Building a Concious Ladder: Finding Motivation in Our Lives
Motivation is a tricky thing. People spend endless amounts of money on books and classes that will ‘teach the secrets’ of motivation…but wait a minute…we’re missing something here.
Clearly, these people feel like they have no motivation (chances are, you’re somewhat the same). Realistically, they all rolled out of bed, they all put on their shoes (hopefully) and they all made it to the bookstore or to the motivation seminar – all the while looking for that magical solution.
So something is working here and working rather well, but there’s a disconnect between perceived motivation and actualization. Here I have to stop and say, “really?”, “really?” I become curious about where the gap between ‘just enough motivation’ connects to ‘motivated to get motivated’. Surely there’s a faster way to get there? Simple physics argues the fastest way between two points is a straight line; more complex (but still simple) physics allow us to bend the two points together, and to skip the road in the middle – point being, there’s gotta be a shortcut.
It seems that people get too caught up in ‘self-help’ and ‘motivation’ and ignore their goal of actualization. Let’s go back to my buddies Bob and Tom (If you don’t get the reference, you need to read this post).
Bob will wallow around trying to find a way to get over the missed opportunity in his love life, and he’ll look for any self-help book to get him there (Chicken Broth for the Broken Heart, Billy Ray’s Ache Breaky Heart, etc.).
Tom’s looking for the sure-shot with his career. He’s read 8 Successful Tips for Success, How to Win at Life and even the famous “How to Get Rich, and get to Fire People on TV.” (Let’s see if you get my humor here folks.)
For both Bob and Tom - they're missing a pretty crucial element. They're already motivated!
Gradual steps will get you there. Start writing down what you want to achieve and add ways to get there.
Bob will need to get out more, join a club, socialize, or just get a cute puppy.
Tom needs to stop hoping to win the career lottery, and to start building a list of pros and cons about things in his professional life. Chances are, there's plenty of things dragging him down (negative workforce perhaps?). That'll be an upcoming blog post...
So how about you? Why did you get out of bed? What's your goal in life, heck, what's your goal for the week? Are you ready to start Building a Conscious Ladder (© Andrew Rushmore) towards success?
It's easier than you think. Start Climbing!
