There’s a lot of talk about motivation, but what happens when you don’t have any?
Blog posts, internet articles, social media influencers, podcasts, books, conferences, and TV personalities mention the importance of motivation. We are fed the narrative over and over again that if we pump ourselves up and stay motivated, we will in fact achieve our goals.
While I am not trying to downplay the effects of motivation, I do think it’s important to point out what I believe others don’t – motivation is fleeting.
There are going to be days that you feel like taking on the world and tackling every single item on your to-do list. Then there are also going to be days that you have zero energy and you don’t want to do anything at all. Sound familiar? We all have both types of days!
Thus, if you were to rely on motivation alone and you were having one of those days, you’re likely to fall off the bandwagon pretty quickly. Let’s dive more into why motivation is unreliable, and more importantly, what you should rely on instead!
You Won’t Always Feel Motivated
This one is probably painfully obvious, but it’s so true – you aren’t always going to feel motivated. Once you pick your goals, you have to work on the path that helps you get to your desired end result.
That path may take some twists and turns along the way. After all, does anything ever go exactly according to plan? Haha! But think about this: if you’re not consistent on your journey, you’re going to fall behind and may even risk giving up on your goals.
Something Will Always Come Up
My husband always tells me that something unexpected will always come up, so you have to plan accordingly. In my experience, he is right, but don’t tell him that! 😉
While you most certainly cannot plan for everything and some days you actually won’t have the time to work on your goals, you have to make sure those days fall into the minority.
It’s so easy to get caught up in something that’s going on and you feel like you no longer have the energy or motivation. However, to really achieve your goals, you have to make time to get things done for the most part.
High Levels of Motivation Aren’t Sustainable
I’m going to use New Year’s resolutions as an example. A very common resolution is to exercise more/lose weight. People tend to be super motivated in the beginning – they buy the gym membership, they buy all the things for the gym (workout clothes, accessories, etc.) They even go to the gym as planned for a month or so, but then it happens…the motivation has dwindled away, and they go back to old patterns.
Contrary to some opinions out there, I don’t believe this means that the person doesn’t want it badly enough. While they’ve made a conscious decision to stop, I believe people fall into the trap of thinking they can’t do it or a multitude of other reasons. Regardless of the reasons why, they’re often putting all their eggs in the motivation basket and when it ceases, so does their activity. That’s why it’s unreliable!
What You Should Rely On Instead!
I talked a lot about why motivation is unreliable, but then that begs the question, what exactly is reliable?
Discipline.
All the places that motivation fails, discipline succeeds. I think this is one of the biggest reasons why we don’t see results. There is a lack of routine, a lack of foundation that keeps us going even on those days that you would literally like to be doing anything else but what you need to do for your goals.
If you have a plan in place that gets you to your desired outcome, think of that plan as your key that unlocks the door to that outcome. It takes true consistency to get there, commitment, and discipline to hold your feet to the fire so to speak. It makes such a big difference!
That’s a wrap on why motivation is unreliable, friends! I would love to hear your thoughts on this!
I feel like this is a good prelude into our soon-to-be-released hustle culture/slowing down series. Thanks so much to all of you for sharing your excitement for that series, I appreciate it so very much!
I couldn’t agree more with this post! Yes to discipline and consistency which you touched upon recently as well. I know this upcoming series is going to be great. Can’t wait my friend. Have a wonderful week!
https://www.kathrineeldridge.com
Thank you so much, my dear friend, I’m so glad you enjoyed this post and are looking forward to the new series!! I truly hope I can do it justice! 🙂
I definitely have days where I am NOT motivated due to maybe a night of bad sleep, a sick kid or I’m just not feeling it that day.. That is why I think I always try to get the things I really don’t want to do out of the way early in the week, so they’re off my mind. But, sometimes something comes up or I just feel very unmotivated and I scrap it and plan another day. I think having the discipline to know you will get to it sooner/eventually and not later is what will get it done. Fun series!!
Carrie
curlycraftymom.com
You are so wonderful at getting things done early and it definitely pays off! You always inspire me with how consistent you are, but also love that you give yourself grace on those days when you need some rest! And thank you so much, I hope you enjoy the new series!! 🙂
You are so right discipline is key. It is hard but much more reliable. Helps with the bad days too.
Allie of
http://www.allienyc.com
It really can be tough, you’re right. It’s just a little more helpful with a routine/being consistent versus motivation alone, and we definitely have to include times or days for rest.
The accuracy!! Motivation is fleeting for sure.
I love when you said: All the places that motivation fails, discipline succeeds.
Bring on all your tips to become disciplined!
