What Motivates You?
You must have heard the words discipline, consistency, and hard work at some point in your life. How all of these traits can shape and make your life, and help you achieve your goals and become the person you have always wanted to be. Only sometimes mentioned along the lines of these traits is motivation. Motivation is one of the most important, if not the most, of all.
When it comes to developing a new habit, consistency matters, but the motivation behind wanting to develop that habit is what pushes you to be consistent. Suppose you’ve started going to the gym or intend to practice staying fit. In that case, motivation is the tingling reminder in your brain that gets you to reschedule, or even cancel, some of your appointments to visit the gym. Motivation is all about the ‘why.’ Why are you doing this? Why do you want to do that? What drives you to do certain things that are out of the norm? There are two main types of motivation: intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation.
Intrinsic motivation is the motivation to do something simply because you want to and not because you expect a gift or reward. It is you being motivated for your internal satisfaction. For example, when you hear that a new restaurant has opened somewhere in town, you make a trip to taste their food. The trip was simply because you love trying out new places.
Extrinsic motivation is being motivated to do something by the external rewards attached to them. It could be money, an award, attention from people, receiving praise, etc. Extrinsic motivation is visiting the new restaurant because you’re a vlogger or blogger and want to get views on your site. It is waking up every morning to go to a job you don’t enjoy because of the good salary at the end of the month.
DISCOVERING WHAT MOTIVATES YOU
Taking a deep look into yourself and your life, including your present position and situation, is the most important key to discovering what motivates you. Examining the steps you took to get where you are, the obstacles you faced in the past, and how you handled them will help you pick the values and passions you hold close to your heart.
It would be best if you first began with discovering your intrinsic motivation. What is it about what you are doing that you willingly decided to do for yourself? Your extrinsic motivation is related to your intrinsic motivation, so discovering one often reveals the other. For instance, if you were working a job you hated but stayed because of the money – an extrinsic motivating factor. Staying for the money is related to wanting to have a good life and being able to afford the basic things you want or need. Try answering these questions every time you do something to discover what motivates you.
Does it make you happy or sad? Do you feel a sense of satisfaction or regret when you are doing it or after you’re done? What was the thing you thought about the most while doing it? Was it the reward at the end or simply the fact that you were doing it? Will you do it without being told? Would you do it the same way if no one was there to watch you do it?
HOW DOES MOTIVATION AFFECT YOUR FITNESS JOURNEY?
The journey to staying fit is long and exhausting, especially when you’re just starting. A study showed that about 73% of people who set fitness goals quit before hitting their target. This means that you could easily be one of those people unless you have the secret that makes you different, which is your motivation.
Many people set goals full of energy and pumped with passion. Still, as time goes on, they slowly lose the motivation to keep that energy and passion running, eventually throwing those goals to the back of their mind. You can hold onto your motivation by;
- Remembering why you started in the first place. It will help you stay on track with your fitness journey.
- Think about what you hope to achieve at the end: Is it a hot summer body you want? Then imagine yourself in a beautiful bikini. Are you trying to stay healthy or get a flat stomach so you can finally wear that pretty dress you have always wanted? Then buy the dress and look at it from time to time.
- Go easy on yourself. Many people quit their fitness journeys because they want immediate results from their bodies. They overworked themselves and pushed their bodies to a point where they could no longer keep going, leading them to give up altogether.
- Reward yourself: If you consistently work out or exercise for a week, you can get that cute affordable bag you’ve always wanted. Rewarding yourself makes you feel better about your fitness journey and remain motivated to continue.
It is okay if you need more motivation to stay fit. Everyone has to start somewhere. Take a break from work or life. Take a road trip or hop on the next flight to a place where your motivation won’t be the only thing you find. Even if you can’t take a long vacation, a weekend away can work wonders. You’ll return to your everyday life happier, healthier, and ready to face whatever life throws your way.