In this article, I could start by describing what motivation is, but is it really necessary? I don’t have the motivation to go do my research.
It’s a concept and I now know what it stands for and what it implies. Indeed, oddly, when I worked in a company, it was a word that came up infrequently, or was taken lightly. I’m not motivated today” was a line that came up regularly . But never before had I looked for real answers. It was probably more of an “HR (Human Resources)” oriented question, but I don’t remember that it gave rise to any major debates. But since I became a self-employed/digital nomad/slasher “, title that I could write on my business card, this concept comes up often. And above all, what changes is that this subject is deepened in length, breadth and crosswise. It must also be said that I am doing my best to avoid letting go of the case.
Because in fact, to succeed in getting what you want, you have to be… motivated.
But motivation is what guides us, energizes us, gives us the strength, the courage to do what we want to do.
So what to do, when the motivation is down to make it soar? Here are my answers.
THE BASICS: HAVING A GOAL
Might as well start with that, no goal, no motivation. This is the 1st basis : having an objective , a result that is expected.
My primary goal is to achieve financial freedom. He is the one who occupies my days and even my nights.
I have many other goals, a list as long as your arm, with the classics: losing weight, running, learning or rather perfecting my Spanish and some more original ones.
All my goals have experienced crises: stopping then resuming, until a final stop.
In making this assessment after 6 months, I therefore asked myself the question: why only one of these objectives holds water?
HAVE A FRAMEWORK TO STAY MOTIVATED
I found that having a framework was important in order to stay motivated . For example, as part of learning a language, I used Duolingo which is an application in the form of a game. There are rankings, medals, rewards. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough for me. I had the bad idea to take a break for a few days. Since then, I have had a hard time getting back to it.
Certainly, this subject fascinates me and I learn about it every day. I framed my research, made a schedule. Thanks to this, I leafed through, read, re-read dozens of books, listened to hundreds of hours of podcasts, watched thousands of hours of videos and blogs, from personal development to investing, from people like me who wish to achieve or have already achieved financial freedom.
The same enthusiasm when it comes to learning Spanish for example or when it comes to seriously following a running program?
Why, after 2 months, I only managed to listen to a podcast in Spanish, when I wanted to listen to 1 a day? Why do I stop and resume running 1 month out of 3? Etc., etc.
I only found one answer. An answer that makes sense, without appeal:
1.I DON’T HAVE A PLAN B
And yes, here is the real reason, the real secret: I don’t have a plan B.
Because thinking about it, if I don’t achieve financial freedom, I risk, one of these days, finding myself on the street, sleeping under bridges.
But what will happen if I don’t achieve my other goals?
This is the “killing question”.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF…?
If I don’t lose weight, what will happen?
Nothing.
If I can’t run 10 km in less than an hour, what will happen?
Nothing.
A HUGE GAP BETWEEN “NOTHING” AND “EVERYTHING WILL CHANGE”
By taking this assessment, it becomes obvious. While for some goals, in the worst case, it’s my ego that will take a hit, for others, I risk putting my life in danger. It is understood that I do not wish to arrive there and that I extrapolate. But you see where I’m coming from.
Because even if by accomplishing certain objectives, my life could improve by having fewer health problems, for example, or being more comfortable talking with my Spanish roommates, human beings are such that they tend to imagine the worst. He always paints a black picture, so we always look at “the worst case scenario”. So if in case nothing will change, why force yourself to do something different?
On the other hand, if I don’t achieve my goal of financial freedom, I won’t have the money to pay the bills. But I would also have to make “horrible” choices . Without having to sleep under bridges (at least I hope so!), I should surely stop traveling to find a job that I don’t like. (Just thinking about it gives me chills). So it’s a step back. And I admit that this is not even an option that I have considered.
Since I tasted freedom, freedom to manage my time, freedom to travel, freedom to be where I want when I want, going back would be like going back to a golden prison for me . And honestly, as golden as she is, who would really want to go back to prison?
So I have no choice. As I haven’t prepared a plan B, I have to achieve this goal no matter what.
WARNING
Of course, this is not a recommendation. I imagine that not many people can function without a plan B. But for me, this is one of the biggest secrets of motivation that I have just discovered.
Good. Now that I have the deep motivation, what should I do?
For almost a year, I have had this deep motivation that drives me. But how did I do, day by day to continue?
2.Just EXPAND YOUR COMFORT ZONE
For example, by embarking on the creation of a blog, while being accompanied by experts, I realized something that I was not used to doing.
But today, writing on my blog is part of my daily life. It has become a ritual . It’s now part of my new comfort zone 🙂
So it’s by doing something new that I can stay motivated because it’s out of the ordinary. It must also be said that I love to learn , all the time. But I believe that it is important to discover new things, it is one of the secrets of motivation. This allows us to get out of our routine and gives us pep.
3.TO STAYING MOTIVATED: GET INSPIRED
Finally, the 3rd secret is that of being inspired, on a daily basis, by people who have already accomplished what I want to achieve.
I have a soft spot? I don’t let it last long watching an inspirational video on Warren Buffet, T. They, too, had their ups and downs. But they never gave up, always believed in themselves and knew that their plans would one day bear fruit.
So I listen to them, I follow their advice, I apply their methods, I integrate their ways of working and I draw inspiration from them to tell myself that I, too, will get there!
Unfortunately, the US mentality wants us to think that it is bad to copy, to cheat. But why should we reinvent the wheel?
Without copying the things that work, you couldn’t have a phone that looked like and had the same capabilities as an Iphone for 3 times less! And this is valid for all consumer and non-consumer goods. So why not do the same thing when it comes to “copying” people who have proven themselves, people who have succeeded in what you want to do, to be inspired by them to stay motivated to achieve what do we want?
