How 11 Highly Successful People Stay Motivated – and How to Steal Their Secrets

What makes the most successful people tick? Money? Pride? Attention and fame?

Sure, those work. After all, even people who aren’t famously successful are still motivated by money, pride and attention.

Being Motivated Has Deep Roots

But it turns out that enduring motivation has deeper roots. The money and the rest of it, that’s often just gravy – the extras that result from being motivated.

Don’t believe us? Then take a look at how these 11 very successful people motivate themselves.

1. Zuckerberg: Hack Your Way Forward

What drove Mark Zuckerberg to create Facebook? He says it was the fear of knowing someone else might do it first.

In an interview with Business Insider, he identified a mental focus to work he called the Hacker Way: “Hackers believe that something can always be better, and that nothing is ever complete.”

In a later interview, well after Facebook had reached unimaginable success, Zuckerberg offered this take on how he keeps his motivation flowing: “[It’s] a perverse thing, but I would rather be in a cycle where people are underestimating us. It gives us latitude to go out and make big bets that excite and amaze people.”

2. Branson: Find the Movers And Hang with Them

It is hard to find a business person more successful than British entrepreneur and Virgin Airlines founder Richard Branson.

Yet Branson says that to stay successful, he surrounds himself with successful people – especially people more successful than he is.

He termed it his “lifeline.”  He told Forbes magazine: “My professional inspiration has no separation from my personal inspiration. It’s people who will stop at nothing to make a positive difference to other people’s lives. I am fortunate to come across quite a few of these game-changing people, and the desire to help (and keep up with them!) is what drives me.”

3. Corcoran: You Be the Boss of You

At one early point in her career, Barbara Corcoran never wanted to take orders from a boss again.

So she built a $5 billion real estate venture that is, today, one of New York’s largest real estate companies.

“I was [always] motivated,” Corcoran, who is also a host on ABC’s Shark Tank, told Entrepreneur magazine. “What I wanted to do was work for myself. I had 22 jobs before I started my business at 23, and I didn’t want one more boss telling me what to do. So I was motivated simply because I didn’t want a boss.”

OK, so not everyone can be the boss. But you still have your own initiative. Exercising your own instincts on a job can get motivational juices flowing.

4. Winfrey: Avoid the ‘They Have More Than I Do’ Syndrome

When Oprah Winfrey was trying to get a foothold early in her career, she never worried about what others had.  Whether it was more money, more ideas, connections, brains or luck. She refused to let it hold her back.

“If you look at what you have in life, you’ll always have more. If you look at what you don’t have in life, you’ll never have enough,” she once said.

Someone else might have more talent, but that doesn’t mean they’ve cornered the market on success. Oprah said if she let herself believe everyone else was prettier, smarter, thinner, or whatever, she’d never have become one of the most successful media owners, talk show hostesses, actresses, producers and philanthropists on the planet.

5. Wozniak: Do What You Love in Life

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak said his path to success was a natural extension of doing what he really liked to do. It’s the adage, “If you love what you do, you’ll never think of it as work.” It’s easier said than done, but it’s also a crucial aspect of motivation.

He wrote in his autobiography, iWoz: “If you love what you do and are willing to do what it takes, it’s within your reach. Don’t worry that you can’t seem to come up with sure billion-dollar winners at first. Just do projects for yourself for fun. You’ll get better and better.”

6. Mayer: Success Comes With Ups And Downs – And Lots Of Fears

If you’re terrified of taking a big career/networking/investment step, that’s a good thing. Marissa Mayer, former Yahoo CEO, says it’s OK to be scared – just let THAT motivate you.

Mayer told Forbes magazine: “I always did something that I was a little not ready to do. When there’s a moment of ‘Wow, I’m not so sure that I can do this,’ and you push through those moments, it’s then that you have a breakthrough. Sometimes that’s a sign that something really great is about to happen.”

Success is a roller coaster ride. Apprehension builds as you climb that initial hill. You’re terrified of the big drop. But once you get through that, the rest is exhilarating.

7. Spielberg: Don’t Make Success the Only Goal

Uber-director Steven Spielberg has raked in tons of awards and money. But he famously quipped: “I’m not really interested in making money. That’s always come as the result of success. But it’s not been my goal, and I’ve had a tough time proving that to people.”

Success in and of itself shouldn’t be your motivator. Sounds ridiculous, right? Not really.

How you GET there – and how you define it in the first place – should be the root of your motivation.

Spielberg said his professional goal was to make great movies and tell great stories. In other words, do what you like well, and success will follow.

8. Mangano: Be Your Own Mother of Invention

Ever think to yourself, “Geez, I wish they’d invent something to …” Joy Mangano did.

For 20 years, Mangano has been racking up mega-sales on the QVC and HSN networks with why-didn’t-I-think-of-that kind of inventions.

She founded and headed Ingenious Designs, a multimillion-dollar company. You can even check out her story in the biopic Joy.

Her secret? Be your own dream weaver: “If it’s anywhere near a realistic goal, I say, ‘Go for it’ because, look at me! I never thought that I would be in this place, in this situation, 20 years ago. If THEY did it, why can’t YOU?” Mangano once said on ABC’s 20-20.

9. Gates: Quit Singing Your Own Praises

Take it from Microsoft founder Bill Gates: You’ve got to have somewhere to go.

“The world won’t care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself,” Gates said.

When you feel like you’re the Master of the Universe, remind yourself that you might not even be in the right galaxy.

Realizing there’s always room for improvement — at whatever you’re doing — can be the harshest, yet most effective motivator.

10. Barra: Work Is Its Own Motivation

Getting thrown to the wolves on Day One isn’t a very promising way to begin a new job.

Just ask Mary Barra, who became the first female CEO of General Motors at the time when the automaker was reeling after an ignition problem that affected millions of vehicles, and had been tied to 13 deaths.

Being GM’s top problem-solver was her biggest motivator, she once told attendees at a recent Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Summit: “I’ve always been motivated by the work I’ve been doing. My mother was born and raised in the Depression and really taught me the value of hard work.”

Another valuable motivator, she said, is feedback. Barra called feedback a “gift” and said she seeks advice from her board of directors and her team.

11. Buffet: How Much Fun Can It Be Sitting On a Yacht?

Warren Buffett, outgoing chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, says embracing hard work was his motivation.

He once told Triad Business Journal: “I always advise students to try to find the job that they’d have if they were independently rich. I found that job, and to me, it’s absolutely fascinating. I could be doing all kinds of other things, but I would so much rather be coming into the office every day than sitting on a yacht. No comparison.”

Let’s face it: Only a multi-gazillionaire like Buffett would say he’d rather be crunching numbers than tanning with a drink in his hand.

But the point is: You need to recognize what makes you thrive.