Going BeyondMotivation to

The Powerof Volition

The most powerful force of human behavior is willpower. When man-agers learn to activate willpower, or volition, in themselves and others,

companies reap the benefits of purposeful action taking and sec more proj-ects completed.

But engaging volition isn't easy. It's a higher attainment than mere moti-vation. Motivation is the desire to do .something; volition is the absolutecommitment to achieving something. To activate their willpower, individu-als must pass a mental barrier, a personal Rubicon.' Our research revealshow successful leaders do that and how they use five simple strategies tohelp lower-level managers accomplish the same.

Recently, as researchers have begun to investigate what it takes for man-agers to follow through on ambitious goals, the study of willpower hasreemerged from the disfavor into which it fell after World War 11.̂ The rea-son for management researchers' interest is clear: Motivating managers withcarrot and stick is overly simplistic. People commit to action for more sub-tle reasons.

New research into managerial action taking supports the distinctionbetween motivation and volition. (See "About the Research.") Project man-agers in the companies studied — some large, such as ConocoPhillips andLufthansa, and others small, such as Micro Mobility Systems — rarely fol-lowed through when the going got rough. Only 10% took purposeful actionto implement goals.^ The rest, despite knowing what they needed to do,simply did not do it.''

The reason lies in the difference between motivation and volition. Mostmanagers were motivated. But 10% overcame personal barriers to commit-ment. There is no set way of doing that. Such managers have in common theintensive inner struggle for certainty in both head and heart regarding what

Why do motivated managers

often fail to follow through?

Because taking sustained action

in the workplace requires more

than motivation. It requires the

deep commitment that comes

from activating willpower.

Sumantra Choshal and Heike Bruch

Sumantra Ghoshal is a professor of strategic leadership at London Business School,and Heike Bruch is a professor of leadership at the University of St. Gallen inSwitzerland. Contact them at sghoshal@london.edu andheike.bruch@unisg.ch.

SPRING 2003 MIT SLOAN MANAGEMENT REVIEW 51

they really want. Having engaged their will, these managers hadthe power to deal with setbacks and persevere through the long,energy-intensive journey from a vision to its realization.

Many managers have never experienced volitional action inthe workplace. Others who have stumbled into situations thatfreed their willpower wouldn't know how to activate it deliber-ately. But executives can learn how volitional-action processeswork, how to marshal their own willpower and how to facilitatepurposeful action taking in lower-level managers.

Motivation vs. VolitionMotivation often is triggered by external stimuli or expectation ofreward, but such motivation is susceptible to change.^ More-attractive opportunities may emerge — or obstacles may appearthat make the reward seem too small. Intrinsic motivation (adesire driven by an internal need) offers interest and enjoyment,but even those can change.

Volition, however, implies deep personal attachment to anintention. Volitional managers have a powerful need to produceresults and aren't driven by rewards or even enjoyment.^

About the ResearchThe study's conclusions are derived from two interrelatedresearch streams. First, we conducted a multiyear qualita-tive and quantitative study to map purposeful managerialaction and its drivers at Lufthansa in Europe and Conoco inthe United States. At Lufthansa, we studied action takingby 130 midlevel managers who had taken on specialchange-related projects as part of a corporate initiative.Most were interviewed several times over a two-yearperiod to review progress on implementation. At Conoco,we conducted a similar study of action tai<ing by 50 proj-ect leaders. In the quantitative part, we surveyed the same130 managers at Lufthansa and 250 managers at Conoco— including the 50 we interviewed and their superiors anddirect reports — to collect data to explore the influencesof a variety of individual, team and organization factors onpurposeful action taking by individuals. The results fromthe surveys confirmed the hypotheses we had developed.

Second is our case research over the last 10 years inlarge and small companies headquartered in NorthAmerica (Goldman Sachs and Oracle), Europe (ABB, brains-to-ventures, BP, BT, Hiiti, LVMH, Micro Mobility Systems,namics. Philips, Reflact Concept), Asia (Infosys, LG Group,Sony) and Latin America (Natura, WEG). Our focus was onaction taking in incremental and transformational changeprocesses. The issue of volition emerged from our researchas the decisive driver of effective implementation ofchange initiatives.

Willpower lets managers execute disciplined action even whenthey lack desire, expect not to enjoy the work, or feel temptedby alternative opportunities. Consider Dan Andersson, wholed Conoco's entry into the gas-station business in a smallEuropean country.

