Self Motivation- How to Get Motivated

The internet is a wonderful thing and since its introduction to the world it has created an abundance of money making opportunities for anyone looking to make an income from home. 

A lot of individuals who have gone on to make substantial incomes from online businesses started with zero or limited knowledge of how to do so. But by investing a little time and having the self motivation to proceed they have been handsomely rewarded for their efforts

Today more than ever there are a good number of internet entrepreneurs and businesses offering genuine online business opportunities.

So with all these opportunities available why do only a handful of people succeed while the majority either give up or just move from opportunity to opportunity without ever getting close to success?

The reason most people fail is down to personal development, the need to identify and set goals, then be able to systemically carry them through to conclusion.

Add to this the ability to apply self motivation when things don’t always go the way you planned and you find a cocktail of characteristics that the majority of us have to work hard to maintain.

Everyday when you wake, you have a very important choice to make…

You have to choose what to do with your time and the choice you make will determine whether by the end of the day you will be closer to where you want, or at the same point you where when you woke up that morning.

Too many people say they want to change their lives for the better, some even set goals and maybe have a small idea of what they need to do, but sadly  they lack real self motivation and belief so the choice they make when they wake in the morning is the same one they have been making every day up to that point…

The point is your life will not change unless you take action…

None of your goals will be achieved unless you do something about them…

When I speak to people, I hear all kinds of excuses but the most common one by far is,..

I don’t have the time!

I don’t have the time… these five little words are by far the favourite excuse for many people to hide behind.

However, when I dig a little deeper and start asking some questions, I find that in the majority of cases a little lifestyle change here and there and a small sacrifice or two can free up the valuable hours you need to start making a difference to your lives.

It may come as no surprise that one of the biggest consumers of our time is television,

Latest stats tell us that the average Brit watches 24 hours of TV a week and the average American 30 hours a week!

24-30 hours A WEEK!

That’s almost a full time job, even if you reduced your time watching TV by half that would free up 15 hours a week that could be better spent working on your goals and ambitions.

It’s not just TV either plenty of time is wasted away on other activities, things like spending hours at the mall, going to pubs and bars, going to ball games/events, playing video games, reading newspapers/magazines, social media, procrastinating, browsing the internet for nothing in particular the list goes on.

None of the things on this list are vital to our everyday lives yet so many people are unwilling to give them up, even though they say they want to change their lives and their circumstances, they really lack the self motivation needed to change.

I’m not saying cut everything you enjoy out of your life…

I’m just saying if you really do want to make changes sometimes you have to make short term sacrifices in order to manage your time better and maybe even (for now) stop doing some of the things you would normally do in order to free up the time you need to make long term gains.

So lets assume you have decided to make some changes and you have managed to free up some extra hours during the week.

What do you do next?

After all you have just potentially given something up you really enjoy, something you have been doing for years.

How are you supposed to keep yourself moving forward and find the drive needed without reverting back to the comfortable, TV watching procrastinator you were before you decided to make these changes?

Well the one thing you must have if you want to succeed is a daily shot of self motivation, this is essential because if you have no self motivation then it is very easy to slide back into the rut you have just pulled yourself out of.

It is especially important at the start that you get this daily shot until you build up the belief that what you are doing is working, until you can see everyday that you are getting closer to your goal and until the self motivation comes without you having to search for it.

When you get to that point you will have a drive and determination that will be burning so deep inside you that you will not be able to ignore it, it will get to the stage where any obstacle that is put in your way will just be taken in your stride and you will feel like nothing can stop you from achieving what you set out to do.

So how do you get to that point? How do you find the self motivation?

The first thing is have your goals written out in as much detail as possible and read these goals every morning as you wake and every evening before you retire, this will remind you of why you are making these changes to your life and instill some of the motivation you need to keep going.

If you want to read more about goal setting check out my blog post here.

The second thing is to make a mood board – A mood board is a visual representation of where you want to be in your life and is usually made up of images and text representing your ambitions and goals.

As with your goals make sure you look at this everyday and imagine yourself in as much detail as possible living the life your goals and mood board show.

The final thing is a daily affirmation, this is something you need to do by yourself.

Put aside 10 minutes during the day, turn off your mobile phone, the radio and the TV find yourself a quiet spot in a empty, dimly lit or darkened room, sit down in a comfortable chair and relax.

It is not easy to do this at first and you may feel a little awkward but give it a go anyway, after all what do you have to lose?

Next repeat the following to yourself:

“I awake everyday feeling an insatiable drive and determination to succeed, I find it easy to motivate myself and I look forward with excitement to the things I will achieve during the coming day.”

Close your eyes and clear your mind of any distracting thoughts, don’t try to think of anything just let yourself relax for a minute or two, relax your body and let the tension drain away from your muscles.

You may find it easier to concentrate on each individual body part, starting at your toes and working up until your whole body is relaxed.

With practice you will find this comes easier until you can almost do it without thinking.

Next start to count slowly in your head until you reach 20. When you do you should feel totally relaxed, almost trance-like. If any other distracting thoughts should pop into your head as you count, don’t worry, clear your mind and start over.

When you are in this relaxed state concentrate on the statement you have just read, don’t worry about knowing it all off by heart just repeat the key words to yourself.

Slowly return to your fully conscious state thinking as you do that you are feeling more relaxed more alert and more motivated than you were before.

The subconscious mind is a powerful thing and the whole point of this exercise is to instill these thoughts into your subconscious mind until they are accepted as fact and in doing so will become second nature to you.

You will notice that if you repeat this exercise on a regular daily basis you will start to see the results in no time at all. You will probably find that at first it is hard to get to the right level of deep relaxation but once you do start to master this consistently then the speed with which you achieve your desired effect will increase.

Do you have any self motivation techniques that you use?

Let me know in the comments below, share how you get on and what changes you made to your life in order to achieve your goals.

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