Commitment vs Motivation

Motivation is good, but it won’t get you to where you want to be. It can let you down at times and you can often be looking in the wrong places for motivation. Too many people look outside of themselves, look at what others have that they do not. This is the wrong place to be looking and it can be harmful to your health.

For the best motivation, you need to look inside yourself. Motivation is far stronger as an intrinsic trait as it is yours, you own it, you can feel it, only you can change it.

Motivation has become the go to 'woohoo' answer to all of our problems in the current environment. Far too many fake ‘motivational’ speakers, influencers and insta photographs circulating around the World at the moment, over emphasising the significance of motivation.

Motivation is also hard to measure, somewhat intangible, totally dependent on the perspective of individuals and easy to lose.

Does motivation make you get up at 0500 and work on self improvement for 4 hours before hitting an 8 hour shift at work?

Does motivation keep you going on 4 hours of sleep every day for over 14 days, operating in the harshest environments often in life or death situations?

Does motivation keep you up late planning the next days lessons for your child as you home school during a pandemic?

No to all of the above.

There is a story about J.P. Morgan paying $25,000 for an envelope with advice on how to be successful. Regardless of being true or not, it is great advice:

Write down the things you MUST do today.

Do them.

Simple yet effective.

Commitment is the key.

Commitment to yourself gets you out of bed and into study mode at 0500.

Commitment to your colleagues that are reliant on you keeps you focused on the objective even when your heart's not in it at the time.