Unleash Your Potential #4 - Long-term Motivation

Douglas: Welcome to the Unleash Your Potential Blog, what question can I answer for you today?

DreamDirective: What techniques can help me stay motivated over the long term? 

Douglas: Thank you for sharing this question. This is something I have struggled with and continue to engage with regularly. For me, this is what I affectionately call “Flash in the Pan Syndrome.” I am super excited and motivated about a project at the beginning but over time the excitement wears off and if I am not careful my motivation also wears off.

The first step is to recognize when it is happening. Sometimes, our motivation starts to dwindle and we don’t even realize it’s happening. We have to be vigilant and check in with ourselves regularly throughout a project.

Then you need to figure out why the motivation is waning as the project continues. I have this problem when I am trying to lose weight. I cut out soda and snacking and for the first few weeks, I see significant losses. Then, as time passes, those losses become much smaller but more regular. However, because I am not making “big” progress, I lose interest. Then the motivation decreases. This is not the only reason we lose motivation. The key is figuring out WHY you specifically are less motivated than you were. What changed? Is the goal less important? Are you finding the project more challenging than expected? The point is that similar to a doctor, you need to diagnose the cause of the problem and fix what is broken in the process. Lack of motivation is nothing more than a symptom of an underlying issue that needs to be addressed.

Once you figure out why you are less motivated, you can begin to develop systems to combat the loss of motivation. If you lose motivation because you don’t have the big wins as frequently, maybe you need to be more vigilant about celebrating the small wins along the way. Or if you are like me, you tend to float to the next “shiny, new toy.” If that’s the case, you might need to keep adding little “side quests” to the main project (like a 100-day blog) to give you additional checks to stay engaged with the project. Figuring out a way to solve the motivation equation is not a “one size fits all” solution. Much like a mechanic, different problems require different solutions. You don’t fix a flat tire by tightening the bolt on the oil pan! Additionally, sometimes the first solution doesn’t work so you need to try again.

To summarize, the 3 steps to improve motivation long term:

1.      Identify when you start to lose motivation (like most medical and automotive cases, early detection is key!).

2.      Isolate the cause (lack of motivation is a symptom of a deeper challenge)

3.      Develop a new system to address the cause (this is the “cure” ) – you may need to repeat this step if the first try doesn’t work

I hope my answer sheds some light on your challenge. If you want to dig into this concept further, I encourage you to reach out and set up a conversation. In the meantime, check back tomorrow for the next question in the Unleash Your Potential Series!

Be Well!

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