Motivation Re-Defined

I was thinking about motivation the other day.

Motivation is a weird thing. The rah-rah “pump up” videos (see below) are “motivational”. They are supposed to light a fire under your ass. If this homeless dude can reach his goals then what is your excuse?

You watch this and go “Fuck yeah!”, and drive to the gym and go workout.

"Fuck yeah! I'm excited!"

But inevitably you get to the point where you're too tired to make it to the gym. Suddenly a week has gone by.

“I was too busy, really, I had a lot going on!”

Whether the excuses are valid or not makes no difference. What started out as high motivation ended up turning into no motivation. This can happen quick. This can happen so quick that it can deflate you and think the shit is impossible.

I want to be motivated all the time. Everything would be so damn easy that way. I want to feel like I am just energized all the time, ready to tackle my goals like a caveman chasing a wooly mammoth.

This can work. But it is impossible to think that this is somehow a long-term strategy.

You can't rely on motivation really. That's because motivation, the way most people see it, is just a 5-hour energy; you are inspired by a story, by personal loss, or by lusting after something you don't have.

This can work. But sooner or later the energy will subside. The excitement and thrill of going after your goal will subside.

You'll do whatever you can to get it back. You'll watch that video multiple times. You'll drink. You'll smoke. You'll read a book. You'll see a therapist.

Fact is, you are chasing a high. Motivation won't get you to your goal.

Motivation goes deeper than how you feel. Motivation relies on your deep meanings of life. Seriously.

No matter what you do, whether it's sweeping floors of a high school gymnasium in Kansas, or you're a CEO of a fortune 500 company, your deep motivations (to make a difference, to change the world) will determine your quality of work.

This is backwards from the common paradigm. The common paradigm is: I work hard when I get money. The more money, the harder I work.

But this is a fool's game.

To see success in anything requires patience and consistent effort. It requires you to keep working on improving, even after you see success. How many bands/rappers/athletes/painters work their ass off to hit the payday and fame, only once they get there they suddenly drop out of the spotlight. They make one amazing record and everything else is shit.

When the band/rapper/athlete/painter was broke or not respected it was easy to be motivated. Nothing motivates you quite like competition.

But what about when everyone loves you? What about when you have a full bank account? What about when you achieve all your goals?

Then what? Do you just sit back and sit back in euphoria? Do angels fall from the sky and you drink mojitos on a beach in Hawaii?

FUCK NO.

You keep working hard.

See, motivation is deep, it is a spiritual endeavor.

Do you want to make a difference? Do you go after what you want to do (or rationalize and justify all the reasons you can't or shouldn't)? Do you want to achieve a level of mastery (just for fun)? Do you want to use your innate talents or let them whither away (very common)?

Answering yes to these questions means you have something stronger driving you. You aren't just hoping to “feel like” going to the gym, you go to the gym because you are going after what you want to do. You can feel like shit but you aren't relying on how you feel. It's about something else.

Short term motivation (see above video) is a necessary and useful tool. Unfortunately, it is extremely fleeting. It flows in peaks and valleys. It is not dependable. Thus, it cannot be the basis of how you do what you do.

If you don't feel like going to the gym today but know you should, just go. Go, stretch, do a light workout. Stick to your principles of following through.

Maybe next time you'll feel motivated, maybe not. But you'll eventually feel motivated and even more, you'll get to a point where you'll enjoy working out. Then you don't need to be motivated.

It's a much better place to be coming from.