Moving Motivators
Developed by Jurgen Appelo, this Management 3.0 exercise uses ten motivation cards — Curiosity, Freedom, Goal, Honor, Mastery, Order, Power, Relatedness, Status, Acceptance — to help individuals and teams understand what drives them. Participants rank and react to cards based on their current situation, making intrinsic motivations visible and discussable.
How to run it
- 1
Give each participant a set of 10 Moving Motivators cards.
- 2
Step 1 — Rank: participants arrange cards left to right from least important to most important motivator.
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Step 2 — React: participants consider a recent change (e.g. a new process, reorganisation, strategic shift). Move cards up if the change positively affects that motivation; down if negatively.
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Participants share their layout, especially cards that moved down.
- 5
Discuss as a team: what do the patterns reveal about team motivation? What changes are demotivating? What could be done differently?
- 6
Use insights to inform management decisions, role design, or team agreements.
Tips
The 'react to change' step is the most powerful — it makes abstract motivation concrete by connecting it to real events.
The conversations that emerge are often the most honest a team has had about what matters to them.',
Variations
Run individually as a coaching exercise to help someone navigate a career decision. Use in 1:1 meetings to check in on motivational health over time.
Where it fits
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