A Dose of Motivation. Part 1

       The most successful people are self motivated. This means that they are able to find the desire needed to accomplish things without the influence of others. I do not think people are born self motivated, but rather I think they carefully craft their skill. Which means that anyone can train themselves to be self motivated-and therefore successful.

 The essential elements of self motivation are:

1. Stay focused. Self motivated people are constantly reminding themselves of the outcomes of their efforts. Maybe they carry a list, maybe a picture, maybe they use a dry erase marker on their bathroom mirror so that at the start and end of everyday they are reminded of what they are working toward. Whatever the trick, the outcome is the same. Constant focus on the goal at hand.

2. Appreciate the role of self discipline in any accomplishment. Self disciple is the sister to motivation. When a self motivated person has a day where they feel anything but motivated (we all have those days) they rely on self discipline to keep them on track. Self motivated people will do what needs to be done even when they don't want to for the sake of the goal they are trying to reach. Like Nike says, sometimes you have to "Just do it."

3. Let your accomplishments fuel your motivation. Often a long term goal is achieved through the accomplishment of several short term goals. Self motivated people can appreciate these little victories and use each one of these accomplishments to fuel the fire of their motivation.

4. Believe in yourself. Self motivated people know that anything is within their power given knowledge and the right amount of time. They don't think they can do it, they KNOW they can do it.

5. Persistance is key. In the eyes of a self motivated person, a "failure" is just a set back. It is an opportunity to research alternative methods to achieve their goal, regroup, and try again.

      Motivation is fickle. When you have it there is nothing you can't accomplish. When you lose it you are defeated. I know we have all been at both ends of this spectrum and it is easy to become a victim of wavering motivation. The key is to make your motivation work for you by developing these skills and driving your own motivation. After all, if you have to sit around and wait for someone to come motivate you, you will spend most of your life waiting instead of doing.