When you’re down and out and you have no one to believe in whom do you call on? Outside of your faith and other beliefs what is your pick me up? What ultimately persuades you to continue to persevere at the end of the day? If none of your answers to these questions were y-o-u then it is in your best interest to reevaluate your motivation.
There is nothing wrong with putting your faith into something or someone else, but if that thing or person disappears you cannot be without. You cannot be unwilling to go on with your journey. You cannot choose another path or deter from your dreams just because you’re without.
To have self-motivation is to have a “pure fountain of youth” in a sense. According to psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the best way to be aware of the relation between your confidence and productiveness is to concentrate on the “FLOW” of things. We need to find what makes us happy and stop doing the activities or dwelling in the situations that put us down or make us emotionally distraught. Label yourself, identify and distinguish yourself, be YOURSELF. Try avoiding pessimistic ideas and challenge yourself to complete a task or behave in a manner that you’ve never openly expressed before.
For example, I am a terrible dancer, singer, actor, etc. but when I’m in my comfort zone, my room, I can be free. I feel that because no one is watching it is perfectly fine for me to make mistakes or not be the best at whatever I may do. However, I took a chance. I am a Resident Assistant and I hosted a “Block Party” program for my residents. We all danced and fellowshipped and they accepted me for my uncoordinated dancing or what some would call “weird behavior.” Pretty soon I could not wait to command the floor. They weren’t judgmental, they weren’t closed minded, nor disinterested. I took that chance and it boosted my confidence; I told myself that if I do not step out of my comfort zone I will never genuinely be comfortable. Their cheers and compliments motivated me to want to continue to showcase my “talents.”
Mr. Mihayl states that:
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15% of people say they have never experienced “flow”;
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15 – 20% say they experience it every day (or several times a day);
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Up to 65-70% experienced it on a more random basis.
Self-motivation is creating this sense of flow and a complacent identity. Not having the drive to want to navigate and promote through the corporate latter or work hard to get a degree will leave a person stuck. Stuck in the sense of knowing they can do so much more and be so much more. One moment could change an entire week. One decision can set the stepping stone for plenty more to fall through. Find the significance in what you do and why you do it to avoid being complacent.