The Joe Dickinson Team
It can be such a challenge to motivate yourself when you simply do not want to do something. How should we overcome a motivation roadblock? One word: discipline.
If you think about motivation as your morning cup of coffee, you can start to see the limitations of motivation. Sure, coffee is a great way to kick-start your day, but if you don’t supplement it with sleep and food, you’ll crash hard and fast. Discipline is a full night’s sleep and a nutritious breakfast. Here are some tips and tricks on staying disciplined when motivation just won’t cut it.
1. Make sure you know WHY you're doing what you're doing. If you have a strong enough reason(s) for doing something, those reasons will pull you through the setbacks, tough times, and road blocks you'll hit. Keep your end-goal in mind! Motivation will help you get started on your goal, but discipline is what will fuel you to the finish.
2. Win The Morning! I love this saying, "if you can win the morning, you can absolutely win the day." (Tim Ferriss). Your mind is operating at 10.5 wave cycles per second when you first wake up, and is most impressionable at the moment. Make sure to be aware of the negative thoughts that invade your mind when you first wake up and actively try to spin them to positives. Instead of reflecting on how tired you feel, think about how great you’ll feel after a hot shower and the sun in your face.
Don't look at social media when you wake up! Excessive social media use is comparable to a drug addiction and can lead to a toxic morning. IF you automatically check your platform when you first wake up, you’ve lost your discipline.
Don't watch the news, 90% of it is negative! The news is a great way to stay informed and educated about the world, but it can seriously hurt your mood if you watch it when you first wake up. It may be tempting, but save the news feed until you’re deeper into the day.
3. Stay grateful! As Tony Robbins said, “Gratitude Is the Solution to Anger and Fear” When I heard this, I just thought: powerful!
Take 5-10 minutes and think about 3 things you're grateful for! Say them out loud, and spend a moment thinking about WHY you're grateful for that specific thing. Immerse yourself in it, it will become much more powerful. Discipline yourself to do this every day.
4. Listen to or read positive material everyday. For me, it's listening to motivational youtube videos, podcasts or listening to audio books. Focus on feeding your mind things that play a positive role on your mindset and that you can learn from. Focus on learning something new every day.
5. Plan ahead. If you don't have a plan you're planning to fail! Put a plan in place so you're not just aimlessly doing things, but rather you know WHY you're doing what you're doing and how it will contribute to your end goal.
6. Wake Up Early! Distractions typically happen during 9-5. You're probably spending your time working during these hours. Give yourself an extra hour or two in the morning to work on yourself; your goals, your side hustle, etc. Did you know that if you woke up just one hour earlier every day, you'd get an extra 15 days of the year? It also puts yourself in a whole different state of mind for the day, as you're getting stuff done, and you're accomplishing things you haven't done before, this changes the game!
7. Defense Mechanisms - When you are feeling down, depressed, upset or just unmotivated in general, force yourself to do things that you know can pull you out of these states. For me, it's immediately shifting my mindset to things I am grateful for when I am stressed. OR, when I am not motivated, I pop my headphones in, open up YouTube and type in motivation. These are the kind of things that make all the difference for me.
Remember that motivation isn’t a given and it often cannot be forced. It will come and go, and you may not be able to choose when. You can, however, practice discipline to pick up the slack when motivation doesn’t show up.
