How to be motivated all the time
“How do you stay motivated all the time?”
This is probably one of the most common questions people ask when they are feeling overwhelmed by the lifestyle changes they’re trying to make.
Even if you haven’t asked it, you’ve probably wondered it as you drove past that crazy guy in the hi-viz lycra shirt as he ran through the hail-storm… You know the guy.
When people ask this question, usually some 23 year old “fitness expert will, meaning well, reply:
“you can’t rely on motivation all the time – it’s just discipline!”
We don’t quite agree.
Ok so it’s true discipline plays a part, but it’s not ‘just’ that simple. And while he or she is trying to help, we think it’s a really unhelpful thing to say when someone is feeling a bit unmotivated.
Sure, some people are more disciplined. But how?
There are three reasons:
- They are better at time-travel than you
- They don’t do stuff they don’t need to
- They are actually just running on auto-pilot
They’re better at time travel than you
In fact, they can see, hear, smell, feel, taste into the future, where they already have the thing that requires them to be uncomfortable now.
When you feel just how good the thing you really want, but don’t have yet feels, the decision is easy.
Motivated people use visualisation, perhaps without even knowing it, almost certainly not in the traditional sense.
For them, the End Game is so much more accessible in the here and now. And that allows them to be motivated just enough to overcome the alternative motivation to sit on the couch and eat Tim-tams.
The ‘End Game’ varies depending on your goal, but the “motivated” or “disciplined” people can sit right there in that future until it becomes their identity.
This is why knowing your “why” is so important.
They don’t do stuff they don’t need to
Motivated’ people know what needs to be done to make their “why” a reality.
More or less. This doesn’t mean that they know every little detail, but they generally know the steps they need to take, so that they’re not making the hard stuff any harder than it needs to be.
This is where a coach can be helpful. They help sort the fact from the fiction so that you can figure out what you need to do, and what you don’t need to do.
Because if you waste your energy doing things you don’t really need to, you’re more likely to quit.
But remember, it’s a team effort – you’ll need to be curious and engaged so that you and your coach can develop a plan that’s actually practical for your life.
Soon enough, they’re just running on auto-pilot
How are you so motivated to brush your teeth every night? How are you so motivated that you actually make it to work every day? Exactly.
Because sometimes the reason you need motivation isn’t even because the thing is hard, it’s just boring.
Once you push through that initial, manageable, structured discomfort enough times, that task just becomes something you do. Congratulations, you’ve formed a habit.