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1-Page Summary of The Motivation Myth
Motivation does not come from moments of inspiration.
Motivation comes from completing the day’s work. It doesn’t come from flashes of inspiration. Therefore, you need to create a list of tasks that must be done each day and complete them in order to reach your goal. Once this is part of your routine, it will appear in other parts of your life as well
If you want to achieve a goal, find a process that will help you achieve it. You may think sharing your goals with friends will keep you on track, but research shows the opposite is true. For example, if you tell your hiking friends that your goal is to hike the 2200 mile Appalachian trail, they’ll give you positive feedback and make it seem like something that’s easy to do. This can undermine your determination to actually complete the task.
You may believe that others have greater willpower than you, but this is not true. Everyone can learn how to be successful and achieve their goals through hard work. Successful people don’t need instant gratification or succumb to fear; they just keep working on their priorities until they become habits ingrained into who they are. Eventually, the daily tasks will become second nature and willpower won’t play a role anymore.
Reaching your goal requires focusing on small steps.
The gap between where you are and your goal can be big. It’s hard to get from point A to B if you’re trying to lose 40 pounds but only lost one pound in the first week. The winning strategy is to have a process that helps you achieve your goals, not just focus on the overall goal itself. Whether it’s saving $1 million or losing weight, concentrate on daily actions that help you succeed instead of focusing on the overarching goal.
If you want to run a marathon, your first daily task is to run one mile. Once you accomplish this, it will make you feel good and motivate you to do it again the next day. In two weeks, after running five miles daily, your improved ability will provide motivational boost. Defining a process and adhering to it improves your skill or ability and leads to success.
You choose your goal, but the goal defines the process.
To reach your goal, you have to do what it takes. If you want to run a marathon, search for an online training plan that’s based on your fitness level and will help you achieve your goal. Make sure the plan has daily targets so that you know exactly how much distance or time/pace is involved in each task. Be clear about when the start date of the plan is as well as when it will end.
To focus on your goal and work toward it every day, change your daily schedule. This could mean cutting down TV time or changing when you wake up. Write out a training plan on a calendar. Define the tasks that need to be completed each day, and integrate them into your new schedule so that you can make sure they’re feasible. Instead of maintaining a huge to-do list, turn it into a “wish list” and select only one or two items from the list for completion per day. When those are done, choose another item from the wish list until all items have been checked off.
If you find that your initial schedule isn’t working, change it. If you have to get up earlier or stay up later than usual, then do so. However, don’t stop doing your daily tasks until you’ve been at them for a while. Once you’re on track with the new schedule, don’t modify it unless there’s a problem with what you’re doing now. If necessary, walk part of the way if running is too difficult in the beginning; just make sure that you complete each run before stopping altogether (and remember to take breaks). Don’t compare yourself to others—just complete whatever task needs completing (even if this means walking instead of running). When done and rested enough (don’t over-rest), celebrate! You can also adjust how much time off is needed based on how well your body recovers from exercise; more rest is often required after periods of intense training but less may be needed when starting out slowly and building endurance gradually.
