When Tammy and I conduct Motive Matters seminars, we always tell our audience, "This training will change your life. You will never see yourself, or anyone else the same." When we return to train a group, or a team, for the second or third time, I always ask them whether they have seen any changes in their thoughts, attitudes or perspectives. With very few exceptions, the answer is always a resounding yes.

Reds tell of how they are becoming more sensitive to the feelings of others. Blues tell of learning to overcome their unrealistic expectations. Whites say, "I am learning to be more social, to speak up." And Yellows are so proud that they are beginning to be more focused and organized.

These changes come from shifts in world view. I know of no other tool, in the field of personality, which helps people to understand and value each other more effectively, than Motive Matters, and The Color Code. Blue Tammy calls the process "The healing power of understanding." This healing often is the result of either a conscious or unconscious change of world view.

I have an idea, for a great change of world view, I would like for you to consider.

"Life is all about relationships!"

Yes, people are different. We are motivated by different impulses. Our differences are a good thing. Our differences were never meant to confound or confuse us, but to remind us of an important truth. We were always meant to be a TEAM!

We need each other.

Now, that's what I call a "New and Improved" world view!

Make plans to attend a Motive Matters training. Our next one is in Miami OK on August 28th from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. This seminar is almost filled to capacity, so make your reservations soon, or get on the notification list for upcoming events. You can do so by sending an email to tammy@motivematters.com.

Have a great day...and a great world view! :)



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How Does This Work? -Van Benson, Motive Matters, Color Code

Hi friends,
Tammy and I have met so many great and wonderful people during the past several months. I can't tell you all how much I appreciate and value the time we spend together learning about Motive. A more correct way to put that would be, how we are learning about ourselves and each other, about people. What could be more important? ...(I will let you think about that one...)

We just returned home from Frankfort KY, after a Motive Matters, Color Code training with 42 teachers and administration at Frankfort Christian Academy. What a COOL school! They have a beautiful facility, a former T-shirt factory, which they converted, through much love and hard work, for a much higher higher purpose. We were privileged to get to meet, and interact, with the people who make it their life and ministry to educate the next generation of young people from in and around their city. Thank you to Paul and Linda Simms and the entire staff of FCA for making our training day a success.

We laughed, we cried, we pondered, we considered,...we learned!

On our flight home from Louisville to Tulsa, aboard the great Southwest Airlines, (I am a raving fan of theirs) I read an article in Spirit Magazine, written by Keith Runnels, a supervisor, Aircraft Maintenance, Dallas.

"Keith realized early on he could turn his tinkering habit into a career. As a little boy, one of his family's friends worked as an aviation mechanic. One weekend my Dad brought home a motorcycle in a box", Keith says. "He'd actually brought it home in pieces. Hank, the mechanic, told my Dad to take us out for the weekend, and when we got back home, he had put the entire motorcycle together!"

This impressive feat stuck in Keith's mind for years. He describes working as a mechanic for Southwest Airlines as, "the pinnacle of my career."

As a Maintenance Supervisor, his favorite question is, "How does this work?" Great question! Then he got me! He writes, "I found this applies to my fellow workers, as well as to airplanes.

He is right.

It is so helpful to know how people work. What makes them tick? What is the MOTIVE that MATTERS to them? Teachers love to learn what motivates their students as well as what motivates themselves, personally. Soooo helpful.

No matter what your profession; teacher, doctor, policeman, factory worker, manager, executive, knowing and understanding people is at the heart of your ability to be successful in life. Learning to value all people, regardless of personality differences, learning to "speak their language", and serve their emotional and psychological needs, creates trust and high performance teamwork. As Dr. Taylor Hartman says, "Life is all about Relationships!"

This month alone we will be training over 350 teachers about how Motive Matters in relationships. We hope our time together will result in knowledge and understanding that will help these teachers learn to VALUE, RESPECT, and MOTIVATE their students in a new and powerful way, bringing out the very best in all.

Let's all continue, as Dr. W. Edwards Deming said, to have a "yearnin' for learnin'." Let's keep stretching, growing, extending ourselves, for our own personal growth, and for the growth and benefit of others.

Very best of living to all. GO TEAM!