Andersson's task was to build Conoco's retail network and asupporting organization. The market had been deregulated, butthe powerful, state-owned monopoly, witb government officials'collusion, had numerous tricks for retaining market share.

"Setting up the first station was a pure fight," Anderssonrecalls. "At first I was really down. I felt bad, 1 was angry and I wasworried. But then I got going. There is this movie that I used as apicture in my mind. ... It has to do with busting Al Capone inChicago in 1927 or 1929, and 1 felt we were doing exactly thesame thing. ... We were getting those unscrupulous competitorsand conniving politicians and bureaucrats who were trying to usetheir dirty tricks on us. Actually, 1 ended up deriving huge energyfrom that unfairness." Andersson found a way to cross over todetermination, and Conoco prevailed.

The ways that the motivation-volition distinction manifestsitself vary.'' Volitional managers don't wait for further informa-tion or external stimuli to get started, having overcome doubtstheir own way. Their perception is biased; they focus attentionand energy on information supporting iheir goals and block outcontradictory information. They aren't tempted by other oppor-tunities or distracted by disruptions.

Motivation often crumbles at negative feedback, colleagues'resistance or lack of executive interest. Volition, however, isinspired by obstacles. Abandoning the task is not an option.

The Journey AcrossTbe landscape approaching the Rubicon — the personal point ofno return — differs from the landscape beyond.^ On the nearside lies motivation, the state of wishing, choosing, considering,weighing options. There's always a way back. On the other side,intellect and emotion merge to create commitment. Bridges areburned; action is relentless.

Three phases define the process of creating and leveragingvolition: intention formation, the resolution to cross over towillpower, and intention protection.

Intention Formation

The perception of an exciting opportunity (something that willmake a difference, nothing routine) triggers the first phase. Anemotional dimension gives the intention meaning; a purelyrational calculation of cost and benefits of pursuing a goal neverleads to volitit>n.

Consider Wim Ouboter, the founder and CEO of Switzer-land's Micro Mobility Systems. One day in 1990, Ouboter wanteda sausage. The shop was too close to drive to, yet too far away to

walk — what Ouboter came to call a microdistance. He sensed anopportunity to develop a small scooter. He had always likedscooters. A favorite sister had used one routinely because of a dis-ability, and the entire fiimily used to join her. So there was anemotional link.

Ouboter envisioned a lightweight, distinctive-looking micro-scooter. He built a prototype, intending to start a business. But

Tbomas Hill was a midlevel manager in a U.S.-based pharma-ceuticals company. Comfortable in his job as head of CentralEuropean sales. Hill suddenly faced the possibility of becomingthe Indian subsidiary's general manager.

After days of internal battles, Hill asked two colleagues todebate the pros and cons in his presence. "1 was distanced becausetho struggle took place outside of me," he recalls. "And yet it made

Few managers confront conflicted feelings about work, a costly mistake that blocks realcommitment. By facing their concerns, volitional managers avoid later hesitations.

discouraged by others' dismissive reactions, he ended up puttingthe prototype in his garage and forgetting about it. Motivationhad not yet become volition.

Crossing the RubiconDuring the first stage, attention is unfocused, perceptions undi-rected and judgments unbiased. Gradiuilly, managers acquire thefocus that precedes the leap to commitment.

Often there's a catalyst. When Ouhoter saw neighborhoodchildren delighting in his long-abandoned scooter, his enthusi-asm for a new company rekindled. His wife urged him lo committo the venture if he had faith in it^—or keep quiet and face poten-tial regrets.

That conversation was the catalyst. He gave up everything elseand determined to do whatever it took to make his scooter a suc-cess. Four years later, he was shipping 80,000 scooters daily,against an original total demand estimate of 40,000.

Ouboter's experience illustrates one essential requirement forcrossing over — choice. When there's no choice — in reality or inperception — there can be no free will, no volition.^ Also essen-tial is acceptance of personal responsibility. The decision to com-mit comes with the resolve to bear full responsibility.

Volitional managers go tbrough inner consensus building toresolve anxiety, conflicted feelings and doubts."* After an ideatakes hold, the next step is recognizing and confronting thosereservations. Few managers confront conflicted feelings aboutwork, a costly mistake that blocks real commitment. By facingtheir concerns, volitional managers avoid later hesitations.Willpower's hallmarks are unequivocal determination and theapparently unreasonable belief in success, which help peopleaccomplish feats that others would fmd impossible.

