Highly Motivated People Seldom Boost Their Motivation, They Have These Habits Instead

by Josheph Chan 

Do you struggle to stay motivated? Why does it seem like other people seldom need motivation? Is it an inborn trait others have and you don’t? The answer, as you might have guessed, is a big no! The basic truth is that some people have mastered good habits for themselves over time that have not only helped them to be motivated but also to stay motivated. That’s why, by copying their behavior, you too can form this habit they seem to have. Below are some of the traits you should be on the lookout for:

1. They ride the motivation wave

As stated by BJ Fogg, a psychologist at Stanford University, building or sticking with good habits is not all about attempting to boost your motivation. Instead, it is about making full use of your motivation when you do have it. According to Q. Jim Rohn, motivation is what helps you get started, but habits are what keep you moving. In an interview with Ramit Sethi, the person who wrote ‘I Will Teach You to Be Rich,’ Fogg described how to ride what he refers to as the motivation wave. Motivation only has one key function in our lives, which is to help us do hard things. Motivational waves are those times when we are really inspired to do tasks we have on our to-do list. Meaning, when your motivation is raging through the roof, you must immediately do the difficult tasks first to sustain your motivation. This motivation wave can certainly help you establish a long-term good habit.

2. They Find their WHY

Highly motivated people also start with their why. Why do they do what they do? If you want to climb a mountain, for example, just because it’s there, then that idea might not be sufficient to keep you moving, especially when things get tough. Once you are aware why you do what you do, and you realize it is very important to you, you will find the strength to do it in any situation. For instance, your why can be as simple as wanting to improve the quality of life for as many people as possible. Therefore, it is important to connect the work you do on a daily basis back to your why. At work, you can try to lift up those around you and help your customers succeed.

3. They are planners

Highly motivated people plan… a lot! Of course, they can be spontaneous too, but they also make plans and expect bumps that could come along with their plans. Therefore, if you want to travel the road of the highly motivated, then begin each and every day with a plan of action detailing the steps you will take. Know at least two or three crucial tasks you want to do every day, then go ahead do them.

4. They don’t live with regrets

One major factor in our lives is that we are humans, so we will definitely make mistakes. But always remember, the past is the past, so endeavor to leave it there and keep moving forward. There is no point worrying or feeling angry over decisions you made in the past or actions you wish you had done. We only have the present. So, keep moving on, and invest your time and energy into living life to its fullest.

Finally, when you struggle to develop the habit of being motivated and staying motivated, if you don’t remember anything at all from the above, always remember to do as much as you can, including the difficult tasks you normally wouldn’t do, when you are fired up. Also, remember to protect yourself from discouragement.

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Featured photo credit: pixabay.com via pixabay.com 

You Only Need 3 Months To Become A Brand New You (With This Self-Improvement Approach)

You’re sitting in your living room watching a new Tony Robbins motivational documentary about changing yourself. By the end, you’re so excited about the prospect that you rush to the nearest Barnes & Noble book store. You comb the self-help section looking for the one book or audio book set that will change your life in five easy steps. Sound familiar?

You may have read a book cover to cover and even accomplished some of the required steps, but it hasn’t delivered the immediate results you expected. The disappointment you feel makes you disregard the improvements you’ve achieved. After a while, the old habits resurface and take over, and the struggle to restart the process of change is even more difficult.
The Reasons We Set Unrealistic Goals (It’s Not What You Think)

It doesn’t matter how bright, competent or determined you are. Personal transformation is a long-term process, and shortcuts are not part of the recipe. It’s easy to set unrealistic goals when you’re excited and optimistic about the outcome. You actually use willpower on yourself in a futile attempt to force success. “This time I’m going to do it,” or “I’m going to keep going until I get it done,” you say. Unfortunately, the odds of that happening are very low.

When it comes to goal setting, the idea of extreme change is a motivation killer. Research proves that our brains are hardwired to resist extreme change. Rapid change causes our bodies and minds to resist and seek a familiar comfort zone. But this is what we usually do to ourselves. We set the types of goals that require changes in our life that are simply unachievable.
The Kaizen Approach – Your Blueprint For Long-Term Success

Rooted in Japanese philosophy, Kaizen is a long-term approach to change based on implementing changes in small increments. Used by many different businesses, like manufacturing plants, it seeks to improve efficiency and quality by applying small, incremental process changes. By applying continuous incremental improvements, the business will grow and thrive.

