What is it that makes you try to achieve your goals? Why do you get involved in what you do? or simply why get up every day?
The answers to these and many other questions can help you understand what motivates you. But on many occasions, we are not very clear about it, or even having a goal, but we do not have the courage to put ourselves into it..
We could define it as that force that drives a person to get or keep moving towards their goals. This motivation is what, to the extent of its strength, will allow us to face the problems, challenges and adversities that stand between us and our goal..
But we are not always equally motivated towards different goals or at different times, so, due to this variability in our motivation, we are going to know some keys to try to guide and increase it, especially at key moments:
Motivation depends primarily on your thoughts. Based on the expectations you have, you can move forward, and if you think you can achieve it or not, your motivation will increase or decrease..
There are people who, in the face of adversity, see it as a problem, and others as a challenge, that is, depending on how you interpret events, you can motivate or demotivate yourself..
Therefore, it is very important to maintain positive thinking, but be careful, we do not have to create unreal fantasies, much less think that (as some books and various pseudopsychologists suggest) just for wanting to achieve something, the cosmos is going to align itself on our side. and he is going to put it on a tray.
Nothing like that, if something is difficult to achieve, it will continue to be, but if you think you can really achieve it and work hard at it, it is easier for it to end up happening..
If we completely eliminate any reference to the possibility of difficulty or failure, the moment it appears, the castle that we had created will be dismantled and it will be much more difficult to rebuild it than if we are aware of the difficulties from the outset..
Conclution: Pay attention to positive thoughts and try to ward off negative ones, but without creating false illusions.
When we think about goals, we almost always think about the final destination of what we want to achieve and rarely do we stop to think about the way. In order to stay motivated, we need to set goals properly, broadly speaking, they must meet the following characteristics:
Conclution: Organize your goals well
Many times, people start very motivated to achieve their goals, but as time goes by, that motivation will gradually decline and disappear if we do not work on it. Normally our objectives are usually medium and long term, so that on a day-to-day basis we do not usually assess our progress.
Therefore, keeping a daily record of the short-term achievements that we are achieving will help us both to realize our progress and to generate even more motivation..
We can also add the difficulties or problems that we have encountered to help us reflect and prepare so that they are not repeated or restructure our strategy to achieve the objectives.
Conclution: Be aware of how well you do
Intrinsic motivation (that which comes from within us) is fine, but there is no harm in giving us an extra motivation with some extrinsic reward (they come from outside).
This reward must be marked in advance for the achievement of a specific objective, not for a simple "I deserve it", since, if it is not, this reward will lose force.
Obviously, the reward we give ourselves should not be incompatible with our objective (eg, binge eating because of having gone to the gym), but simply that we find it enjoyable.
Conclution: Pat yourself on the back for how well you're doing.
A widely used technique is visualization. It basically consists of trying to imagine yourself achieving that goal that you have set for yourself, try to feel what you would feel, think what you would think.
Your brain has a hard time differentiating what is real from what is imagined so it will react as if it were real. If you know how good you would feel if you achieved your goals, you are more likely to keep working towards them. Visualize your success for a few minutes each day to keep your motivation booming.
Conclution: imagine achieving your goal
How difficult it is sometimes to maintain consistency. There will always be a "silly" day in which we are not going to meet our objectives, we are lazy, we have other urgencies to attend to ... it is understandable.
What we must avoid at all costs is that this exception can become a rule, that is, it is understandable that one day we may fail, but not that it is repeated. We can foresee and organize this to give us a day of rest in our “planning” and even compensation strategies for those unforeseen days that we have not achieved the desired objective..
Conclution: For a day nothing happens, but let it not repeat itself.
Competing against oneself motivates, but if we compete against another, it tends to motivate more. A healthy competition with a friend, partner ... who has a similar objective to ours, can help us not to relax and encourage us to continue improving so that the other surpasses us.
But remember, this is not your main objective, only a help, do not get obsessed with comparing yourself daily, it should only be a support from time to time.
Conclution: Healthy competition can help.
While everything goes as we want and we had planned it is very easy to continue, the real challenge comes when things start to go wrong.
In those moments is when all those negative thoughts that we had been avoiding come to your head and you even get to catastrophize thinking that all the effort we have made is useless, that it is no longer worth trying. If we prepare properly, in the face of a negative event, we will be able to not let these pessimistic thoughts take hold and overcome as soon as possible.
Conclution: Prepare for when it doesn't turn out as you expect
If I always keep in mind the reasons that have led me to make a decision, it will be easier for me to make use of them in times of "down".
If I have my reasons written in fire, I will hardly leave room for excuses and laziness. You may do it for yourself, for an illusion, for a loved one, for health, for improvement, for money, for pleasure ... whatever the reason, keep it in mind and try to win even more arguments to convince yourself.
Conclution: Don't forget your reasons
Making this trip can only be difficult for several moments, if you need help, ask for it. Depending on your goal, you will need one type of help or another.
It may be from a professional such as a psychologist, coach, physiotherapist, nutritionist ..., someone with experience in a similar goal to yours or someone close to you who simply helps you in times of need. Of course, very careful in 2 aspects, one thing is to need help and another to want it to be done, the weight of the effort must fall on us.
On the other hand, be careful with whom you ask for advice since many "coaches", advisers, advisers, guides, gurus ... may not be as "useful" for you as they are sold.
Conclution: It's okay to need help, but be careful.
There are things that by their very nature attract us to do them and others involve an effort. If I can do more of the things that I am passionate about on a daily basis, I will be able to perform better with less effort, and this will keep us motivated.
If we dedicate ourselves to doing things that we do not like, it is when it involves an effort and we will need the help of extrinsic rewards (incentives) to motivate us. For this reason, we have to try to integrate our passions into our organization, but at the same time, try to find those specific aspects of unpleasant tasks that can become pleasant to subtract that negativity that they generate in us..
Conclution: Enjoy what you like, and look for the positive part of what you don't.
As we already know, each person is a world, so it is easy for each of you to have your own tricks that work for you and that may be useful to other people, so we encourage you to share them with us. We hope these keys can help you stay motivated.
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