I’m feeling unmotivated today, so I thought it would be a great chance to write about one of my favourite topics, the myth of motivation.
Yes it is a myth.
It’s something most of us have been conditioned to think lives somewhere outside of us. That we have to get it from others, and when we lose it, there’s something wrong with us and we have to find it from somewhere else.
That couldn’t be further from the truth! The natural waxing and waning of this feeling we know as motivation will always come and go in life.
Often when we start out wanting to change something in our life we are full of feelings to act. We are inspired and determined to make the changes to we need to make to get where we want to be.
And then what happens? Those blissful feelings seem to disappear and instead get replaced with some old, less fun but very familiar feelings that look like laziness and shouldn’t live in us.
We don’t like those feelings, so we set to work looking to find someone or something out of there that can help bring back those lovely feelings we do like.
Here’s what I love showing people about motivation.
1. It’s always temporary (you’re a normal human being when it goes)2. It doesn’t come from anything ‘out there’ (it is fully created within from the thinking we have)3. There is something more reliable we can tap in to within us that provides us with a never supply of motivation (give me more of that!)
What motivation actually is, is our connection with our own state of mind. When we’re in a good feeling, life looks motivating and exciting, and getting things done just seems to happen with ease.
When we’re not in a good feeling, the opposite happens. We don’t feel so good, life looks hard and not at all exciting, and getting things done is like walking through quicksand.
So what has changed? I guarantee you it’s not your world around you. It’s just your state of mind… and you’re all innocently bogged down in it.
When we can understand that it’s all about state of mind – and the attention we give it or not – we can start to see that we don’t have to wait for any certain feeling to just get things done. We can understand that moods are a part of life, and the attention we give it will dictate whether we stay stuck in it or move forward regardless.
Sometimes like today, I just smile at my state of mind and just get things done anyway. Sometimes I see it as time to slow down and take a break and sit still for a little. I don’t really decide how I will see it. I just know I don’t have to fear it – the incredible nature of being human has me covered.
But it wasn’t always like for me. I used to get all caught up too and thought it meant I was the one who was defective. I judged it (and me) and thought I should have known better than to get caught up it all – especially because I knew how it was supposed to work!
But I don’t get tricked by that inner chatter anymore (mostly), and I certainly don’t judge it or myself for it seemingly not being there temporarily. I say that, but still sometimes I do, because well – I am human too. But that happens to me far less now that I’ve seen just how much of a trick all that is to get caught up in. So I generally leave it alone and get on with my day, however I see that to be.
Most people come to me because they want me to ‘motivate’ them and ‘keep them on track’. How I love to show them instead how to tap in to that source of well-being that’s within us all, which means we never have to search to motivation outside of ourselves again. Doesn’t mean we won’t be inspired by others – of course we will. But motivation is an inside job, and no one can give it to you (or take it away from you).
Next time you’re not feeling motivated, what can you do? Maybe try disengaging from all those voices and stories going on in your head, and see what happens. Maybe try not to judge your reactions, feelings or thoughts, and just be. Amazing when we see we can show up and engage in life regardless of whether we feel motivated or not. What amazing beings we truly are.
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