This post was reprinted with permission from Motivation Mojo
Believe it or not, there are wrong ways to approach motivation, but once again you can always learn from the mistakes you make. Since motivation comes from the mind, it is possible to overthink motivation. But motivation isn’t something you have to conquer in order to achieve it.
Motivation comes naturally, similar to adrenaline. It’s not as powerful as adrenaline and doesn’t only leak out when you’re in danger or excited. Instead, it’s always there for you as an encouraging hand to pat your back.
It isn’t mandatory either to feel as though you must always be motivated. You can always take a break from the motivation of doing something extravagant and submit to being tired. Taking a rest or break from pursuing something gives you time to prepare for the next wave of motivation you may have. But people tend to read motivation wrong. Here are some common misconceptions surrounding motivation.
You Are Alone
It may appear so, but you are never alone. You can always ask someone for help or advice on how to do something. With a world of 7.5 billion people and escalating, it shouldn’t be hard to find one person in which you can confide in. Everyone has their own perspective and sometimes it helps to get a second opinion.
When you need a push, you can always ask someone else for a helping hand. Personal projects may mean that yes, you have to act on your own but you can always ask for advice, tips or favors from other people.
A problem most people have is that they feel there’s no one for them. Family, friends and coworkers are too far away from reach and so they don’t see any shoulder to turn to. The truth is, most people are happy to help. It’s a natural instinct to try and help.
When you see an infant, don’t you want to cradle it and tuck its sheets so that it stays warm? It’s instinct to help out, no matter how reluctant you may make yourself out to be. Providing some kind of support isn’t hard, even if it’s just a consoling word.
Never feel as though nobody has your back, because people are always going to be there for you, so long as you can do the same for them.
This doesn’t mean every favor you do is an eye for an eye, it simply means that when someone’s in need of help, feel free to lend out a hand out of kindness. They may be more willing to lend a hand to you later when you need it.
Of course, it takes a different motivation on its own to approach people or a person to commune with them, but interaction is natural. Loneliness makes you sad and an introvert. Going out of your way to get to know people and make friends is a good thing, and like all things require a little encouragement.
You Need Push To Shove
You don’t quite need someone to push you into doing something. You can do anything when your heart truly desires, you just need to see it. Some people feel that change needs to occur first in order for anything enticing to happen to them. This isn’t entirely true.
It’s true that change does mean something different has to happen. When change occurs, you motivate yourself to keep up with the shifting world around you, because you have to.
Likewise, change doesn’t necessarily have to come first. Motivation can sometimes be the push to encourage change. It’s easy to put the blame on something else rather than admit to your own faults. People often say that nothing ever happens in their boring lives so they have nothing to do.
Is this really the case? Or do we often ignore our ambitious selves, constantly wiring ourselves to the realistic perspective? Usually this is the case, that we avoid our own thoughts of motive, inspirations and accept that they can’t be achieved.
you are on the one-way train to sadness…
Doing this, you are on the one-way train to sadness. Days will slowly become meaningless all because you were waiting for a push to come and shove you to your feet. If you can’t stand on your own two feet, who’s going to do it for you?
Our push that leads us on is already built inside of us, and is called motivation. Motivation is the push we shove ourselves with to get things done.
The only people in charge of our lives are us, not those around pointing fingers and directing orders. Take those orders if you must, but don’t let them stop you from pushing yourselves to your maximum capability.
You need motivation for any step! By staying motivated, you take each and every step you need to in order to reach the coffee machine sitting in the kitchen. You drive as far as you need to go to get to your office because you are motivated to get to work.
Nobody can see just how important motivation is because we take advantage of it every day. It’s the voice telling us what time it is, where we need to be because these are the daily motivators that keep us moving. We don’t even realize when they are acting in our mind because they work so silently.
We only take account of our motivation when we’re trying to push ourselves to do something out of the way. It’s like there’s a running motor in our minds but bricks on the feet. Something out of your daily behavior requires a little more motivation.
If you want to do anything, your motivation is already set into action…
If you want to do anything, your motivation is already set into action. Go to the library to get a book, grab a coffee with your friends, shop for a new outfit, they all mean that motivation is driving you forward.
If you’ve ever felt lethargic or seen someone living life like an aimless zombie, then you’ve seen what a life without motivation would look like. You wouldn’t be able to see past the work to the reward afterwards. Getting up would seem like too much work and doing work would seem too much of a bother.
No motivation means there is no ambition, passion, or final result to look forward to. Why would you bother doing anything knowing you aren’t going to get anything from it? That is what life feels like without motivation, and it never feels good.
When you recall what motivation does for you each and every day, consider how much you achieve daily.
Imagine an animal out in the wild with no straight idea of what’ll happen in the day and if they will live another one. Humanity has developed to such an extent that we can finally predict the outgoings of our days for months, even years to come.
You’re a part of that system, where you fit in a flow in a vast line of coordinated actions to continue the manmade balance in a cruel world. If that isn’t enough to make you smile, then remember no one can take the place you’ve made for yourself in the world, and no one can live your life better than you can.
Everything needs motivation. A smile means you move your muscles, travelling means you take initiative to work out your plan and involve yourself. Nothing is left unturned when you’re motivated.
This post was reprinted with permission from Motivation Mojo
