I got a question from a student recently
that I think really highlights a problem
that a lot of us have, and the problem is this,
we think that we can't get the motivation to do something,
when, in reality, we're simply not willing
to get the motivation to do it.
So, I wanna read you this question real quick,
and give you my thoughts on it,
and, hopefully, it'll help you
if you're having your own motivational problems.
So, it says, "one of the biggest problems I've been having
"is the struggle to see the consequences of not studying
"or not doing an assignment until the last possible second -
"and by last, I mean really last.
"I really need to be getting onto these things earlier,
"but I just can't bring myself to do it.
"I try to imagine the way it would feel to have it done,
"or even the consequences of not doing it -
"which is always a lower grade than I want.
"I've just found myself lying around, doing nothing -
"or literally doing anything else that I could
"possibly do besides actually working."
So, one thing he also mentioned in this email
is he liked the method I use to force
myself to wake up in the morning.
How I schedule a tweet to go out at 6:10,
that I'll give people $5 if I don't
wake up on time to delete it.
But he said, also, that he's not willing
to put money on the line, and that he doesn't have Twitter,
and it's really highlighted to me that
he has the ability to set these systems up,
it's very easy to set up a Twitter account,
and it's very easy to pony up $5 to do something
that's really going to benefit your life,
but, at this point, he wasn't willing to actually do it.
So, really, in my mind, this highlights
the difference that I mentioned earlier.
It's not that he can't motivate himself to do something,
it's that he's, as of yet, been unwilling
to set up the systems to create that motivation.
Now, your motivation to do something
that will help you in the long-term
has to compete with your impulses
to do other things at the same time.
Which means, that, motivation is
determined by a few different factors.
Mainly, there's the desire to get
the Reward for doing that thing,
you want to get a good grade on a test,
so you have to study for that test.
But there's also the possible Consequences
for not doing that thing, the pain that you'll bring
upon your future self if you don't get this thing done.
But there's also the impulse to get into other activities,
to go on Reddit, to go on Facebook,
to hang out with your friends, or go on a Netflix binge.
These are always competing with
your motivation in the moment.
So, essentially, you have to find ways
to tweak each of these values,
in order to generate the right amount of motivation to get
yourself to do whatever it is you're not currently doing.
And here's the key insight here,
you can build systems to create that motivation.
You can build a system that creates heavier consequences
for not doing what you were supposed to do.
Or, you can build systems that give you ancillary rewards
in addition to the main reward it's given by the task.
You can also set up systems that make it harder
to get into those distractions,
you can find apps that will block the websites
that you don't want to be distracting yourself with,
or you can go to the library so you're not near your friends
when they decide they want to go bowling.
Now, all these are things that you can do,
so the problem isn't that you can't
motivate yourself, it's that, right now,
you're unwilling to lay the groundwork,
and build the systems in order to generate that motivation.
The pain or discomfort of not doing
what it is you're supposed to be doing
has not yet become great enough
that you've decided to make a change in your life.
This reminds me of a comment that
I got recently on that video about my wake up system,
somebody said that, basically, it's ridiculous,
nobody should have to threaten themselves
to get up on time, or to pursue their goals.
And yeah, in an ideal world, I agree with that,
ideally, we would be able to generate
the motivation we need to do the things
that are gonna benefit us in the long-term,
that's what long-term thinking's all about,
but we don't live in a perfect world,
we don't live in an idealized world
where we're always looking to the future.
We live in the real world, we live in a world
where our impulse of desires in the moment
are often the things that rule our minds.
So, we have to work within those parameters,
work within those limitations,
and create systems that can help us
overcome those impulsive desires.
So, the question to ask yourself is simple,
have you actually done all that's in your power
to create systems to generate motivation?
When you tell yourself that you just can't
get the motivation to study or do your homework,
are you being honest with yourself, or, in reality,
are you just not willing to put in that groundwork?
Are you not willing to build those
systems to create the motivation?
If that's the case, then look at what you've
been doing in the past to create that motivation.
If it's not sufficient, then it's time to make a change.
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this quick video on motivation.
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at the companion blog post,
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Thanks for watching.