“I’m so motivated to get XYZ done!”
Be honest with yourself. How many times have you said the above statement? I’ve definitely said it, or at least thought it, dozens of times.
Now ask yourself this: How many times have you actually followed through and accomplished what you were so motivated to do? For me personally, my success rate is really low, and I imagine the same is true for most of you.
So why did we fail to get XYZ done? After all, we were so motivated. Well, as the post title says, Motivation isn’t Good Enough. That’s because motivation runs out. And from my experience in the gym at my university over the past few years, it usually runs out a couple weeks into the new semester, when the number of people at the gym suddenly drops like rock.
A new semester (or New Years) resolution only gets you so far. It will be good enough for the short run. But you will run out of motivation. So we need something better than motivation, something that doesn’t run out.
Well what doesn’t run out? Good habits. As the saying goes, “Old habits die hard.” Now that saying usually applies to bad habits like smoking and nail-biting, but fortunately, it also applies to good habits like exercising and reading. Motivation will dry up like rain puddle in the desert, but good habits can last a life time.
Let’s now return to our gym example to see the importance of habits. If you want to go the gym everyday, rely on habits instead of motivation. Instead of focusing on pumping yourself up for the gym, just focus on going no matter what. Go no matter what.
If you’re tired, go.
If you’re hungry, go.
If you’re unmotivated, GO!
Just go. And every time you go, put a mark on your calendar. And watch the marks pile up into a nice, beautiful chain. Your only priority now is to NOT break the chain. And you don’t need motivation to do that. You just need good habits.
So I want you to think of just one good habit. Here are some examples: meditation, prayer, reading, journaling, writing, running, lifting weights, basketball, playing with your kids. Just pick one for now. It can be anything.
Now commit to doing it every day for the next 66 days. Apparently that’s how long it take to form a new habit. Start a chain. And don’t break it for 66 days.
I hope this post motivates you to form good habits. And if it doesn’t, then that’s okay. Because you don’t need motivation.