Motivation is something we seem to be addicted to in this world. The relentless, motivational motivational messages of self-help books, podcasts, YouTube videos and social media influencers told us that we need to stay motivated, and yet somehow we knew on some level that this was missing the mark. We have to look for our why, create a vision board, over-motivate ourselves every day. And although these tactics might seem effective in the moment, the catch is motivation is fleeting.
Motivation is unreliable. It ebbs and flows, rises and falls like the tide. There are days where we awaken with a flame raging inside of us, a purpose; ready to attack the day like a lion prides itself. Some days we can barely manage to drag ourselves out of bed, let alone take on a to-do list. If we only feel successful when we are motivated, we are going to be disappointed and inconsistent.
Truth: motivation does not work — at least not for long term success. It may help get you moving, but it won’t help you get through the chapters of failure, the moments of distraction and the days with no energy. True lasting success requires more than temporary spurts of inspiration.
In this article, we’re going to look at why motivation doesn’t work, the real key to lasting success, and the habits and systems to use to create the life you want regardless of motivation.
Why Motivation Fails Us
Motivation is Emotion-Based
Essentially, motivation is an emotion — a FEELING. It resembles excitement, zeal, or even a passion. But, just like every other feeling, it ebbs and flows. There will be days when you will feel invincible. On other days, you may find yourself with no motivation, lacking of energy and fatigued or overwhelmed. Obviously, you can have motivation strikes, so waiting to take action until you feel motivated is like waiting for the right weather before going out, you will stay inside most of the time.
Sleep, diet, stress, outside events, and an eternity of other factors all affect emotions. By using motivation as your soul attribute to do things, you allow those variables to dictate your success.
6. Motivation is something You have to React to, not something that you Create
It really tends not to highlight until after we may have seen some outcome. As an example, maybe we exercise and feel good, so we also want to do things -> But that drive was after the deed, not before it. The cause-and-effect relation is often confused, and that is action first and then motivation; not vice versa.
Motivation to act is the wrong way round. Rather, momentum and motivation are made when you move—when you act, even when you don’t feel like it.
The Discipline To Become Motivated Is Not Built
Motivation is not required to brush your teeth, take a shower, or go to work—these are habits, not decisions you negotiate on a daily basis. Making a large impact is not about motivation, it is about discipline, systems, and consistency.
You start a diet, begin a project or join a gym because you are motivated. But what makes you continue to turn up when it is difficult, dull, or tedious? Which is where discipline comes in: and discipline does not care how you feel.
Another Approach: Systems, Habits, and Identity
If it is not motivation, what is it? A more effective method to success comes from three ideas: systems, habits, and identity-based living. These tools help you create a consistent, repeatable path forward — no matter how motivated you are from one day to the next.
Build Systems, Not Goals
If you are already doing well, goals are great for direction and systems are good for progress. A goal is where you want to end up; a system is what gets you there.
Goal: Write a book
System: Write morning hack: 700 words at 7 a.m. — 20 Minutes of daily writing & morning reflection; Fixed time (7h00) to do the writing (in 500 minimum)
Goal: Get fit
Convert: Gym every M/W/F.
Goal: Start a business
W: Contact a total of three leads per day
Systems eliminate the need to make those daily decisions. You no longer ask yourself, “Do I feel like working today?” You just follow the system. And that is how real pros roll. They do not wait until they feel like it. They maintain a plan and follow it.
Create habits by doing so consistently
A habit is a behavior marked by automaticity — it happens automatically after we practice it enough for it to become a default. When something becomes a habit you no longer have to feel motivated to do it; you just do it.
It is essential to start slow when it comes to creating a habit. Do not expect overnight dramatic changes. Instead, come up with very simple routines you can actually stick to, on your worst of days.
Want to exercise regularly? Start with 5 minutes a day.
Want to write a book? Write at least one paragraph a day.
Want to read more? Read one page before bed.
This is the reason the monumental result of James Clear that is his “Atomic Habits”—small habits that compounded by repetition produces huge results over time.
