Motivation is defined as the reason or reasons one has for acting or behaving in a certain way. Motivation is a driving factor for our actions and also calibrates the level of intensity that we exert for such actions. Each one of us has different motivations, and as part of my senior project at Northgate High School, I want to identify what motivates the young adults in my community and how the pandemic affected these motivations. And aside from knowing these motivations, I hope to also be able to dig deeper and understand what the young adults in my community value most in their lives.
I conducted a survey with over 30 young adults who currently attend Northgate High School. My survey simply asked what motivates them and why, and how the pandemic affected their motivations. What I learned is that young adults who I surveyed revealed two common motivations, to do well in school and to do well in athletics. In addition, they also shared that these motivations have not changed at all during the pandemic. The pandemic changed how they act and behave, but the motivations remain the same.
Doing well in school is an understandable and reasonable motivation for young adults and for students in general. For the high schoolers I surveyed, they value which college they will be attending after graduating from high school. According to them, getting into competitive colleges requires a good academic resume. The pressure to do well in school can sometimes come intrinsically from themselves or from their family. As Donovan Henry (17) explained, “As I see it, the pressure from my family to perform well also drives me since I don’t want to put their support to waste… The pressure I describe is a healthy relationship by letting me stay on track with school and also allow me to pursue other interests that I am motivated in.”
Athletics is a big part of the lives of the youths in our community, so I am not surprised to find out that the drive to do well in it is a motivation commonly shared by the young adults I surveyed. Caroline Welch (18) talked about her drive to perform well in lacrosse and soccer, “I wanted to show that I belonged on the team and was not the weakest link.” Aside from valuing teamwork and competition, most have also connected sports involvement with valuing their overall physical fitness.
During the pandemic, the motivations above have not changed. However, certain efficiencies were introduced because of the additional time that has been made available for not physically going to school. In the case of Sarthika Chimmula (17), the additional time allowed her to execute on both motivations more efficiently. According to her, “Now, I have more time to do my homework before tennis practice, which overall increases my drive to play better”. Sarah Santiago (16) also stated that “Not physically going to school allows me to be motivated to pull all-nighters studying and not having to worry about waking up early the next day.”
I think positive motivations, such as the ones discussed above, are very important. They provide us with a sense of purpose and accomplishment. For young adults, these motivations can serve as helpful templates for more challenges that lay ahead of them. And even during tough times, such as the current pandemic, these motivations can serve as a compass that can navigate them through rough waters. These motivations are reflections of one’s values, so being centered in them can provide some semblance of purpose and normalcy during difficult times.
By Skyler Santiago, Northgate High School Senior, Resident since 2003