But deep commitments cannot be made hastily. Some man-agers first absent tbemselves from the bustle of day-to-day workto reflect. One says he sleeps on commitments for at least onenight. Others create specific processes that help.

the facts and my inner situation crystal clear." The colleaguescontinued the discussion until Hill was sure what he wanted.Impressed, he now uses the process regularly for tough decisions.

intention ProtectionCompany distractions can take attention away from purposiveaction, so volitional managers consciously protect their inten-tions." Homer recounts Odysseus' escape from sea nymphswhose singing made sailors leap overboard and drown. Odysseuswanted io hear the music without dying. He asked his men tobind him to the mast, forbidding them to release him before theyhad passed the sirens' island. Then he ordered the men to plugtheir ears with wax. As the singing began, he struggled to releasehimself, begging to be untied. But deaf to his entreaties, his menstayed the course, saving themselves, Odysseus and the ship.

Companies are full of sirens — distractions that take attentionand energy away from purposive action. Willful managers mod-ify their environment so as to be impervious to corporate sirens.For example, deliberately creating social pressures (public com-mitments, challenging deadlines or having relevant stakeholdersmonitor a manager's activities) can increase the cost of abandon-ing the goal.

Volitional managers also discipline their thought processes.Whenever doubts surface, they refocus. Some do so by askingthemselves, "What would happen if I disengaged?" Others taketime off to ponder their original purpose and reaffirm its value.Some recall the promise they made to themselves when theycommitted.

In addition to self-discipline, volitional managers display pos-itive energy. They maintain excitement about the work by delib-erately defending themselves against negative emotions,converting adversities into inspiration.'-

Ouboter experienced adversity. He approached the Smart car-makers with a prototype, and at first, they were eager to put ascooter in every car. With a planned total sales figure of 40,000

SPRING 2003 MIT SLOAN MANAGEMENT REVIEW 53

cars, Ouboter sought out a reliable producer. Unfortunately,Smart reneged, sending tbis terse rejection: "Thanks for youroffer. We wish you tbe best of luck with your scooter." It felt likea punch in the stomach. "That's when I said I'll do it anyway,"Ouboter recalls.

Having already secured a manufacturer, Ouboter focused onnew distribution channels, marketing programs and entry strate-

instincts and needs.''' He believes leaders unwisely focus onstrategies to align employees' basic needs — say, for money —with company goals.

When goals are simple, the necessary actions relatively routineand unexpected difficulties rare, motivation can lead to action.'^Managerial jobs, however, are rarely routine. Managers have mul-tiple and often conflicting goals, many of which require persist-

When enlisting people for assignments, most executives paint rosy pictures, downplay obstaclesand highlight benefits. Those who foster deep commitment often do the opposite.

gies. The scooter caught on in Japan, tben Europe, then aroundthe world. By December 2000, Ouboter was selling 80,000 scoot-ers daily, with revenues increasing 1,400% per year. "The Smartcancellation was the best thing that happened," says Ouboter."Tbe pain it caused gave me the unexplainable conviction thatthe scooter will sell, and that's where I got my energy."

So another way volitional managers shield intentions is byprotecting their self-confidence.'-' Self-confidence allows man-agers to overcome negative feedback and obstacles. An effectiveway that managers maintain courage is by recalling earlier expe-riences — problems overcome, successes achieved. Jim Taylor ofConoco did just that.

Top management considered Conoco's new carbon-fiberstechnology pivotal to growth, and Taylor was designated to buildthe business. "You have to believe in yourself. Whenever I am inserious doubt and I know that 1 may lose courage, I activate aparticular memory in my head [when] we went through anextremely bard time and kind of made the impossible happen."'fhe memory renews his self-confidence.

Volitional managers actively generate positive emotions.Initially exciting projects can become boring or difficult, so man-agers plan events to reenergize themselves. Some reward tbem-selves for passing certain mileposts. Others find that, in advancedphases of projects, increasing interactions such as review meet-ings can keep energy flowing and shield intentions.

Spreading Volitional ActionCan volition be triggered or must it be an individual's choice?How can leaders stimulate committed action taking in theirorganizations?

