Don't Aim For Motivation. Aim For MOMENTUM!
When we think about what it takes to complete a task we often associate it with needing to have the motivation to complete it.
One of the most common examples where people love mentioning that they 'just don't have the motivation' or they 'don't have enough time' is getting to the gym. When someone says this, what they're really saying is:
- "I just don't have a strong enough REASON to go to the gym." (This is often referred to as someone's 'why.')
- And, "going to the gym is not a priority"
I don't want to turn this post into why you should go to the gym, but it is a good topic to explain this as most people can relate to it. The two points above will actually be separate topics of their own in the future.
Motivation is only a very small portion of the battle and should not be the primary focus when you are trying to get things done. In fact, it should not even be actively sought out. When you have a strong enough WHY and you have made your task a priority then the motivation will automatically be there for you.
When you aim straight for motivation, you are cutting corners by skipping two very important steps.
A lot of people immediately go for the hail mary because they don't have the patience, and you will most likely fail if you do not have a track record of success at completing things. I could say this about myself about how I wanted to write every day of 2018 and how I inevitably failed. We must embrace the individual and smaller steps required to achieve our goals and not think we can skip them and achieve the same results.
In addition to this, motivation is fleeting, meaning it is very hard to have a consistently high amount of for an extended period of time. Therefore, it should not be relied upon in order to get results.
Momentum on the other hand is a much more consistent mental state to aim for. In order to gain momentum, you simply have to start. Soon enough, you will eventually find it easier to complete certain tasks by doing them every day, rather than every 2nd or 3rd day.
Thank you for reading!
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Yep, I need to grasp momentum. Momentum means (for me), when I write a piece I have the energy to write another and another and another. Instead of stopping myself, I should complete all the pieces that come to me at one setting. It will allow me to have material to submit each day and take the stress of trying to create daily when sometimes the muse is not visiting me on a particular day. It wouldn't matter because I have three pieces just waiting to share from the day before.
Thank you for this piece. It's going to help me in the future.
No problem @thatwoman! Glad I was able to provide some value. You're totally right as well... Having some posts 'in the bank' is extremely useful!
Well written @jeremyc. Instead of tunnel-visioning ourselves into the 'big picture' (eg. our grandest goals of 2018), we must consciously keep track of our daily grind (eg. the little things we do every day) which essentially pave our way to accomplishing the big goals.
By grinding daily, we can build our momentum up and gradually, we'll be doing better and eventually we'll accomplish our goals. Keep it up @jeremyc, I believe in you!!
Thanks mate!! Well said. You have a good head on your shoulders Aaron!
This is a great discussion, I think momentum does make a huge difference in most things. I have a quote regarding motivation that I really love picked up from Jocko Willink on the Tim Ferriss podcast is;
Very true!! at the end of the day if you don't have the discipline to do what you need to know motivation won't change anything :)