How to be more motivated (and why I think motivation is a trap)
The other day on my Instagram stories I asked my community for ideas for blog post topics and things they struggle with and would like me to write more about.
And by far the most common question I got asked was in relation to motivation and specifically how to stay motivated when you don’t feel like doing things.
But (spoiler alert!) very little about what I achieve in my life or business relies on me being motivated to get it done.
In fact, just like you I rarely feel motivated to do the boring, mundane (or hard) tasks that have to get done each day.
And if I relied on feeling motivated to do the things that are essential for my personal or business growth then I doubt I would never do them.
I think motivation is a trap and in this post I share what I do instead.
Motivation is a trap - stop looking for it to start taking action
If you’re always waiting to feel motivated to get stuff done then you’ll never do it (and I wouldn’t do stuff either).
When we rely on motivation we aren’t holding ourselves accountable for our actions.
Instead we blame our lack of progress on a lack of motivation, instead of looking at our own behaviour and habits and taking responsibility for our actions (or lack of action).
Stop looking for motivation or some special sign to start taking action on the stuff you know you should be doing (or want to be doing) or the changes you know you should be making to achieve the life or business goals you have.
In my experience it’s the step by step of taking the little actions towards the stuff you want to improve at in life that then drives and fuels your motivation.
Small actions and habit changes start to add up over time and you then start to see results, which then gives you extra enthusiasm and that then pushes you to keep going further.
Here are my tips for how to stop waiting for motivation to strike and start taking daily action instead.
Tip 1: Work on things you love + do things for the right reasons
One of the main reasons I am so ‘motivated’ to work and get things done all the time is because I actually love what I do.
Creating content that helps other people is something I am obsessed with and I see building my business as a game with myself, that I love to play!
I also try and live by example to those who are in my community. I’m not a guru, or some kind of super human creature - I’m just a normal Mum of 3 who is doing my best to juggle a busy life (full of ups and downs) and share what I’m learning along the way.
If I were simply building my business or creating content just because I was trying to make money (or for other external reasons) then there is no way that I could keep up the pace and have the stamina that I do for my work.
The other thing I have are clear goals that I want to achieve.
I know the things I’m working towards in my life and business and having those milestones helps me stay focused and motivated. When I build out my goals I make sure to break them down into smaller, manageable tasks and I always create a step by step plan of action that I know will help me get there. [I do all of this inside Notion]. This helps me to always be seeing progress and to push forward on days when I don’t feel like it (which happens to me regularly as well - as I said, I’m a completely normal person with the same struggles as the rest of the world!).
If you do struggle with motivation then perhaps question yourself as to whether the goals or projects you are working on are actually things you really care about.
Your apparent lack of motivation could be coming from the fact that you are doing things to make other people happy or you are doing things for the wrong reasons (e.g. trying to make money by doing something you don’t enjoy).
So my biggest secret to motivation is not to rely on motivation to strike in order to get things done. Instead, I build habits and systems and take daily action on those each day.
Tip 2: Have a list of daily non-negotiables
Even though I do love what I do there are plenty of tasks in my business that are really boring and definitely wouldn’t get done if I waited to feel ‘motivated’ to do them. But I know they need to get done in order for my business to grow and so I have different ways of getting these completed.
And one tool/system that I use that has been incredibly helpful for my daily consistency and discipline is to build out my list of ‘daily non-negotiable’ tasks.
These are a list of tasks that have to get done, every single day. Whether I feel like doing them or not they have to get done - no questions asked. It’s not even a conversation I have with myself.
Here’s what my list of daily non-negotiables looks like as of writing this post (I am always tweaking this list).
This is built out inside Notion as part of my daily hub dashboard. You can get hold of this template yourself in my shop if you’re interested.
Tip 3: Work out when you are going to get your checklist of non-negotiable tasks done each day
So the list of tasks above have to get done every day and I don’t have a question around whether I ever “feel” like doing them.
Whether I’m busy, quiet, on holidays or not on holidays my list of daily non-negotiables has to get done every day.
