Motivation Copy
Knowing where your motivation is actually coming from, and how to shift to a better, more sustainable source of motivation when you need to, will be critical as you work towards reaching your ambitions, particularly when things get more intense and stressful. You will need to bring and maintain your own motivation, especially when things get tough.
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Wouldn’t it be nice to just slap an inspirational quote on your bathroom mirror, read it every morning, and be good to go no matter what you had to be motivated for that day? But human motivation isn’t that simple.
It’s complex and there is a lot of variation–not only person to person, but also day to day. Motivation stems from a complex, dynamic combination of internal processes related to external experiences, so determining a clear-cut way to get and stay motivated isn’t as easy as you might think.
There are many different sources of motivation, and yes, some are better than others. You can drill down and determine where your motivation is truly coming from by asking yourself the simple question: “Why am I doing this?”
If your answer is: “Because I love it!” then you are probably intrinsically motivated.
Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply for the internal satisfaction of doing it, rather than doing it because you’re expecting or wanting a particular outcome. When we’re intrinsically motivated, we happily choose to do the thing because it’s energizing, fun, and refreshing for us. We love the details and the process of doing it. Not surprisingly, this is the best type of motivation to have because it is very powerful and long-lasting.
But, in real life, there are a lot of things we don’t inherently love, but still need to find motivation to do. Like working out, or doing the dishes, or sitting through a long boring presentation.
Any type of motivation that doesn’t arise from you and your pure joy of doing the thing, is considered extrinsic motivation. Extrinsic motivation refers to any behavior that is driven by some kind of external factor, like a reward or avoidance of punishment.
Even the things we WANT to do can be driven by external factors because of the outcome it helps us achieve. For example, if your answer to the question “Why am I doing this?” is: “I want to.” then you are extrinsically motivated by a personal desire for something. You can WANT to workout, without loving it, because you want to be healthy and fit. You can WANT to learn the material in the presentation, without loving it, because you want to support your family by advancing your career. These personal desires arise directly from your core values, or what is most important to you. So, being crystal clear about what your core values are gives you a direct way to tap into a strong source of motivation.
Extrinsic motivation that’s based on a personal desire is a powerful source of long-lasting, sustainable motivation and is the next best thing to intrinsic motivation. If you can tie your “why” to your core values and your true purpose, your personal desire will help you stay motivated and keep you moving in the right direction when things get tough. It will also keep you focused on the small daily efforts needed to reach your larger goal, giving you a slow-drip of motivation that won’t burn out quickly.
There’s another flavor of extrinsic motivation though, which is based on external rewards, avoidance of punishment, or guilt and shame. If your answer to “Why am I doing this?,” is “I have to” or “I should,” chances are you’re being motivated by cursory or superficial means that won’t get you very far in the long run. Yea, a reward here or a punishment there will certainly get you to do the thing, but chances are it will take a bigger or different reward, or a more severe punishment, to get you to do the thing the next time. That’s not motivation, that’s manipulation, and it’s not a sustainable way to help you achieve your goals. It really just drains your energy, rather than boosting your motivation. If you absolutely have to use this type of extrinsic motivation, use it sparingly and strategically, because it’s really just a short-term quick fix and relying on it too much, too often won’t get you very far.
Motivation might not always be on your mind. But the last thing you want is to be at a low point and not know where to turn for real, sustainable motivation. That’s why it’s so important to spend some time figuring out what your core motivators are. It will give you an edge so you know where to turn for motivation when you really need it.
BEWARE!
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DIG DEEPER...
Autonomy is the ability to choose, or having freedom of choice. If you have little say in what you’re doing, it can be very demotivating. Getting to choose the who, what, where, why, when, and/or how gives a huge boost of motivation because you get to do it your way.
Try it: Flex your Autonomy muscles by focusing on making your own choices and putting your own spin on things. Granted, in some environments it’s just not possible to do things your own way, and we understand that. So even when you absolutely, without a doubt, have to do something someone else’s way, find small things that you can control wherever you can – it might be something as simple as the color of the pen you get to use to write down the information you’re being given.
