How To Get Motivated and Stay Motivated

By Matt Bacak

You cannot finish anything unless you start. The greatest ideas are useless unless they are carried out. Thinking about something will not get it done, you have to get up and get going. I know this may be easier said than done, but it is up to each of us to get motivated enough to do what needs to be done to achieve our goals. This articles will help you understand what motivation is, how to get it and how to keep it.

How do you get motivated? What is motivation? How do you stay motivated? Well, I am glad you asked. Motivation is defined as the psychological feature that arouses an organism to take action toward a desired goal. It is the reason for the action taken. Motivation is that which gives purpose and direction to behavior. Let’s take these parts of the definition one by one.

First, to get motivated you must have a goal. Motivation is a psychological feature that arouses an organism to take action toward a desired goal. No goal, no motivation. In other words to get motivated you must first find something you want to accomplish. Perhaps you want to grow the perfect orchid, climb the highest mountain or just make a few extra dollars. Whatever it is, you must begin with knowing what you want.

One thing you can be sure of, you will not work just to be working, there needs to some aim. Now, once you get excited about becoming a millionaire, botanist, or whatever, your mind will begin to do its thing. That’s the psychology of it. If you want anything bad enough you mind kicks in and you find yourself thinking about how to achieve that goal.

Secondly, motivation is the reason for the action taken. For us humans there must always be a ‘why’ or ‘how come’ for just about everything we do. Is it any wonder that kids drive their parent’s crazy asking ‘why?’ and how come? It’s a kid’s way of finding motivation to do what is expected. Guess what? We still have to have those answers to get and to stay motivated to do the things that will bring the results we seek.

The third and last consideration is that motivation is that which gives purpose and direction to behavior. This is really quite simple if you think about. For example, it is the need to earn a living that causes most us to get out of bed every day and report to work on time. The motivation is a paycheck and the motivated behavior is to get up and do what’s necessary to get that pay-off. It the same concept applied to other areas of life. If you want a degree or a certain certification bad enough, you will be motivated to do what it takes to earn it.

The question to be answered if you lack motivation in any area of your life is this – what do you really want to do? Do you really, really want it? Is it your desire or someone else’s? The reality is if you truly desire anything, you have within you the ability (the mind) to achieve it!