For example, we are currently on a family holiday and I know that the list of tasks still needs to get done, despite being away (because as a solo business owner I don’t really ever get a break from the day to day tasks in my business).
So to make sure the tasks get done I use the early morning hours (I always wake up early - even on holidays) while my family is still sleeping to tick off the tasks on my list. I don’t complain in my head that I’m on holidays and should get a break - I know the tasks have to get completed and so I find the time to do that.
And by getting them ticked off in the early morning it means they are then completed for the day and I can spend the rest of the day relaxing and enjoying our family holiday.
When I’m at home I have a specific time of the day where I tend to complete these tasks - normally it’s later in the day when I’m feeling tired and don’t want to do difficult ‘thinking’ work. And if the list of tasks hasn’t been done before the end of the day (which is rare) then I make myself do them late at night if I need to. I won’t go to bed until the list is completed and ticked off and that’s the way that bit by bit I’ve built my successful business.
They are called daily non-negotiables for a reason…
It’s not negotiable about whether they get done and they have to be done daily!
Tip 4: Become a person who does the things you say you’re going to do
Another thing that helps with completing tasks and taking action is that I self-identify as being a person who does the things that I say I’m going to do.
I identify as being disciplined and consistent and having good habits. This is something that’s built into my character and is something I’ve told myself for many years now to build up that muscle of becoming a consistent, disciplined person.
For example, with the exercise I do each day it’s never a question of whether I “feel” like exercising that day or whether I’m “too sore” to go to the gym because I worked hard yesterday or whether I feel “too tired” because I had a bad sleep. I have my exercise sessions booked in my diary each day and I go to them whether I feel like it or not. It’s a habit that’s in my routine and I don’t even have a conversation with myself about it.
I gave up alcohol 3 years ago with the same sort of approach.
Instead of ever asking myself “do I feel like drinking tonight” or “perhaps I’ll give up most of the time and only drink at weddings or on special occasions” I decided that the blanket rule for myself is that I would give up completely and then identify as a non-drinker. That means I never have a conversation with myself about whether or not I should drink on a particular occasion.
For me this approach takes a lot of stress and pressure out of decision making around things that otherwise may not be good for my goals (like drinking alcohol).
Tip 5: Surround yourself with positive ideas + people
Finally, another way I stay motivated is to surround myself with positive people and positive ideas.
If you want to be motivated to achieve things in life then think about who you are hanging around with and what you are consuming (e.g. via TV shows, podcasts or other stuff in your information diet).
If all you are hearing is a negative, complaining family member and watching the (very negative) news, then you’re not likely to feel all that motivated.
I realise that sometimes removing yourself from negative people (e.g. if your spouse is negative and unsupportive of your goals) can be difficult, but what is completely in your control is what you put in your headphones and listen to.
If you can’t find positivity in your real life then look for it in other ways - for example by following people on social media who provide you with motivation through their own example (I try and be that person for others) or by listening to podcasts or watching YouTube videos that motivate you to be a better version of yourself.
Sometimes seeing the progress and success of others can be a source of inspiration and motivation for us. Positive people who are working hard towards their own goals can serve as an example and help us stay motivated to work towards ours.
So I find that surrounding myself with positive people and positive ideas is an effective way to stay motivated.
As a side note, I also gave up watching or reading the news a number of years ago and that has helped a lot as well. Almost nothing in the news impacts me on a day to day basis and almost all of it is negative. If I ever need to know about an important world event my husband tells me or I see it all over social media anyway. By giving up the news you’ll immediately remove a negative element from your information diet and you will save yourself some time you can put towards something more productive and positive.
Overall - my top tip for how to stay motivated is to stop relying on motivation to strike (as it rarely will).
Instead, build strong habits and systems that will encourage you to take action towards your goals. And as you take that action you will build confidence, make progress and ultimately start to identify as a person who does the things that they say they are going to do.
And that will then remove the need for motivation at all. :)
Thanks for reading and catch you in my next post!
Clare x
Dr Clare Le Roy
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