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It’s Monday morning.
The alarm rings. What’s the first thought that comes to mind when you open your
eyes?
“I really don’t want
to go to work today”, “I have such a long day ahead, what a dread”, or “Yes! It’s
a brand new week ahead! Looking forward to getting lots done.”
Whatever your
response may be, ask yourself this question:
“What is it that made
you feel unmotivated?” What was driving you to feel negative or positive about
your Monday ahead? How to get motivated?
Meet Nancy
I used to have a
colleague by the name of Nancy. She came to work at the same time every
morning, and would leave at 6.30 sharp every evening. Not a minute earlier, not
a minute later. She was known to be the office grinch as she was often grumpy
towards everyone, so much so people would avoid her whenever possible. She
complained about everything under the sun.
I had a brief
conversation with her one morning in the office lounge where we were both
getting coffee. She told me she had been working with the company for over 20
years! When she told me that, I asked her what motivated her to stay on for so
long, and her reply was simply “I don’t know. It’s a job that pays the bills,
and is close to where I live.” With that, she walked away and I was left
standing alone in the lounge with my hot coffee, at a loss for words.
How could someone be
doing the exact same thing for over 20 years? And she clearly doesn’t enjoy her
work, what with all that complaints and grouchy attitude. So why hasn’t she
done anything about it?
The 2 Types of
People
This might be an
extreme case, but I’m sure you must know of people who have been doing the same
thing for years and seem to not have any problem staying stagnant. Whether it
be in their marriage, job, or personal endeavors, they seem to be getting along
just fine without progressing towards anything ‘better’.
On the other hand,
I’m sure you would also know of individuals who focus on the positive, set
goals and are constantly pushing themselves to greater heights. Be it
promotions at work, building a family, celebrating milestones in their marriage
or relationships, upgrading houses and cars, setting up new businesses, or
going to school again, these individuals seem to constantly progress towards
something that improves or enhances their life.
So what’s the
difference between these 2 category of individuals?
What you feel
like or don’t feel like doing, boils down to one
thing. And that is motivation. It is the force, or lack of,
that keeps driving you forward to overcome challenges and obstacles to
achieve your goals.
Without motivation,
you’ll give up after a few failed attempts or even on the first tough challenge
that comes your way. Or, in the case of Nancy, just remain where you are:
unhappy yet not doing anything to progress ahead.
What is
Motivation, Really?
Whether you realize
it or not, motivation is a huge force in your life; and it needs to be
harnessed in order to excel and actually enjoy whatever it is that you’re doing
on a daily basis.
Unfortunately, many
overgeneralize the word motivation. We think of being either
motivated or demotivated as a simple “yes” or “no” state of being.
But motivation is not
a switch. Motivation is a flow. To feel motivated,
you need to dive beyond the surface. Just reading a motivational quote, being
encouraged by your friends or even mentor won’t help you build sustainable
motivation in the long run.
You can think of the
motivation that we want to achieve like the Sun (self-sustaining and long
lasting), which supplies a constant influx of energy to all life on Earth. Just
like the Sun, your “motivation engine” has different layers, starting from the core and
spreading out to the surface. The surface is what you see, but
the real process is driven from the core (your internal motivation); and that’s the most
important part… I’ll explain why in a moment.
If you can create a
self sustaining motivation engine, you’ll not only be able to find more meaning
and purpose in your life, but you’ll be able to enjoy every minute of what
you’re doing, which will make your roles and responsibilities less of a chore.
Now wouldn’t that be a game changer?
Let me help you
understand this motivation flow better, by breaking down the Motivation
Engine into 3 parts:
- Core – Purpose
- Support – Enablers
- Surface – Acknowledgement
I’d say we’re most
familiar with layers 2 and 3, as we come into direct contact with both of them
frequently.
The
Third Layer: Surface – Acknowledgement
The outermost layer,
also known as Acknowledgement, encompasses any type of external recognition
that might give you motivation. It may come in the form of respect or
recognition, such as compliments and praise.