Most executives recognize that employees drive organizationalaction and, therefore, company performance. "What can I do tomotivate my people?" they ask, thinking thai self-interest guideseveryone. Philosopher-psychologist Peter Koestenbaum warnsagainst reducing the individual to an assemblage of primitive

ent, long-term action. Their work context is fragmented, withhigh levels of uncertainty and opposition.'*

Engaging willpower is a personal, almost intimate, processthat cannot be triggered merely through rewards. Our researchhighlights five strategies executives use to help lower-level man-agers overcome personal barriers to purposeful action.

Help People Visualize Their IntentionManagers often have problems committing because the goal isvague. Executives can belp by stimulating people to transformtheir ideas into concrete intentions. Michael Hilti, CEO ofLiechtenstein-based construction-equipment maker Hilti until1994 and since then chairman of its supervisory board, says,"One of my guiding principles for leading people stems firom thepsychoanalyst Erich Fromm: 'If life does not offer a clear visionthat one wants to realize, it also does not offer a motive to makean effort.'"

People need a vivid picture of the goal in order to activatetheir emotions and protect tbeir intention through the action-taking phase.'^ Vivid pictures help simplify long-term goals andmake them tangible. Later, if doubts arise, the pictures stimulateperseverance. Senior executives can help managers create suchpictures.

Conoco's Taylor, for example, needed help deciding which ofmany potential carbon-fiber products to focus on. The materialwas full of possibility — hard as steel, light as plastic, unbreak-able, noncorrosive. Taylor was sure his division could producelarge quantities at a lower cost than competitors ctjuld (thanks tonew production technology developed with DuPont}. But whereto begin?

The turning point came in a strategic business review withhigher-level officers. Because everything was possible, Taylorwanted the officers to suggest where lo start. Instead, they chal-lenged him to visualize the potential, to describe one concreteexample of what this "really big everything" could look like.

"Slowly I realized I wanted a bridge," says liiylor. "! wanted abridge to be made out of carbon fibers — light as plastic, hard assteel, a bridge that would neither break nor rust. That became mypersonal hook."

The insighl was liberating. By mid-2002, Taylor had a facility,a process protected by 38 patents and a team of 200. Althoughafter the Phillips merger, management shut the division because

Molleney consulted Schumacher, his former mentor. "I hear whatyou say," Schumacher observed, "but I also hear what your gutsays. Listen to it before you decide; otherwise you'll be uncom-fortable and won't be able to fully stand behind your decision."

Molieney stayed at SAir. "After deciding to stay and do the liq-uidation, I wanted to make it the best it could be — for the peo-ple." He put all his creativity, effort and energy info it, making

Stopping rules can counteract the pathologies of willpower that arise from the very strengthof commitment. Some top managers create more flexible, social stopping mechanisms.

of market uncertainties, the company coiilinues to be recognizedas world leader in certain carbon technologies.

Leaders should help managers create concrete mental modelsof ways to pursue vivid pictures. Mental models keep managersalert so they notice even small things that might help them movequickly toward tbe goal. Ouboter found the picture he needed inSmart-car slogans: "Reduced to the Maximum," "The Future ofMobility." He recalls, "I saw the whole world with this special lens.... I noticed even the smallest things that helped me implementmy dream."

Encourage People To Confront Their AmbivolenceEngagement of willpower involves the intellectual dimensioncoming together with the emotional one to create an intentionricher than a purely rational goal. That doesn't imply irrational-ity. The difference lies in what leaders get managers to ask them-selves. Instead of encouraging questions like "What's in it for me?Is it reasonable?" executives seeking true commitment push peo-ple to ask, "What's the downside? Does it feel right? Do 1 reallywant it?" That way, managers engage their emotions, and emo-tions lead to deeper commitment.

Forcing people to confront their ambivalence is a more diffi-cult way of winning people over than offering rewards and resultsin fewer projects. But it's ultimately less risky than halfheartedacquiescence. It helps people see whether they really can offerhead and heart.

Consider how Thomas Schumacher helped MatthiasMolleney. Molleney was human resources executive vice presi-dent of SAir Group, parent of Swissair. Affer Swissair declaredbankruptcy, Molleney got a job offer elsewhere. Then be wasasked to handle the SAir liquidation — dismissing the employees,negotiating termination pay, fighting a pilol lawsuit and ulti-mately firing himself.

