--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Understanding motivation is one of the…" description: "\"Understanding motivation is one of the most important things we can do in our lives, because it has such a bearing on why we do the things we do and wh..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_bearing_understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-m_2903942.jpg" --- # Understanding motivation is one of the most important… ![“Understanding motivation is one of the most important things we can do in our lives, because it has such a bearing on why we do the things we do and whether we enjoy them or not.” quote by Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_bearing_understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-m_2903942.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_bearing_understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-m_2903942.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_bearing_understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-m_2903942.jpg) > “Understanding motivation is one of the most important things we can do in our lives, because it has such a bearing on why we do the things we do and whether we enjoy them or not.” [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Motivation drives behavior; understanding it reveals why we act and how enjoyment ties to purpose. **In simple terms:** Know why you act to enjoy life. Key Takeaway Explore and align motivations. Themes motivation purpose behavior joy Mood analytical inspirational Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - career planning - habit formation - personal development Key Concepts psychology self‑determination goal setting Questions to Reflect On - What core motivations drive your daily actions? - How can you test if a motivation is authentic? A Different Perspective Motivation can be misinterpreted. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Important things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important-things/) [Motivation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motivation/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) ## Related quotes > [“richest experiences in our lives aren’t when we’re clamoring for validation from others, but when we’re listening to our own voice—doing something that matters,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-h-pink/richest-experiences-in-our-lives-aren-t-when-we-re-clamoring-for/) [Daniel H. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-h-pink/) > [Motivation is important, but you need persistence and self discipline to get to the finish line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senora-roy/motivation-is-important-but-you-need-persistence-and-self-discipline/) [Senora Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/senora-roy/) > [The motivation is important for me to act it, but I don't necessarily want the audience to know my motivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-isaac/the-motivation-is-important-for-me-to-act-it-but-i-don-t-necessarily/) [Oscar Isaac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-isaac/) > [“In their writing on education, Deci and Ryan proceed from the principle that humans are natural learners and children are born creative and curious,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tough/in-their-writing-on-education-deci-and-ryan-proceed-from-the/) [Paul Tough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tough/) > [Strong motivation is the most important factor in getting you to the top](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-hillary/strong-motivation-is-the-most-important-factor-in-getting-you-to-the/) [Edmund Hillary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-hillary/) > [We know that recognition and intrinsic motivation are important to our success, but the key is finding ways to effectively operationalize them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-achor/we-know-that-recognition-and-intrinsic-motivation-are-important-to/) [Shawn Achor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-achor/) > [The quality of everything we do: our physical actions, our verbal actions, and even our mental actions, depends on our motivation. That's why it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/the-quality-of-everything-we-do-our-physical-actions-our-verbal/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [I'm in this really cool place in my career, where the stage I'm on that night, whether it's the Paisley tour, the CMT tour,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-worsham/i-m-in-this-really-cool-place-in-my-career-where-the-stage-i-m-on/) [Charlie Worsham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-worsham/) > [The most important factor in determining whether you will succeed isn't your gender - it's you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-braly/the-most-important-factor-in-determining-whether-you-will-succeed-isn/) [Angela Braly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-braly/) > [“We again bear the cost of those who enjoyed their whole life while we were struggling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/we-again-bear-the-cost-of-those-who-enjoyed-their-whole-life-while-we/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [Inviting children as gospel learners to act and not merely be acted upon builds on reading and talking about the Book of Mormon and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-bednar/inviting-children-as-gospel-learners-to-act-and-not-merely-be-acted/) [David A. Bednar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-bednar/) > [“Even if you're a burden, you're the only burden I don't mind bearing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orizuka/even-if-you-re-a-burden-you-re-the-only-burden-i-don-t-mind-bearing/) [Orizuka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orizuka/) > [I'm in favor of destruction, aggression, hating things. Not bearing things anymore. We think the breakdown comes because our life is in bad shape.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-m-in-favor-of-destruction-aggression-hating-things-not-bearing/) [James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/) > [Motherhood is more than bearing children, though it is certainly that. It is the essence of who we are as women. It defines our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheri-l-dew/motherhood-is-more-than-bearing-children-though-it-is-certainly-that/) [Sheri L. Dew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheri-l-dew/) > [We may be masters of our every lot By bearing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virgil/we-may-be-masters-of-our-every-lot-by-bearing-it/) [Virgil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virgil/) ## More by Clayton Christensen > [But actually theory is very practical. Gravity is a theory, for example. It allows you to predict that if you step off a cliff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/but-actually-theory-is-very-practical-gravity-is-a-theory-for-example/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [In our lives and in our careers, whether we are aware of it or not, we are constantly navigating a path by deciding between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/in-our-lives-and-in-our-careers-whether-we-are-aware-of-it-or-not-we/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [Many of the factors that we think will cause motivation, such as fair pay and a good manager, won't make you love your job.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/many-of-the-factors-that-we-think-will-cause-motivation-such-as-fair/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [People in private equity complain that they have so much capital and so few places to invest. But you have lots of entrepreneurs trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/people-in-private-equity-complain-that-they-have-so-much-capital-and/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [If you're successful and growing, you can manage any way you want to. Growth makes so many dimensions of management easier. It's when growth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/if-you-re-successful-and-growing-you-can-manage-any-way-you-want-to/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [A sustaining innovation makes better products that you can sell for better profits to your best customers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/a-sustaining-innovation-makes-better-products-that-you-can-sell-for/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [Purpose must be deliberately conceived and chosen, and then pursued.