Or it could be
emotional support through encouragement, feedback and constructive criticism.
It could also be affiliation, where you have mutual companions or buddies
sharing the same goal or burden with you.
This is generally
what you see on the surface when you look at other people. You see the external
acknowledgement, respect, and recognition they’re getting.
The
Second Layer: Support – Enablers
In essence, the
second layer of the Motivation Engine (also known as Enablers) is what supports
your goals. They can magnify the motivation core you have, or speed up the
momentum that you build. Basically, they create favorable circumstances for
things to go smoothly.
The
Innermost Layer: Core – Purpose
But what’s most
important, and the true driving force behind your Motivation
flow, is the innermost core – your Purpose. Your purpose is
what differentiates the motivated from the demotivated, the achievers from the
underachievers, the happy from the unhappy.
Your motivational
core is your Purpose, and is sustained by two things: Having
Meaning, and Forward Movement. With these two as a
foundation, you’ll have a power source that will feed you motivational energy
indefinitely.
So, how do you do
these two things?
How to
Sustain Your Purpose
Having Meaning is simple. Just
ask yourself a question: Why?
Why are you pursuing
a certain goal? If the reason is vague or unclear, then your motivational
energy will be the same. While motivation provides you energy to do something,
that energy needs to be focused somewhere. So without meaning,
there is no direction for your energy to be focused on.
Yet, having a
meaningful objective doesn’t mean you have to change the world or create A huge
impact on society. The secret to meaningful work is simple: it should
contribute value to something or someone that matters to you.
Next up is
gaining Forward Movement. In short, this means to just keep moving.
Like a snowball, motivation from having progress creates momentum. So to keep
this up, you have to keep moving.
And the good news is,
your progress doesn’t have to be huge for you to recognize it. Small amounts of
progress can be just as motivating, as long as they keep coming. Like driving a
car, you may be really impatient if you’re at a complete halt. But, it lessens
if you’re moving forward–even if you’re moving slowly.
Creating a simple
progress indicator like checklists or milestones,
are a great way to visualize your small (and big) wins. They trigger your brain
to recognize and acknowledge them, giving you small boosts of motivational
energy.
This is why video
games are so addictive! They’re full of progress indicators everywhere. Even
though the progress is completely virtual, they’re still able to trigger the
motivation centers in your brain.
Find
Out What Drives You Today
So why not take some
time today and do a quick reflection of where you’re at now? Take one aspect of
your life that you’d like to progress further in.
For example, it may
be your current job. First, start with why. Write down your
reasons for why you’re in the job that you’re in. Then think
about your Motivation Core: Your Purpose. Write down what it is
within your job that gives you meaning, and what are some things that will help
push you forward in life.
Once you have those
points, it’s time to do a comparison. Does your current job help you make
progress towards that Purpose that you’ve written?
If it does, then
wonderful! You’re on the right track. But if it doesn’t entirely, or you now
realize you’re way off target, don’t panic. It’s definitely not too late!
Here at Lifehack, we
offer you a FREE Webinar to help you develop unstoppable motivation: Activate
Your Motivation – Fast Track Class
Don’t miss the
valuable opportunity to give your motivation an instant boost!
Staying
Motivated and Happy
Happiness need not be
a vague term or illusion that you’re constantly chasing after–with no end in
sight. By finding your true motivation, you’ll be one step closer to realizing
your happiness and finding meaning in all things you do.
You may have tried many
solutions to help you stay motivated and found that none of them really have
any impact. That’s because they bring about incremental changes only, and
permanent change requires a holistic approach. It requires more than just
focusing on one area of your life or changing one part of your routine or
actions.
You want to make a
fundamental change; but it feels like big, unknown territory that you can’t
afford to venture into at this point in your life.
The truth is, taking
your life to the next stage doesn’t have to be this complicated. So, if you’d
like to take the first step to achieving your life purpose, the time is now!
More
About Finding Motivation
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Motivation
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