WHY DO PEOPLE WORK AND WHY NOT?

For many years I have been hearing stories and narratives about people being lazy and not wanting to work in Pakistan. I believe people work or not for all sorts of reasons, and it often depends on their personal values, life circumstances, and cultural context. Here are some reasons mentioned by my students of HRM within the field of education:

• At the most basic level, people work to earn money for food, shelter, healthcare, and safety.
• In many parts of the world, this is the primary reason—work is a means of survival.

• People often work to support loved ones—children, parents, or extended family.
• For many, the drive to provide a better future is a deep motivation.

• Some work because their job gives them a sense of meaning or identity.
• Teachers, artists, doctors, social workers, peace educators—you know the kind—often fall into this category.

• Many people find joy in learning, mastering new skills, and challenging themselves.
• Work can be a way to grow intellectually, emotionally, or spiritually.

• Social status, prestige, or respect from peers can be a motivator.
• Careers that lead to promotions, titles, or public recognition attract those driven by achievement.

• Some are lucky to work in fields they are passionate about—it doesn’t even feel like “work” to them. This often includes writers, scientists, musicians, and human rights activists.

• Especially in roles like ours, people work to contribute to something larger than themselves like educating others.

Some interesting perspectives added to their responses were themes like social justice, education and awareness raising, responsible citizenship and sustainable development, etc—these to me were a mix of motivations tied to values and vision.

My Second question was why people don't work... there are also various reasons why people don’t work—some are personal, others structural or systemic.

• Jobs might not exist where someone lives, especially in rural areas.
• Discrimination or exclusion can be the reason of being jobless
• Conflict or crisis in some regions for many years has been a crucial challenge
• Health Issues can be a reason when some sort of ailment restricts them
• Lack of motivation or depression in youth is a huge issue
• People at job also don't work when they feel disconnected
• In old age after retirement they think they cannot do much

• Some people are being pushed out of jobs due to machines or software replacing them. This creates gaps where people want to work but can’t find roles that match their skills.

I could see that in these responses they were mostly thinking of Job oriented work and not self employment and entrepreneurial work. I could clearly identify that most of them were also pointing out externisic motivation mostly when I asked second question. I believe that relationship between intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation and work performance is yet not studied enough in Pakistan. Intrinsic motivation means to be driven by personal satisfaction, curiosity, passion, or a sense of purpose; while extrinsic motivation comes from external rewards or pressures; i.e. driven by money, grades, promotions, or social approval. Punishment and reward system in homes and society largly made an impact and this behaviorist approach to teach, groom, and train children and adolescnets killed their intrinsic motivation and self directed approach towards life and work.

I think it is time to focus more on how people are intrinsically motivated how they can be more engaged in their tasks. With self-regulation they don’t just work harder; they also work smarter, bringing creativity and innovation. When people love what they do, they persist even without immediate rewards. Research around the world shows work driven by passion or purpose feels less exhausting than work driven by external pressure. Intrinsic motivation is linked to mental well-being and job satisfaction. When people work for internal satisfaction, they take more responsibility for their learning and growth. They seek mastery rather than just completing tasks for rewards. Intrinsic motivation keeps people engaged even without external incentives, rewards or fear of punishment.