Molleney felt terrible leaving the employees at that stage, butan unemotional approach suggested rejecting the assignment.

sure employees found alternative employment and the ones whostayed remained motivated. "The process pushed me to my per-sonal limits," Molleney concedes, "but I never regretted that I hadagreed to take on the task. It was worth doing — although theonly reward was the feeling that it was the right thing."

Schumacher helped Molleney face his ambivalence aboutleaving his colleagues and recognize be was leaning toward thechoice that conflicted with his feelings. Helping managers con-front amhivalence doesn't mean helping them sacrifice them-selves to others, but encouraging them to consider their emotionsso they can stand behind their decisions. If Molleney had been adifferent man, the introspection could have generated a differentcommitment.

Prepare People for ObstaclesWhen enlisting people for assignments, most executives paintrosy pictures, downplaying obstacles and highlighting benefits.Those who foster deep commitment often do fhe opposite.Usually when frontline managers accomplish tasks with disci-plined effort, there's a senior leader in the background who hasestablisbed steps to prevent superficial commitment.

The head of an IBM suhsidiary, whom we'll call Sven Olafson,is such a leader. In the early 199()s, Olafson observed that, of themany projects begun enthusiastically, only about 15% were com-pleted satisfactorily. IBM had a sounding board that prioritizedactivities, authorized new projects and allocated resources.Olafson noticed that proposals brought to the sounding boardwere overly optimistic and focused only on business aspects.

Olafson introduced a new proiect-prioritization process.Proposals bad to include information on husiness gains, businessrisks, personal advantages and personal disadvantages. Managerspresenting project proposals had to answer, "What would it costme personally to undertake tbis?" "What do I have to stopdoing?" "What else would 1 do if I didn't take up this project?"Candidates had to def'end to the sounding board their reasons for

SPRING 2003 MIT SLOAN MANAGB4ENT REVIEW 55

Strategies for Volitional Action

Managers who successfully move from mere motivation to the dedication that createspurposeful action taking go through three stages: intention formation, crossing the Rubi-con (crossing the point of no return) and intention protection.

Intention Formation• Identify opportunities

• Create an emotional link

• Visualize the intention

Crossing the Rubicon• Deal with doubts and anxieties

• Exercise conscious choice

• Take personal responsibility

initiating the project despite the personal costs. After approval,the sounding board's head would ask project backers once morewhether they were certain ahout proceeding with a project. Tworesults: Far fewer projects were started; 95% of projects were suc-cessfully completed.

Help People To See and Exploit Choices

The raw malerials for intention formation are attractive opportu-nities. But many managers are prisoners of routine.'^ They react todemands instead of weighing what they should be doing or wantto do. Some lack the openness necessary for identifying opportu-nities. They feel squeezed in narrow corsets of expectations. Othersperceive opportunities hut exclude them because they cannotimagine shaking habits. Senior leaders, in systematizing work,often reinforce habituated activity and prevent people from takingthe first step toward commitment: perceiving opportunities.

Giving people freedom to choose is critical. Executives alsomust help managers develop the confidence necessary for exper-imenting with ideas.

In 1984, Michael Hilti launched an initiative to enhance hismanagers' ability to commit deeply to projects. "I want our man-agers to take responsibility for what they do," he explains. "One ofthe central conditions for this is that they love what they do. Thesecond is that they arc aware they have choices. The ihird is thatthey commit without reservations."

Managers go through a three day training on five aspects ofHilti philosophy: significance of rules, the break with old habits,the freedom to choose (love il, change it or leave it), the swing oflife (expect both setbacks and positive experiences) and Cotoyo(commit to yourself). Implemented at a cost of $16 million andused for nearly 20 years, the initiative revolutionized the com-pany's culture and contributed to the burst of new products thatmake Hilti the world leader in high-quaiity tools and construc-tion equipment.

Hilti's employee-opinion surveys monitor the culture. Surveyresults arc used to enhance and stabilize individual volition

Intention Protection• Control the context

• Regulate cognition

• Manage emotions

• Protect self-confidence

and responsibility. Pius Baschera,Hilti's CEO since 1994, says,"We've found that implementa-tion has improved and that it hasa significant statistical relation-ship with leadership, customersatisfaction and market successand performance. There are twodecisive effects on everyday behav-ior that count. First, we don'tbackpedal into justifications, blam-ing or denial. And second, manyof our managers try to reach thestars and then accept that you may

not get there. Our managers have learned to want a challenge.The stars activate their willpower, while realistic goals would boreand even demotivate them. It's not always easy ... but I'd ratherlead a company where I have to restrain people than one where Ihave to 'help' continuously with a whip."

