The best results are achieved with medium levels of motivation – it’s Yerkes-Dodson law, which was formulated by these two scientists over a century ago. This may seem counterintuitive, but upon reflection, it makes perfect sense. When someone is highly invested in an outcome, they may be inclined to use all of their resources and even reserves in pursuit of their goal, and to catastrophize the potential negative consequences of failure. Conversely, when there is a lack of interest, the opposite is true. And at a moderate level of motivation, we spend exactly as much effort as the task requires, do not experience unnecessary tension, and move towards the goal exactly as it requires – steadily and confidently.
