Get (and stay) Motivated!

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." ~ Will Durant

have clients ask me all the time for the “key” to motivation. The truth is, there have been hundreds of studies done and there’s no secret ingredient to getting -OR STAYING- motivated . I believe that the essence of motivation begins with creating new habits. These positive habits are created by being consistent with your actions. These actions start and end with YOU.

We go through life being taught that being “selfish” is wrong, to put other’s first and that taking care of others is the way to live a righteous life, one with purpose and meaning. Rarely do we hear that taking care of yourself first is the key to happiness. We are not often taught that always putting others first can lead to life of stress, resentment and even illness. It is widely accepted in the medical community that stress can contribute to a long list of ailments including depression, anxiety, headaches, insomnia, heart problems, high blood pressure, and even cancer. Suffering from any of these can actually take resources away from those you intend to help.

You can't give what you don't have.

If you aren’t taking care of yourself FIRST, you won’t be able to help take care of those you love the most. When you're well taken care of you'll be even more poised and inspired to help others. Be better for others by being the best YOU that you can possibly be.

But how can we do this?

DECIDE

First you need to decide to make a change. Whatever your goal may be, whether it’s health & fitness related, career-oriented or something else, you must become very clear on what that goal is. Once you’ve defined your present goal, think about the outcomes of your success. What are the benefits of achieving this goal? How will it make you feel? Seeing the big picture will help motivate you to make the changes you desire. By deciding, you are choosing to make it a priority. Meaning, you’ll have to set aside time (and resources) to ensure your success. Start by identifying the current actions you need to change, or replace, in order to align them with your goal. Make a plan of action based on these changes. Envision it, write it down, put it on your calendar and set yourself up for success. Most importantly, our perception becomes our reality. Believe you can achieve it and you will.

COMMIT

Once you’ve honed in on your goal, you must commit to making it a reality. By committing to your goal, you are making a binding pledge or promise to yourself. If you follow my blog posts, I have mentioned the importance of making (and keeping!) promises to yourself. By making promises to yourself, you are deciding that you’re worth it, that those goals you want to achieve are yours for the taking. You are committing to doing something for yourself that can only be achieved by following through with the promises you’ve made to YOU. No one else can help you, no one can do it for you. By following through with those commitments, you prove to yourself that you are in fact WORTH IT. You build self-esteem, inner strength, and confidence every time you follow through on these commitments. That type of dedication can propel you toward reaching your goals.

SUCCEED

You’ve decided what you want to change, committed to the change and put a plan in place to achieve this goal. All that’s left on the path to success is execution. You must work toward your goal EVERY DAY. You can’t form a new habit overnight but you can form new habits with consistency. Sounds too easy? It’s not. As the saying goes, nothing worth having ever comes easy. But I can assure you it’s worth the journey. In addition to feeling better about yourself, you’ll feel better about your health, your future, and all of those people you’ve chosen to put before you (until now).

Although there is no true “key” to motivation, consistency will help you form healthy habits that will get you (and keep you) moving in the right direction. DECIDE that YOU are worth it. COMMIT to making your goal a reality. SUCCEED by following through with the plan.

Don’t forget, once you reach this goal it will be time to set a new one, because remember, there is no such thing as too much awesome!