Seven ways to motivate yourself

All of us have had an experience were we attended a seminar or training course or church service and you were so inspired and motivated that you wanted to start immediately to change your circumstances. But by the next morning all your good intentions have gone and you just carry on on your old track, in the same old comfort zone. You know you have to start but something inside you wants to put it off till later.

All people sometimes find themselves not wanting to do the things they need to do. It’s part of human nature. There is a part of you that wants to get into action and fight everything that stands in the way of your success, but there is another part of you that wants to take it easy, procrastinate or stop altogether. The part of you that wins this battle will determine the measure of your success. Andrew Carnegie, the most successful business man in the world at the beginning of the twentieth century said: “People who are unable to motivate themselves (every day) must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their talent.” That is why you have to find ways to motivate yourself and to stay motivated for as long as it takes.

Without the skill of self-motivation you will never accomplish anything of significance in life. As Jim Rohn always said: “A guy says: “I wish someone would come by and turn me on”. What if they don’t show up? You’ve got to have a better plan for your life.” The only really successful motivation is self-motivation.

That is why John Maxwell said ‘Winning is an inside job’. You need to find ways to encourage yourself, you must be your own cheerleader, you cannot rely on someone to do it for you. And you have to do it every day anew, because things are going to happen almost every day that will take the wind out of your sails and pull you down. Suddenly you will see those frightful things we call obstacles, just because you lost motivation and began to lose focus on your goals. Your motivation will not last, as Zig Ziglar used to say, motivation is like bathing, it doesn’t last, that is why it is recommended daily.

The secret of really successful people that make an impact in this world is that they stay motivated day in and day out. I always tell my children that some people stay motivated for thirty minutes, some stay motivated for thirty days and some stay motivated for thirty years. That’s the difference between mediocrity and insignificance and really doing something extraordinary with your life.

Here are seven suggestions on how to stay motivated every day:

1. Read every day in your field of interest

If you watch a little less television and read just thirty minutes every day in your field of interest you will stay motivated to do what you need to do and in the process you will read approximately twenty books a year, which will within a few years put you in the top 10% of people in your field. It is also a very good idea to read the autobiographies of the successful people in your field, you will learn a lot from them and few things are as inspiring as autobiographies. It is my opinion that you will never be really successful if you don’t read.

2. Listen to books or motivational talks on audio

About a year ago my work conditions changed. Suddenly I didn’t have much time left in a day to read as much as I would like. I was frustrated for about six months and then I discovered audible.com. Just about every book on the market is available in audio format and can be bought from audible.com. I subscribed to audible and bought myself a pair of ear phones and an mp3 player. Problem solved. I use it all the time; in the gym, in my car, on the bicycle, hosing the garden. I am never without my mp3 player. I listened to about forty books and audio programs in the last six months alone.

You can also buy cd programs to listen to in your vehicle on your way to and from work. Instead of getting frustrated by the rush hour traffic that you can do nothing about, you can spend the time developing and motivating yourself. Zig Ziglar calls this your automobile University.

3. Keep a journal

You have to write down the things you want to remember from the audio books you listened to anyway, so why not start the habit of regularly writing down important motivational quotes and things that help keep you inspired. The biggest value of your journal is that you can go back to everything you have written down and fan the flame of your enthusiasm by reading it again to rekindle the passion inside you.

4. Attend Seminars regularly

One of the best ways to stay motivated is to make sure you attend at least two seminars in your field of interest or on personal development per year. It is money well spent, and after all, you never spend money on developing yourself, you invest it. It is worth every cent. While you are there why not buy a set of the cd’s to listen to it again and again in your car?

5. Daily goal setting

Spend time every day to go over your goals. Read through it every night before you go to sleep. At the beginning of every new day write them down in a spiral notebook. It will definitely help you to stay inspired and get your sub-conscious to start working on them.

6. Spend time with the right people

Spend time with other people who are just as passionate about what you are doing as you are. Allow them to influence you. Remember you are the average of the five people you spend the most of your time with. At the same time avoid the nay-sayers who want to talk you out of doing what you have to do; you have a choice as to who you spend your time with. Don’t allow negative people to influence you and drag you down.

7. Take action immediately

Do something immediately to make sure you don’t lose your enthusiasm. Anthony Robbins says you should never leave the scene of a decision without taking action, otherwise you might fall prey to the law of diminishing intent and lose your motivation altogether.

Start applying one or two of these suggestions immediately after you read this article. Just do it. If you commit yourself to applying some or all of these points you will find that you become a much more motivated person.