A wise leader once shared with me, “Life is like a heart monitor. You have ups and downs.” Then she added, “If we play out that heart monitor analogy, a flat line isn’t ideal.”
Many things happen in our lives that we wouldn’t choose. Often, those same moments become the ones we wouldn’t trade. They reveal what we’re capable of and shape who we become.
When we feel strong, we naturally seek to influence outcomes and shape our circumstances. What’s helpful to prepare for, though, are the times when we aren’t feeling our best. Learning how to find motivation from within is one of the most valuable skills we can cultivate.
Here are four steps to tap into the inner energy needed for action:
1. Clarify what makes you flinch. Motivation is an emotion. When you realize that, it makes sense that other emotions like fear, worry, and insecurity can instantly deplete it. Finding your flinch begins with identifying an important action you aren’t taking consistently. What are you truly afraid to do? And, most importantly, why?
2. Think worst case. Work hard to recognize the worst thing that could happen if you do something you haven’t done. If you ask for a raise. If you take the first step toward exploring your dream. If you make the cold call to sell your solution. What’s the worst thing that could happen? If that happened, what is the most difficult, painful emotion you would experience?
3. Feel the pain. When you go deep and anticipate the despair of what hurt, failure, or rejection could feel like, the surprising fact is that you’ll often realize the depth of what you can handle. Motivation builds when we understand that taking a chance is less painful than living in fear.
4. Recognize reality. We often hesitate not because of the task itself, but because of the emotions we’re not ready to feel. When you clarify and anticipate the feelings you’re afraid to face, you become more comfortable with doing what needs to be done.
That’s motivation.
