Habits and Motivation
- Kayla Griffith
- Apr 3, 2021
- 2 min read
Recognizing Habits
Since habits play such a large role in our lives, they also affect our motivation. Certain habits we pick up can motivate us, while others could possibly demotivate us. So, the solution would be to control the bad habits and use them to create positive outcomes or towards a goal you want to achieve. Easy right? Well, maybe not.
The first step to controlling your habits is to know what exactly a habit is and identifying what type of habit it is--hidden or conscious.
Conscious habits are fairly easy to recognize, seeing as they require us to be conscious for them to happen. And if you remove consciousness from them, they will most likely go away over time.
Hidden habits are habits that our brain has already turned on auto-pilot for, meaning we are completely unaware of them until an external source reveals them to us.
Take some time to sort through your habits and try to determine which ones may be hidden and which are conscious. Also think about how the habits make you feel--are these habits motivating or demotivating you.
Motivation
Motivation is a huge force in our lives, whether we can recognize it or not. And harnessing our motivation can help us make the most out of it. If we think about it, motivation is somewhat like a river, it is constantly flowing. Just sometimes we can see the river (motivation) and other times we can’t (demotivation). This “flow” can be broken down into three simple parts
Enablers--what supports your goal
Money, people, happiness etc.
Acknowledgement--external recognition that motivates you
Compliments, respect, support, etc.
Purpose--knowing what your purpose is to drive your motivation
Purpose
Having a purpose is what will separate motivation from demotivation. Knowing what our purpose is will help from habits and routines that will drive the motivation. Purpose derives from just two things:
Having Meaning--why do you want to achieve this specific goal; something that matters to you
Forward Movement--keep moving towards the completion of your goal
Motivation does provide the energy to meet a specific goal, yet that energy still needs to be focused on something. And even the smallest amounts of progress can still be motivating.
Now Put Everything Together
We now see that habits and motivation can go hand-in-hand. When there is alignment between your routines, responsibilities, and strategies, there will be a reduction in distractions and even demotivation. Knowing what your specific purpose is and being mindful of your different types of habits will increase your motivation, positivity, and keep you working towards what you truly want in life.
References
Comments