The word “kaizen” is derived from “kai” meaning change, “zen” meaning good. The history of Kaizen began after World War II when Toyota applied the concept in its production process. It became very popular in Japan in the 1950s, and it continues today as Kaizen groups.

Although Kaizen was developed for the improvement of business, it can be applied to personal goal setting as well. In a similar fashion, if you apply short-term, incremental achievements toward your goal every day, you will eventually build better habits over the long-term to accomplish the goal you’ve set for yourself.
Start Accomplishing Your Goals The Kaizen Way

Good habits are fundamentally linked to effective goal setting. The Kaizen approach helps us to build good habits by teaching us to apply a small step every day toward our goal. Eventually the good habits will replace the bad ones and you will maintain consistent gains.

Start by breaking down your goal into small parts. Each day, accomplish a very small percentage of each part. For example, if you are writing a book, decide on a writing schedule and stick to it every day. Set a realistic number of words you will write each day and write at least that amount every day. These small steps will be more manageable for you and a lot less intimidating.

If you apply small percentage increments each day, the changes will build on each other until you will eventually notice a major gain. Try it yourself. Set a 3-month goal for yourself. Start by getting just 1% accomplished each day. Yes, it’s a tiny amount but it’s doable. Focus on the practice instead of the performance. Each small percentage will build on the last, and in three months’ time you will notice a 100% improvement from where you started.

Why Successful Habits Breed Success

Your successes fuel your ambition. And they pave the way for more successes.

by Jim Rohn

When you are doing all that you can possibly do, and you are successful at reaching your expectations, keep doing it. Success is one of the best forms of motivation. Psychologists call this positive reinforcement. We all know about positive reinforcement. That’s how we train our dogs. That how we teach our kids.

When you bring home a new puppy and try to teach him not to mess in the house, what do you do?You reward him for going outside or for scratching at the door. When you’re trying to get your toddler out of the diaper stage, what do you do? You reward him with special presents. You make him feel special for learning something new. When you’re trying to get your older kids to crack the books and study, what do you do? You reward them when they get good grades. You teach them that the skills they are developing now will have positive effects on their lives later. And you do that by rewarding them now. This is positive reinforcement: Learning that there are rewards for doing something good, something worthwhile, something of value. The greater the value, the greater the reward. The better you do, the better your reward. A bigger paycheck, a better house, financial freedom—it’s all a reward system.

There are two major benefits of positive reinforcement:

1. Positive reinforcement builds good habits.

If the habits you’re practicing are increasing your success, keep doing them. Your success is reaffirming that these habits are good. Your success tells you that you need to keep doing what you are doing. By reviewing the habits that lead you to success, you reinforce them. You give them staying power.

Here’s the other side. By reviewing your habits, you might find out that some of them are inhibiting your success. You might find out that what you’re doing every day is bad for you. Or you might realize that you’ve stopped practicing some very good habits. Somebody says, “Well, I’ve just gotten out of a bad habit of taking my daily walk around the block.” Well, I guess you’ll just have to get in the habit of being sick later on. Somebody says, “Well, I used to read books all the time; I’ve just gotten out of the habit.” Then change it. Get back your disciplines. If you’ve “just gotten out of the habit,” just get back into the habit. It’s called discipline.

2. Positive reinforcement creates the energy to fuel additional achievement.

It gives you the drive to do more, to not only keep on doing what’s right, but to do more of what’s right. The knowledge that what you’re doing is paying off creates more energy to keep going.

How easy is it to get up in the morning when you know you’re not doing all that it takes? It’s not very easy at all! You can just lie there, awake, thinking, Oh, what’s a few more minutes in bed. It won’t matter much anyway. Wrong! It does matter. It will matter. How easy is it to get up in the morning when you’re anxious to make progress toward your dreams? It’s a whole different story.When you’re resting to renew your reserves, it’s much different than resting to avoid your day. When you’re psyched up and excited about life, when you’re excited about what you’ve planned to accomplish for the day, it’s amazing how you’ll wake up long before the alarm clock tries to startle you awake.

Your successes fuel your ambition. Your successes give you extra energy. Your successes pave the way for more successes. It’s the snowball effect. When you achieve one success, you’re excited to meet another… and another… and another. Pretty soon, the disciplines that were so difficult in the beginning—the disciplines that got you going—are now part of your philosophy. And they keep you going.