Build In Stopping Rules

The problem with willpower is that it blinds people and hampersdisengagement. Hence, many volitional managers persist inaction taking even when the undesirability of a project becomesmanifest. Others fall so much in love with projects that they can-not disengage after success. Stopping rules can counteract thepathologies of willpower tliat arise from the very strength of per-sonal commitment. Such rules must give sufficient rope to man-agers, yet not so much that they can hang themselves.

Some executives put the responsibility for deactivation in thehands of the project initiators. The managers themselves definecritical events that, should they occur, would trigger initiative ter-mination. But stopping rules must be part of initial commit-ments and not introduced in medias res. Especially with highlyinnovative projects, it's difficult to define concrete denctivationcriteria. To prevent the demoralizing effect of introducing stop-ping rules after committed action taking has commenced, sometop managers create more flexible, social stopping mechanisms.

Lars Kolind, CEO of Denmark's Oticon, developed a sociallyembedded stopping rule that works well in his decentralized andentrepreneurial hearing-aid company. Managed almost exclu-sively through projects, Oticon allows employees to initiate proj-ects they feel committed to. I'he initiator, however, must persuadethe required number of colleagues to join the team voluntarilyand must get at least one senior manager to agree to be a sponsor.The stopping rules kick in if the initiator gives up, if team mem-bers withdraw participation or if the sponsor backs out.

The Foundation for Persistent ExecutionBreakthrough strategies, revolutionary change, and the flexibility

5 6 MIT SLOAN MANAGEMFNT REVIEW SPRING ?C]O'i

to turn on a dime are exciting ideas that easily capture corporateleaders' imagination. Occasionally they catapult a company tosuccess, but durable corporate progress is built on disciplinedand relentless execution of specific tasks. Unfortunately, persist-ence is underemphasized in the behaviors and actions of topmanagement.

Persistent action taking relies on willpower. It needs deep per-sonal commitment to specific initiatives and managers' energeticefforts to achieve the desired results. Managers have to engage ina way that enables them to achieve their goals against all obsta-cles. {See "Strategies for Volitional Action.")

Our research also raises a broader question. Most executivestry to build people's commitment to the overall company, ratherthan to specific projects." But company loyalty is increasinglydifficult to achieve and sustain. Besides, general commitment,even if achieved, does not necessarily lead to purposeful actionon specific tasks.

The best way to build effective organizational commitment isto build it bottom-up, on the foundation of personal ownershipof and commitment to specific initiatives and goals. In the worldof mobile employees, frontline entrepreneurship and constant,unavoidable organizational restructuring, it is that kind of com-mitment that corporate leaders must develop if they want tobuild a bias for action in their companies.

REFERENCES

1. Julius Caesar's popularity was a threat to the Roman Senate, whichordered him to disband his army, then camped north of a small streamcalled the Rubicon. An ancient law forbade any general from crossingthe Rubicon and entering Italy proper with a standing army. Despiteknowing it was treason, Caesar deliberately crossed over on Jan. 11.49 B.C. Once he had done so, there was no turning back; civil warwas inevitable. From that point, Caesar had a single objective: to winthe war.

2. Before World War II, Germany was the center of academic researchon psychology. Freud and Jung had left a legacy of talented psycholo-gists. Narziss Ach was one of the most eminent. His experimentsclearly showed the distinction between motivation (the state of desire)and volition (the state in which motivation is converted to unwavering,resolute commitment). Unfortunately, the language of volition and willbecame a central tenet of Nazi ideology, although the Nazis basedtheir views not on volilion psychology but on philosophy, especiallySchopenhauer and Nietzsche. After the war, Ach's ideas on volitionwere cast aside along with the discredited ideology. However, Ach'sconcept of will was different from the Nazis'- Unlike Schopenhauer,who saw it as distinct from and superior to reason, Ach viewed theengagement of the human will (volition) as the strongest force ofhuman behavior, a force that existed with and beyond reason andwas characterized by commitment beyond motivation or the meetingof superficial desires. See N. Ach, "Uber den Willensakt und dasTemperament: Eine Experimentelle Untersuchung (On the Act of theWill and Temperament: An Experimental Study)" (Leipzig: Ouelle &Meyer, 1910).

