We all want to wake up feeling motivated. Whatever the goal is, whether is to clean the house, or get your workout done before work, or connect with friends, we want to wake up on FIRE, accomplish that goal, conquering the day like a boss.
But do you wake up motivated everyday?
I certainly don’t.
Some days I am on FIRE and I’m unstoppable. I accomplish 237 things before 8am. Other days, I don’t even have the energy pick up my phone and buy something I need online… all from sitting on the couch.
3 things in my professional career have taught me the difference between motivation and momentum.
1. When I teach kids, the hardest things to teach is motivation and grit. In fact, I don’t think I can teach anyone those those things. Sure, I can inspire it in them, but it’s not something you learn and know it forever. We need reminders. CONSTANTLY!
2. When I was part of a dance company, I worked with a choreographer named Neisha Folkes. She was a former Alving Ailey dancer. We would have LOOOONG rehearsal days, and when I would hear it “Let’s run this number again”, I wanted to cry. She then said, “Energy creates energy!” That stuck with me, because my body was always willing to go one more time for me.
3. When I see someone doing what I want to do, I am motivated to get started on it if I haven’t already. I am motivated to make a change in my life. The fear of missing out lives inside every human.
What does it mean to rely on motivation?
It means to rely on something that is really powerful and feels really good, but it’s inconsistent. It comes and goes.
What does it mean to rely on momentum?
It means to rely on something that may not feel that good but is absolutely necessary to get the wheels going and get you places. It’s always there, so you can always turn to it.
Momentum is getting started and gaining speed on something, right? If you swing your hips forward hard enough, it will motivate the rest of the body to move forward as well.
It takes energy to create energy.
Fear of missing out can lead to motivation. We hate being left out. We’ve all been there, right? You’re in your PJs, scrolling through your feed, you see that person killing it on the same field you are in, doing the exact same thing you want to do. So one of the three things will happen:
1. Either you will go to your room, change clothes, head to your computer, and you begin to take action. BOOM! You’re on a roll!
2. You have the “SQUIRREL” disease: you forget about the motivation as fast as you were motivated.
3. You get intimidated. You’re too far away from it! That person has it NOW! “HOW MANY THINGS DO I HAVE TO DO TO GET THERE?” You’re overwhelmed, you don’t know where to begin, so you don’t even get started.
One of my favorite entrepreneurs says it best…
Moral of the story? Don’t wait for motivation to start on something that means a lot to you. If you know in your gut you have to start ‘that something’, just start it! If you feel motivated to do so, take advantage of that feeling and get the action going. But if you don’t feel motivated, do it anyway.
JUST DO IT. (Nike was brilliant when they came up with that slogan- it works for everything!) Get it started… motivation will follow.
Motivation comes and goes.
Momentum is always available to you.
Move and keep moving.
XOXO
Ferly