Thank you tons, Kristen, that is so kind of you!! So happy you loved this one, and I have added that to my list to make a post on! 🙂
This is so true! There are some days were I am not motivated at all and need to take a break.
Jennifer
Curated by Jennifer
Thanks so much, Jennifer, and YES to the breaks. We definitely need those!
I love this post and totally agree that motivation is not reliable and that discipline and consistency are key. I think it also helps if we learn to enjoy the process and take the pressure off the results, (which probably links in to your new series!)
Julia x
https://www.thevelvetrunway.com/
Thank you Julia, I’m so happy you loved this one! 🙂 Amen to that, those are such wise words my friend. We could all truly benefit from not focusing on those outcomes (we can’t really control those anyhow!) but instead learning to be more present and making the most of the steps along the way. And yes, we will definitely be touching on this later in the new series!
This is so true! I was just reflecting this afternoon about how low my motivation was. But you are right, discipline is important!
Thanks, Laura! I can relate friend, I think it comes in waves and sometimes, there are just periods where we have so much going on that those levels just don’t rise up to where we are feeling good and wanting to do certain things. It’s more than understandable, and sometimes we just need a break to reset and recharge.
I couldn’t agree more! I definitely saw a decline in my motivation when I was pregnant due to hormones and fatigue. And I had to honor my body and feelings. I love that you clearly differentiated discipline with motivation as those are two different things 🙂
https://www.mariannyc.com/boram-care-mustvisit-postnatal-retreat/
I love that so much, Mariann, and how you said it – you honored your body and your feelings! That is exactly the kind of example we need to follow, my friend. It can be so easy to get caught up in wanting to do all the things, but there are times, especially like yours, that we have to remember to take care of ourselves!
I couldn’t agree more and really enjoyed this. Looking forward to the upcoming articles.
Thanks momma, so happy you enjoyed the post and hope you like the next one!
I totally agree! Motivation isn’t reliable, but discipline is. Even though it’s totally okay not to do what you said you were gonna do every once in a while. If you exercise strictly or check everything off your to-do list, it’s okay to have days where you simply don’t do it or do less than usual. Nothing wrong with that. Recharging is important, too 🙂
Love,
Krissi of the marquise diamond
https://www.themarquisediamond.de/
Thanks so much Krissi, you are absolutely right! 🙂 Recharging is very important and we need those times to just be, and that helps us to do better for the other times that we are keeping up with our routines.
This is such a good post! I agree, motivation can be fleeting. it can be hard to get motivated for things when there is so many other things going on to take our time and attention!
Thank you so much, Mica! I completely agree with you, we are dealing with so many different things (a lot of those can be unexpected) and it’s really hard to navigate it at times. We definitely need breaks and periods of rest!
In my opinion, the media has a negative influence on motivation. This is my opinion, which made me cut down on the way I use the media. There are lots of positive quotes, talks, etc., but at the end of the day, the world has so much negativity and toxic people preaching about motivation.
https://www.melodyjacob.com/2023/03/what-qualifications-do-you-need-to-get-into-finance.html
Absolutely Melody, your opinion is so valid and I agree with you! I think it certainly puts a negative light sometimes on even those that aren’t trying to push the toxic positivity stuff (like me!). Kudos to you on doing what serves you well and changing the way you use and digest media!!
love your perspective! this is so well said
Aww, thank you so very much, my friend! 🙂
Love your thoughts on the topic! It reminds me a bit of the ideas in the book “the subtle art of not giving a fu**” It is definitely true that motivation comes in waves and you can feel super productive highs and experience lows where you think “oh wow nothing is really working” . But I think establishing routines always helped me overcome unmotivated periods.
lots of love, Miri
http://www.meetmiri.com
Thank you so much, Miri, I’m so happy you loved this post! That is very true, it can get us down so easily that we think there’s something really holding us back because we may not feel that level of motivation that we want to feel – but it doesn’t mean that something is wrong or broken. It’s just those routines and consistent steps really make a difference in helping to stabilize things, and just as you said, get through those unmotivated periods.
I absolutely agree with this post. Consistency is key.
Annie,
Annies Food Diary
Thank you tons, Annie, so happy you enjoyed this post! 🙂
Yes to this!! Discipline and consistency!
It truly is, thank you bunches Kristina! 🙂
I never thought about it this way, but it makes complete sense! There’s a big difference between motivation and being disciplined. And being disciplined will help you reach your goals!
Jill – Doused in Pink
Thanks so much friend, so happy I showed you a different side to motivation in this post. 🙂 It really is valuable, it’s just that we can’t rely on it completely. That’s where discipline really comes into play and helps keep us moving forward.