intrinsic motivation

finally, i have a word for what i've always admired the americans in terms of finding and pursuing what they really want to do in life: 

i n t r i n s i c    m o t i v a t i o n

our resource speaker alejandro shared that he was "programmed" by his culture to be rich. and so, he took up economics in college at upenn. while doing his OJT at godlman sachs NY (the biggest / most prestigious investment banking institution in the US & probably in the world), he witnessed unethical behavior of colleagues from harvard (2) and princeton (1) u, the best schools in the US done against an asian colleague, effectively cutting her off in the competition for a job in the company!

that event was the last straw, an eye-opener that this was not what he wanted in life.

he spent the next ~7 months in thailand trying to figure out what he really wanted in life. his search led him to positive psychology!!!

application:

i can relate with alejandro here. after my MA, i volunteered to be assigned to taiwan as part of our overseas training program as a seminarian of a missionary congregation. i had entered the seminary to follow the footsteps of my two elder bros & supported by a very strong religious tradition in our family and the PH (philippine) culture!

thank god for the non-christian atmosphere in taiwan, i was able to find my INTRINSIC MOTIVATION to pursue counseling psychology instead. well, it was not "and he lived happily ever after" following that. at the present moment, i'm also limited by what is available in the market and my own personality as well as health (physical and mental) status. but, i hang on to the lord's promise in jeremiah 29:11 that he has "plans" in mind for peace and a future full of HOPE.