Did That REALLY Motivate You?

Sometimes, we can watch a program, listen to a speaker, or read a book that fills us with a sense of motivation and that makes us feel like we can do anything to which we set our minds.

In some cases, that sense of limitless possibility remains intact and we refer back to that inspirational material again and again as we work toward our goals. In other cases, the feeling of elation and excitement passes within a very short period of time.

Motivation exercises are a lot like food. Some foods really do nourish the body and provide us with the essential nutrients we need to survive and thrive. Some foods, on the other hand, are junk. They taste sweet, but don’t do much good for the body and may actually harm it.

Some motivation exercises are nourishing psychological and emotional meals, while others are nothing more than the motivational equivalent of cotton candy.

As you experiment with different methods of motivation, make the effort to separate the truly good stuff from the junk. Look for exercises that connect with you on a deeper level and that tend to linger with you long after the initial excitement subsides.

Don’t confuse dinner with a candy bar or motivation with manipulation.

How To Stop Fooling Yourself

The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you're the easiest person to fool. - Richard Feynman

Our minds are labyrinths of illusion and deception, and it is way too easy to fool ourselves sometimes. Perhaps you’ve had an experience where you were certain that something was the truth, and later discovered you were wrong.

When the real truth was exposed, you practically slapped yourself in the forehead because you couldn’t believe you missed it! We’ve all had experiences like that from time to time. That’s because perception is very individual, and our minds are designed to see only what we want to see. This can be helpful in certain circumstances, but incredibly damaging in others.

What are some of the ways you’ve fooled yourself in the past - or are you still fooling yourself now? Are you telling yourself that you’re working hard on your goals when in fact you are just spinning your wheels and trying to stay busy? Are you convinced that you don’t have as much chance for opportunity as others do?

Are you telling yourself that the obstacle you face is too big, too imposing to overcome? Are you promising yourself that someday soon you’ll begin taking action to get what you want? Are you waiting until your fear diminishes, your confidence grows, or someone in your life gives you the green light? No matter what you are telling yourself, be willing to question whether it’s really the “truth” or not. Just because it seems to be so, doesn’t mean it is.

One of the best practices you can adopt is the process of inner reflection and honesty. Learn how to see through your perceptions and discern which ones are serving you and which ones are holding you back. Learn how to get in touch with your intuition and use the signals it sends (like gut feelings, inner knowing, and warnings about bad choices) to guide your decision-making.

Stop fooling yourself into believing things that keep you from expressing your greatness, and start pushing yourself to believe things that add to your character and grow your potential.

Take off the rose-colored glasses and begin assessing yourself and your habits with brutal honesty. Only then will you understand the quickest way to release your potential, figure out the right path for you, and determine the right actions to get you there.

Demand Only The Best From Yourself

Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anyone else expects of you. Never excuse yourself. - Henry Ward Beecher

We’re really good at demanding the best from others, but we often give ourselves a bit more slack. We allow excuses to take over our lives and hold us back, and then we use those same excuses to explain why we haven’t become as successful as we want to be.

It’s not surprising that we try to go a little easier on ourselves since we already feel pressured and overwhelmed by our obligations and the expectations of others. However, while the demands of our lives usually detract from our resources, demanding more from ourselves adds to who we are. The harder we work on ourselves, and the more excellence we demand from our actions, the more focused we will be and the better people we will be because of it.

Demanding the best from ourselves is not the same as expecting perfection or never being satisfied with our progress. It’s not about being unreasonable with ourselves or trying to push ourselves beyond our true capabilities.

Demanding the best from ourselves is about being honest about our capabilities, about learning how to stretch our limits and refusing to buy into excuses that limit our potential. It’s about recognizing our strengths, honoring our accomplishments, and always striving for greater success in all areas of our lives.

Today, take a look at your own accomplishments, and assess your true strengths. Have you been pushing yourself as hard as you can? Or have you been slacking off because it seems like too much work to step out of your comfort zones? Have you been drifting aimlessly along, resting on your laurels, rather than striving for bigger dreams?

If you are honest with yourself, you may realize that you have not been pushing yourself as hard as you could, and therefore you haven’t accomplished as much as you are truly capable of. Changing this is as simple as demanding the best from yourself, beginning right now.

When you demand the best from yourself in everything you do, you’ll soon realize that your results will be the best too...