H. Heckhausen analyzed the use of the words will and volition in"Psychological Abstracts." He found that in the late 19th century andthe early 20th. they were key words of psychological literature, but thatthere was a rapid downturn starting in 1930, By 1945, the term volition

was no longer used and wilt was gone by 1970. See H. Heckhausen,"Perspektiven der Psychologie des Wollens (Perspectives of aPsychology of the Will)," in "Jenseits des Rubikon: Der Wiile in denHumanwissenschaften (Beyond the Rubicon: The Will in HumanSciences)," eds. H. Heckhausen, P.M. Gollwitzer and F.E. Weinert(Berlin and Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag, 1987): 143-175.

3. H. Bruch and S. Ghoshal. "Beware the Busy Manager," HarvardBusiness Review 80 (February 2002): 62-69.

4. See J. Pfetfer and R.I. Sutton, "The Knowing-Doing Gap" (Boston:Harvard Business School Press, 1999), 7-28.

5. E.L. Deci with K, Flaste, "Why We Do What We Do: UnderstandingSelf-Motivation" (New York: Putnam, 1995), 44-56; and K.W. Thomas,"Intrinsic Motivation at Work: Building Energy and Commitment" (SanFrancisco: Berrett-Koehler, 2000).

6. J- Collins, "Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leapand Others Don't" (New York: HarperBusiness, 2001), 30-33.

7. P.M. Gollwitzer, H. Heckhausen and H. Ratajczak, "From Weighingto Willing: Approaching a Change Decision Through Pre- or Post-decisionai Mentation," Organizational Behavior and Human DecisionProcesses 45 (Februan/ 1990): 41-65.

8. H. Heckhausen and RM. Gollwitzer, "Thought Contents and Cog-nitive Functioning in Motivational Versus Volitional States of Mind,"Motivation and Emotion 11 (June 1987): 101-120.

9. See C. Argyris in "Reasoning, Learning and Action; Individual andOrganizational" (San Francisco; Jossey-Bass, 1982), 102-103.

10. H. Binswanger, "Volition and Cognitive Self-Regulation," Organiza-tional Behavior and Human Decision Processes 50 (December 1991):154-178.

11. J. Kuhl, "Action Control: The Maintenance of Motivational States,"in "Motivation, intention and Volition," eds. F Halisch and J. Kuhl(Berlin and Heidelberg; Springer-Verlag, 1987), 279-291.

12. H. Leventhal and K.R. Scherer. "The Relationship of Emotion toCognition; A Functional Approach to a Semantic Controversy," Cog-nition and Emotion 1 (March 1987): 3-28: and S.E, Taylor and S.K.Schneider, "Coping and the Simulation of Events," Social Cognition 7(1989); 174-194.

13. A. Bandura, "Self-Efficacy Mechanism in Human Agency," Ameri-can Psychologist 37 (February 1982): 122-147.

14. P. Koestenbaum and P. Block, "Freedom and Accountability atWork; Applying Philosophic Insight to the Real World" (San Francisco:Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer, 2001).

15. J. Kuhl, "Volitional Mediators of Cognition Behavior Consistency:Self-Regulatory Processes and Action Versus State Orientation,"in "Action Control; From Cognition to Behavior," eds. J. Kuhl andJ. Beckmann (Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1985). 101-128.

16. H. Mintzberg, "The Nature of Managerial Work" (New York:HarperCollins, 1973), 28-35 and 178-179.

17. See P. Senge, "The Fifth Discipline; The Art and Practice ofthe Learning Organization" (New York: Currency/Doubleday, 1990),141-145.

18. H. Mintzberg. "Managerial Work: Forty Years Later," in "Execu-tive Behavior," ed. S. Carlson (Uppsala, Sweden: Acta UniversitatisUpsaiiensis, 1991). 97-120.

19. See T.E. Becker, "Foci and Bases of Commitment; Are They Dis-tinctions Worth Making?" Academy of Management Journal 35 (March1992); 232-244.

Reprint 4437Copyright © Massadniseits Imiitute of Tedwotogy, 2003. All rights reserved.

SPRING 2003 MIT SLOAN MANAGEMENT REVIEW 57