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/purpose-must-be-deliberately-conceived-and-chosen-and-then-pursued/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [The mistake that makes launching a venture expensive is when you try to make a disruptive technology so good that it can compete on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/the-mistake-that-makes-launching-a-venture-expensive-is-when-you-try/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [What you need is a fundamental humility - the belief that you can learn from anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/what-you-need-is-a-fundamental-humility-the-belief-that-you-can-learn/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [This is why I belong, and why I believe. I commend to all this same search for happiness and for the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/this-is-why-i-belong-and-why-i-believe-i-commend-to-all-this-same/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [I think this is one reason why the Lord invented the Internet - so members can teach one another how to succeed in assignments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/i-think-this-is-one-reason-why-the-lord-invented-the-internet-so/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [Because these firms listened to their customers, invested aggressively in new technologies that would provide their customers more and better products of the sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/because-these-firms-listened-to-their-customers-invested-aggressively/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [At the beginning of almost every industry, the available products and services are so expensive to own and complicated to use that only people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/at-the-beginning-of-almost-every-industry-the-available-products-and/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [Management has to provide the coordinating mechanism between what the supplier provides and what the user needs in not-good-enough situations where product architecture is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/management-has-to-provide-the-coordinating-mechanism-between-what-the/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [When you're thinking about your next product or current product and wondering how to make it different so you don't have competition, understand the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/when-you-re-thinking-about-your-next-product-or-current-product-and/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) [Explore all 166 Clayton Christensen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) ## More Bearing quotes > [We may be masters of our every lot By bearing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virgil/we-may-be-masters-of-our-every-lot-by-bearing-it/) [Virgil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virgil/) > [Motherhood is more than bearing children, though it is certainly that. It is the essence of who we are as women. It defines our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheri-l-dew/motherhood-is-more-than-bearing-children-though-it-is-certainly-that/) [Sheri L. Dew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheri-l-dew/) > [I'm in favor of destruction, aggression, hating things. Not bearing things anymore. We think the breakdown comes because our life is in bad shape.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hillman/i-m-in-favor-of-destruction-aggression-hating-things-not-bearing/) [James Hillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hillman/) > [“Even if you're a burden, you're the only burden I don't mind bearing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orizuka/even-if-you-re-a-burden-you-re-the-only-burden-i-don-t-mind-bearing/) [Orizuka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orizuka/) > [Inviting children as gospel learners to act and not merely be acted upon builds on reading and talking about the Book of Mormon and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-bednar/inviting-children-as-gospel-learners-to-act-and-not-merely-be-acted/) [David A. Bednar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-bednar/) > [“We again bear the cost of those who enjoyed their whole life while we were struggling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/we-again-bear-the-cost-of-those-who-enjoyed-their-whole-life-while-we/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [“No one knows till they have tried, what power of bearing lies in them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gaskell/no-one-knows-till-they-have-tried-what-power-of-bearing-lies-in-them/) [Elizabeth Gaskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gaskell/) > [“Focus on bearing, and beauty will follow. Your looks will not remain with you for life. But your bearing will go with you to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laila-ibrahim/focus-on-bearing-and-beauty-will-follow-your-looks-will-not-remain/) [Laila Ibrahim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laila-ibrahim/) > [“Bearing one another’s burdens is not easy, but it is also not optional.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-chan/bearing-one-another-s-burdens-is-not-easy-but-it-is-also-not-optional/) [Francis Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-chan/) > [Bearing an eternal longing for Jewishness, I threw myself in all directions and left to work for another people. I am not one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-ansky/bearing-an-eternal-longing-for-jewishness-i-threw-myself-in-all/) S. Ansky > [Every frame of every film is from a particular time. So, if you make a film in 2017, the times can't not have a bearing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-fazal/every-frame-of-every-film-is-from-a-particular-time-so-if-you-make-a/) [Ali Fazal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-fazal/) > [People say, 'What if your name was Niki Smith?' Well, if Niki Smith lived the life I've lived, it would have great bearing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niki-tsongas/people-say-what-if-your-name-was-niki-smith-well-if-niki-smith-lived/) [Niki Tsongas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niki-tsongas/) > [“Most often, what I don’t know will have a vastly greater bearing on my life that what I do know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/most-often-what-i-don-t-know-will-have-a-vastly-greater-bearing-on-my/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [Whatever it be, every fortune is to be overcome by bearing it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virgil/whatever-it-be-every-fortune-is-to-be-overcome-by-bearing-it/) [Virgil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virgil/) > [Long pains, with use of bearing, are half eased.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/long-pains-with-use-of-bearing-are-half-eased/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) Browse all 47 Bearing quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Understanding motivation is one of the most important things we can do in our lives, because it has such a bearing on why we do the things we do and whether we enjoy them or not.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Clayton Christensen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-most-important-things-we-can/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bearing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-most-important-things-we-can/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_bearing_understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-m_2903942.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_bearing_understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-m_2903942.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ac/clayton-christensen-2433_bearing_understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-m_2903942.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Understanding motivation is one of the most important things we can do in our lives, because it has such a…” — Clayton Christensen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Clayton Christensen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Understanding motivation is one of the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-most-important-things-we-can/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/understanding-motivation-is-one-of-the-most-important-things-we-can/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```