You know, like wehali, consistency is better than intensity. The average workout you do three times a week is better than the perfect workout you do once a month. What you do consistently, not what you do occasionally, makes the difference.
Pursue Outcomes, But Pursue The Right Identity
The biggest shift possible from outcome goals to identity habits
Goal-based: I want to run a marathon
Belief: I am a runner — Identity-based
End result: I want to write a book.
Type 1: Identity: I am a writer.
A big part of adopting an identity is that previous actions become automatic; but, if you really think about it, this has a lot to do with your new identity. Think about it: if you are someone who exercises, someone who writes, someone who leads, you will take the behaviour consistent with that belief.
Identity-based habits go deep because they are planted in your perception of self, not in your desires. Every moment of acting out your positive identity brings the evidence, making that identity stronger.
Build a Success System Without Motivation
Step 1: Define Your Identity
Begin with this question: Who is the person I want to become? Stop doing and start being to the process instead. Your goals should play a role in becoming that person.
Examples:
“I should be the kind of person who rises early and utilizes mornings well.”
“I want to be a person that stays healthy.”
“Be the leader for those you wish to inspire instead of the one you hope would support you.”
Step 2: Design Your System
Once you’ve got your identity then create an infrastructure around that identity. That encompasses routines, environment design, accountability mechanisms, and support systems.
Create a morning routine.
Set up visual reminders.
Use habit trackers.
Remove friction (for example, lay your workout clothes out the night before).
Then the right action should be the default, not an exception.
Step 3: Start Tiny
Condense the action to the simplest of forms. You do not need to be perfect; you need to be consistent.
Want to meditate? Start with 60 seconds.
Want to journal? Write one sentence.
Want to eat healthier? Swap one soda for water.
Winning is a momentum game. Small victories build confidence, and confidence leads to more action.
Step 4: Build the proper accountability and environment.
Willpower is overpowered by environment. Now set up your environment to be conducive to the goals you have:
Surround yourself with people that make you productive
Keep your workspace tidy.
Quicker Tip: Employ the apps or tools which push you to make progress.
Get rid of the temptations or distractions.
In addition, incorporate accountability:
Join a group.
Get a coach or mentor.
Share your goals publicly.
It is easier to stick with discipline — even when summoning the energy is a challenge — when others expect you to do it.
Step 5: To follow the steps and celebrate your progress
Measure whatever you want to be better at Track your habits, even if it’s just with a tick mark. Tracking progress reaffirms the commitment and serves as a visual proof of success.
Also, celebrate small wins. Stop waiting to feel good once you cross the finish line. Just for showing up, just for consistency, just to align with your identity, treat yourself like a fucking winner.
If you think about the things which comprise of successful people you will learn characteristics that are not appealing, its essentially doing the same thing over and over again.
Motivation is so enticing partially because it can feel electrifying. So much drama, emotion, and urgency. However, success itself is rarely that glamorous. It’s boring. It’s routine. It is the act of continuing to show up day in and day out, even when nothing exciting takes place.
That’s the secret. These people who you look up to—the athletes, writers, entrepreneurs, artists—they did not depend on motivation. They constructed systems, penciled in habits, and forged identities with their goals in mind. They made themselves be the one to do the work, especially when they did not want to.
In other terms: they did, consistency beat motivation.
Closing: Stop Following Motivation — and Create a System
It is a nice fish to get you started but not the fuel that will take you to the race line. The guidance is erratic, passionate, and fickle. Success — real success — is so much more than that, and you achieve it in a much better way: by creating systems, habits and identity.
Here are some ways to create routines that remove the need to make decisions:
Keep it small, keep it consistent.
Act like the person you want to become
Create the environment where success is possible.
Measure the progress and celebrate every progress.
Success is not a feeling — it is an action, one you take despite how you feel. And that after all is the mentality which differentiates between the dreamers and the doers.
Stop waiting for motivation. Create the structure, come in each day, and the numbers will do the talking.
