How to Be More Motivated (And Why I Think Motivation is a Trap)

How to Be More Motivated

(And Why I Think Motivation is a Trap!)

As a gym owner and women’s business and health coach, I’ve heard it countless times: “I just can’t get motivated.” I get it. We’ve all been there. But here’s a little secret—very little of what I achieve in my life or business relies on me being motivated to get it done. In fact, just like you, I rarely feel motivated to do the boring, mundane (or hard) tasks that have to get done each day.

If I relied on feeling motivated to do the things essential for my personal or business growth, I doubt I would ever get anything done. I think motivation is a trap, and today, I want to share what I do instead.

Stop Waiting for Motivation to Strike

If you’re always waiting to feel motivated to get stuff done, you’ll never do it (and I wouldn’t either). When we rely on motivation, we aren’t holding ourselves accountable for our actions. Instead, we blame our lack of progress on a lack of motivation, instead of looking at our own behaviour and habits and taking responsibility for our actions (or lack of action).

Stop looking for motivation or some special sign to start taking action on the stuff you know you should be doing (or want to be doing) to achieve the life or business goals you have. In my experience, it’s the step-by-step of taking little actions towards what you want to improve in life that drives and fuels your motivation.

Small actions and habit changes add up over time. You start to see results, which then gives you extra enthusiasm and pushes you to keep going further. Here are my tips for how to stop waiting for motivation to strike and start taking daily action instead.

Tip 1: Work on Things You Love + Do Things for the Right Reasons

One of the main reasons I am so ‘motivated’ to work and get things done is because I love what I do. Helping people stay healthy & looking after their wellbeing is something I am obsessed with, and I see building my business and being able to improve the health of my community as my ultimate challenge & calling!

I also try to live by example to those in my community. I’m not a guru or a superhuman creature—I’m just a normal mum who is doing my best to juggle a busy life (full of ups and downs) and share what I’m learning along the way.

If I were simply building my business or providing a service just to make money (or for other external reasons), there is no way I could keep up the pace and stamina I do for my work. I have clear goals I want to achieve. When I build out my goals, I break them down into smaller, manageable tasks and create a step-by-step plan of action that I know will help me get there. This helps me always see progress and push forward on days when I don’t feel like it (which happens to me regularly, as I said, I’m a completely normal person with the same struggles as the rest of the world!).

If you struggle with motivation, question whether the goals or projects you are working on are things you really care about. Your apparent lack of motivation could come from doing things to make other people happy or doing things for the wrong reasons (e.g., trying to make money by doing something you don’t enjoy).

Tip 2: Have a List of Daily Non-Negotiables

Even though I love what I do, there are plenty of tasks in my business that are really boring and wouldn’t get done if I waited to feel ‘motivated’ to do them. But I know they need to get done for my business to grow, so I have different ways of getting them completed. One tool/system that has been incredibly helpful for my daily consistency and discipline is my list of ‘daily non-negotiable’ tasks.

These tasks must get done every single day. Whether I feel like doing them or not, they have to get done—no questions asked. It’s not even a conversation I have with myself.

Tip 3: Work Out When You Are Going to Get Your Checklist of Non-Negotiable Tasks Done Each Day

So, the list of tasks above has to get done every day, and I don’t question whether I ever “feel” like doing them. Whether I’m busy, quiet, on holidays or not, my list of daily non-negotiables has to get done every day.

For example, if I am on holidays, I know the list of tasks still needs to get done, despite being away. To make sure the tasks get done, I use the early morning hours (I always wake up early—even on holidays) while everyone is still sleeping I tick off the tasks on my list. By getting them ticked off in the early morning, they are completed for the day, and I can spend the rest of the day relaxing and enjoying my holiday.

When I’m at home, I have a specific time of the day to complete these tasks—normally, it’s early in the morning 5am-6am before there area any other distractions or demands of me. And its when I feel most alert and mentally ready to crush it! If the list of tasks hasn’t been done before the end of the day (which is rare), I make myself do them before I go to bed if I have to. I won’t go to bed until the list is completed and ticked off, and that’s how bit by bit, I’ve built my successful business.

They are called daily non-negotiables for a reason... It’s not negotiable whether they get done, and they have to be done daily!

Tip 4: Become a Person Who Does the Things You Say You’re Going to Do

Another thing that helps with completing tasks and taking action is that I self-identify as being a person who does the things that I say I’m going to do. I identify as being disciplined and consistent and having good habits. This is built into my character and something I’ve told myself for many years to build up that muscle of becoming a consistent, disciplined person.

For example, with the exercise I do each day, it’s never a question of whether I “feel” like exercising or whether I’m “too sore” to go to the gym because I worked hard yesterday or whether I feel “too tired” because I had a bad sleep. I have my exercise sessions booked in my diary each day, and I go to them whether I feel like it or not. It’s a habit in my routine, and I don’t even have a conversation with myself about it.

Tip 5: Surround Yourself with Positive Ideas + People

Finally, another way I stay motivated is to surround myself with positive people and positive ideas. If you want to be motivated to achieve things in life, think about who you are hanging around with and what you are consuming (e.g., via TV shows, podcasts, or other stuff in your information diet).

If all you hear is a negative, complaining family member or friend and watch the (very negative) news, then you’re not likely to feel all that motivated. I realize that sometimes removing yourself from negative people (e.g., if your spouse is negative and unsupportive of your goals) can be difficult, but what is completely in your control is what you put in your headphones and listen to.

If you can’t find positivity in your real life, look for it in other ways—for example, by following people on social media who provide you with motivation through their own example (I try to be that person for others) or by listening to podcasts or watching YouTube videos that motivate you to be a better version of yourself.

Sometimes seeing the progress and success of others can be a source of inspiration and motivation for us. Positive people who are working hard towards their goals can serve as an example and help us stay motivated to work towards ours. So, I find that surrounding myself with positive people and positive ideas is an effective way to stay motivated.

As a side note, I also gave up watching or reading the news a number of years ago, and that has helped a lot as well. Almost nothing in the news impacts me on a day-to-day basis, and almost all of it is negative. If I ever need to know about an important world event, my husband tells me, or I see it all over social media anyway. By giving up the news, you’ll immediately remove a negative element from your information diet and save yourself some time you can put towards something more productive and positive.

Overall – Stop Relying on Motivation

My top tip for staying motivated is to stop relying on motivation to strike (as it rarely will). Instead, build strong habits and systems that will encourage you to take action toward your goals. As you take action, you will build confidence, make progress, and ultimately start to identify as a person who does the things they say they are going to do.

And that will remove the need for motivation altogether. :)

Keep pushing forward! You’ve got this.