Why you need to know your drives

Your motivations say a lot about yourself. If you make workplace decisions or take on a new job without considering your drives, the choice won't always feel right. But what exactly are drives and why is understanding them so important? We have the answer to your question!

What are drives?

Drives are the values you build over the course of your life. In our daily behavior, including at work, we are guided by these values. They form our drives and largely explain our preferred behavior in both rational and emotional processes. Thus, your drives move you to do something or make a certain choice. This perspective from which you look at your work environment determines the way you think and the way you act.

Why do you need to know your drives?

You may be thinking, "I must have drives, but why should I know them?" Nothing should of course, but besides giving you an awful lot of self-knowledge, there are many other benefits. People who know their drives and act accordingly:

• Living according to their own values;
• Are less dependent on their environment;
• Have a clear compass. Making decisions becomes easier;
• Working from their hearts;
• Have more fun in what they do;
• Make better choices for themselves.

Plus, (re)knowing our drives and the underlying values also makes it possible to learn to assess the drives of others. This allows you to better explain, predict and respond to their behavior.

What types are there?

If we look at the theory of Professor Graves, professor of psychology, drives can be divided into seven categories. We do this by means of colors. Different values fit each drive. This does not necessarily mean that only one of these drives fits you, but often there are one or two that stand out. Below is a brief summary of the seven types:

• Purple: You are security-oriented. You strive to preserve good traditions and confidentiality. You seek safety and security and value people in your own circle.
• Red: You are goal-oriented. You want to make decisions and pace yourself. You are decisive, regularly impatient and can react impulsively.
• Blue: You are task-oriented. You like to organize things well and strive for order and security. You adhere to rules and discipline and like to complete work.
• Orange: You are opportunity-oriented. You strive to put down results and are eager to move forward. You are competitive and focused on perceiving opportunities and achieving success.
• Green: You are relationship-oriented. You strive to have fun and enjoyable contacts with people and are sociable. You have a good antenna for feelings and other people.
• Yellow: You are content-oriented. Learning and development is very important to you. You strive to gain knowledge, insight and are keen on knowing and understanding.
• Turquoise: You are holistically oriented. You are able to put all kinds of things into strong perspective. You view the world from a great distance and try to do that which is truly relevant. You often have less need in the material.

When you know which drives suit you and you gain more insight into which characteristics and qualities are involved, you will be able to make future decisions (big and small) with a clearer view and more certainty. After all, you now know where your values lie and which aspects to consider.

Would you like to gain more insight into your drives?

On SkillsTown's online learning platform, you'll find a scan called "Drives. This is based on Professor Graves' theory. The results map which value systems are most dominant in your thinking and actions. Among other things, you will find out what gives you positive, but also negative energy.

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