Another real coaching conversation, this time about the elusive topic of motivation.
The Conversation
Client: I know what I should do. I just can't seem to make myself do it. I have no motivation.
Coach: What are you waiting to feel before you act?
Client: I don't know... inspired? Energized? Like I actually want to do it?
Coach: And how often does that feeling show up?
Client: [Laughs] Almost never.
Coach: So you're waiting for a feeling that rarely comes, and using its absence as permission to not act?
Client: [Pause] When you put it that way...
The Reframe
Motivation is not a prerequisite for action. It's often a result of action. You don't feel like going to the gym until you're at the gym. You don't feel like writing until you've started writing.
Stop waiting to feel motivated. Start acting, and let the motivation catch up.
The Practice
The next time you don't feel like doing something you know you should do, try this: commit to just two minutes. Two minutes of the task, no matter how you feel. After two minutes, you can stop.
Usually, you won't stop. The hardest part is starting.
Stay up.
