What is Motivation Anyway? Find Your Why, Find Your Answer.
“You've got to get up every morning with determination if you're going to go to bed with satisfaction.” — George Lorimer
What exactly is motivation anyway? We’ve all heard the word a gazillion times, but what are we actually talking about?
I’m a word nerd, so I love a good excuse to consult the dictionary.
The classic textbook definition of motivation is: a ‘driving force’ through which people strive to achieve their goals and fulfill a need or uphold a value.
From this descriptive, three words immediately jump out at me: goals, need, value. These are the building blocks that lead to our actions.
Motivation is different for each of us because we all have different needs or values.
In other words, two people may have the same goal but the why behind the goal is different.
(i.e. I read The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle because I wanted to improve my ability to stay present in the moment; you might’ve picked up your copy because it’s required reading for your coaching group.)
If someone tells you to “get motivated” (or if you are telling yourself to get off the couch and get motivated), it feels like an empty imperative.
That is, until you think of the WHY behind it.
Why do you want to get off the couch?
It could be that you want to run an upcoming marathon without collapsing 30 minutes in. (You gotta be motivated to train in advance.)
Or maybe you’re looking to add a new revenue stream to your business. (Motivation required here – to dream it, then build it, then launch it.)
Then there’s that dream you have of spending a week or two in Bora Bora in one of those little bungalows perched above the turquoise water. (Hey, this is MY dream… you can fill in your own destination!)
The point is… you’ve got your WHY in mind. Your why is your endgame.
Now you have to figure out the HOW.
The how is your ‘driving force.’ These two words infer that there is internal energy you must create to move the needle forward → Action!
The act of doing the actions you’ve laid out is motivation.
So what actions do you need to take to get to your endgame? Write ‘em down. Put that success plan somewhere you’ll see it every day. Aaaaaand GO!
If you’re looking to dive a little deeper into the topic of motivation, psychologist and author, Gemma Leigh Roberts, has an article about intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation on LinkedIn that I found interesting. You can read that here.
Can I help you or your team find the why & the how behind your motivational needs, values & goals?
I am opening the doors for new business consulting clients in January, but we can do your complimentary discovery call now.