Whether it be getting out of bed earlier in the morning, getting your ass up off the couch to go exercise, sticking to your healthy meal plans - how are your goals going? If you have goals but find yourself regularly losing motivation along the way - have a read - maybe your motivation tactics need some tweaking!
Forms of motivation are effective in different ways for every-body! Motivation is your forward propelling MEANS to get to where you want to be. We have Extrinsic & Instrinsic motivation. We have positive thinking and coercive thinking. We can manipulate our own human nature to whip our own ass towards whatever we want! Whoever wants it most - gets it!!
Let's take a brief look at what each means:
Extrinsic motivation - Show me the money!! This basically means you are driven by things outside of yourself - ie tangible rewards (money, cars, homes etc) External pleasures
Intrinsic motivation - Means you are motivated by things that bring you saisfaction inside, the things that continually bring you joy. Being intrinsically motivated is you moving towards what your soul finds gratification in.
Positive reinforcement vs Coercive (negative and self whipping) thinking - This is a battle many of us don't quite know which is best to grasp, but I can ASSURE you, that it is always best to stick to the positives. If motivation is your propellor to your goal - then you need to lift higher, not drag yourself back under. Positive reinforcement is about opening our minds to every possibility and recognising our strengths as OURS and that they are INCREDIBLE. To put our weaknesses in front of us, compare ourselves to others and where we "should" be rather than what we CAN be, we're pretty much setting ourselves up for failure. We might get a little further ahead than where we were, only to discover we reel back into old habits, because we held the BELIEF that we were never good enough in the first place.
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT) studies tell us that we are better off having a mix of Intrinsic Motivation coupled with Positive Thinking to be able to achieve deeply satisfying goals that grow and are long lasting. If you’re excited about having money or other extrinsic rewards, but it means giving up what you’re truly passionate about - then you are more likely to at some point be left with a very empty feeling inside and you will always be searching for greener grasses. Likewise, if you tell yourself you’re a piece of poop and not good enough to try encourage yourself to a higher ground – guess what! You’ll more than likely stay at that crappy level and never go beyond the the limitations your set for yourself.
So what gets you going? What resonates with you? Sometimes we are just so full of negative talk it actually drains the natural motivation and spark that we all hold inside. We all hold fear – just let it go. Here are some ways to get your groove back and be totally motivated. DAILY
1. Make an effort to overcome your fears – success reaps success. When you start to see that you actually CAN overcome your fears, confidence grows and you start snowballing on the success factor. Don’t be afraid to step out and be you, ever. If you make a mistake – learn from it and keep focussing on the positive.
Daily motivation exercise – Start off small. It first takes recognising WHAT you’re scared of, recognising the solutions and steps that need to occur – and then ACTING on them (Just DO It). Ie (small example) Stepping into your very first PUMP class at the gym. What are you really scared of? Is it really going to be that bad? Jump on in there and be OPEN to whatever happens. Life supports you and your goals.
2. Make yourself some positive affirmations - It might feel silly at first, but positive affirmations actually do work. Our brains are like mega computers, what we feed into them, whether we believe what we’re writing or not – programs them! We pick up data every day, and it’s how we interpret that is how we experience it. Whatever you put your attention on, reaps the result that is going to come into fruition.
Daily motivation exercise – Choose an affirmation. It has to be clear, current and celebratory. Ie. “I accept and receive all good things that come my way.” When you are alone, peaceful and focussed, write out your affirmation 20 times in a diary. I have even set myself some reminders on my mobile so that every morning at 7am I am greeted with a friendly “I live in the powerful perfect present”. What you focus on increases.
3. Have a goal - & put it in front of you. Everywhere. Remember – Intention, Attention, No Tension. Be CLEAR about the intention, GIVE IT DAILY YOUR ATTENTION, and do it all with no tension (don’t hold on so tight to that steering wheel). Just like the affirmations, what you focus on increases. If your goals and passions are in front of you, you will be more drawn to them and not let them get lost amongst the other muck in your head! We get so clouded sometimes with other thoughts we just forget what we’re actually trying to achieve in life, and easily fall into autopilot. Take the reigns of your life!
Daily motivation exercise – Get a white board and state your goals clearly. Stick it up in front of your bed and wake up to your goals every morning, Make your goals your Desktop setting, print it and put it in a photo frame to keep on your desk, stick them on your bathroom mirror, keep them on flash cards in your wallet. Then every time you MAKE A DECISION – you can ask yourself whether your action is going to be in line with your goals – BECAUSE THEY ARE RIGHT THERE.
4. Know yourself! - Realise what makes you tick, what gets you going. What’s your motivational song, motivational YouTube clip, the thoughts that make you feel love and inspired. Who is the person you always wanted to be? Do it for the child in you that dared to dream.
Daily motivation exercise – Sign yourself up to affirmation and inspiration pages. Depending on your goal there are loads of items on the net to get that heartbeat ticking. Is there a person in your life that inspires you? Hold something of theirs close to you. Look back into the past and see the things that have always made you feel good. The magic you seek is within your reach
5. Celebrate your strengths & focus on the positives – Losing sight is easy, when you’re drawn there by human nature. Don’t stay there. That is the fear bubble sucking you in. Being grateful gives you more of what you love, and recognising your strengths grows more of that in the long run too
Daily motivation exercise – At the end of each day:
1. Write out 10 things you did SPECIFICALLY that day that made you appreciate yourself
2. Write out 10 things you were SPECIFICALLY grateful for that day. Ie. I am grateful for act of kindness from the stranger who held the lift for me.
Repeat daily for at least 21 days
6. Dream big – Sometimes you don’t know just how great things can be because you havent been there before. But what would happen if you strived to create new benchmarks. Happiness levels soaring past 110% . Life is supporting you every step of the way, as soon as you realise that and trust in the process of life, the better life will be.
Daily motivation exercise - Make yourself a vision board today! Yes, that's my vision board at the top of this post (uhm embarrassing but it’s here to get you thinking). I thought about what I REALLY wanted in life, downloaded Picasa, spent hours trawling through pictures and quotes that “spoke” to me, and here is the final product.
At the end of the day, you’re the only one who’s going to get you there. Take action DAILY. Right now. What’s the first step. Life is an incredible journey.
MAKE IT HAPPEN
JUST DO IT
BE FEARLESS
xx
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