Take caution: Too much freedom can destroy motivation too, and leave you frozen like a deer in headlights. If things are too open-ended, it can be hard to narrow it down to what you actually need to do; when your brain has too many options, it gets overwhelmed and won’t choose any of them. So, give yourself some limits to help keep yourself on track. For example, maybe you pick three things rather than leaving your choices so open-ended.
Mastery is the desire to be good at something, and to build competence or capability. It is a powerful way to keep your focus on the process. Staying laser focused on the process of getting better helps to keep your motivation high because it mimics how intrinsic motivation works and gives you space to fall in love with doing the work. Focusing mostly or only on the outcome of a goal will undermine your motivation. So instead, identify and acknowledge the outcome of your goal, but stay focused on the small steps and the process of working on it to actually achieve it.
Try it: Flex your Mastery muscles by choosing a specific part of the process and focus on getting really, really good at it. It can be one small step, one small piece, or even a combination of a few components of the overall thing you are trying to master. Focus on getting a little bit better, faster, more skillful, or more knowledgeable…really anything that you can do to improve!
Relatedness is the feeling of being connected with others, or feeling like you’re a valued member of a group. Humans are social creatures, and you can leverage this hardwired human characteristic to help motivate you. Find people you can trust who support you. Use this “tribe” to help hold you accountable. You can also get a boost of motivation by focusing on how your progress is helping others and the team.
Try it: Flex your Relatedness muscles by finding someone (or many someones) to team up with. It could be a family member that lets you talk through what you’re learning while you’re at the kitchen table and they’re making dinner. Or it could even be a friend who lives across the country who texts or calls you everyday about a workout or weekly while you’re doing meal prep so you can both do it “together.”
FUN FACT...
Focusing on the process reduces procrastination because it makes each part of the activity more interesting and less daunting.
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Not getting enough good quality sleep or skipping out on your favorite down-time hobbies causes your motivation to deteriorate.
Try this instead… Prioritize sleep and schedule time to engage in your favorite leisure activities and hobbies (even if it’s 30 minutes every other week!).
Too much pressure can be paralyzing, and not enough pressure can lead to laziness.
Try this instead… Decrease the pressure by NOT focusing on expectations or standards; just do the thing even if it’s sloppy to begin with and refine as you go. If you need to turn up the pressure, give yourself tight timelines, set high expectations, and determine a fair consequence if the standards aren’t met.
Doing the same thing over and over again is boring.
Try this instead… Variety boosts motivation, so do things a little differently each time so it feels new and fresh.
NERD ALERT...
DISCOVER..
Use the “What Do You Value?” activity in the Course Action Guide to clearly define your core values and gain a deeper understanding of how you can use them to increase your motivation.
REFLECT & CONNECT...
Use the “Motivation Reflect & Connect” activity in the Course Action Guide to apply these concepts to your own life. Review each question prompt below.
Will any of your values potentially misalign with what you are being asked to do? How can you realign them?
Example: My value of Family will potentially misalign with the late nights I’ll need to put in at my new job because I won’t have as much time to spend with my family. I can realign this value by making sure I spend at least a full morning or afternoon with my family on a weekend day to have quality time (even if it’s only once a week).
What are the biggest challenges you are facing and how can you use your core values to keep your motivation up (even in times you might want to give up)?
Example: I know the extra time I need to spend with my aging parents will really challenge me – especially if I start to feel that I don’t have the time to do it. I can lean on my core value of Compassion to remember that it is a blessing to still have my parents with me and that one day I’ll likely be in their shoes and will need help myself.
What are the pain points you know you’ll need some motivation and a “quick win” motivation strategy that you can leverage?
Example: I know I lose motivation for working out when my body feels tired, and I usually don’t put as much effort into those workouts. I can use the Mastery strategy to focus on just one part of the workout to get just a little better – one more pushup or one minute longer on the treadmill.
TAKE AWAY...
At times, you will need to bring and maintain your own motivation, especially when things get tough. Knowing where your motivation is actually coming from, and how to shift to a better, more sustainable source of motivation when you need to, will be critical as you work towards reaching your goals.