“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu
Zero to one is a paradox. It appears simple, but, in reality, it is arduous. Getting started is difficult, uncertain, and confusing, but essential. All greatness starts with a step.
To take this step, we need motivation. It is the force that encourages action into the unknown, and without it, flow states vanish. Motivation is a spectrum. On one side rests inaction, or apathy, and, on the other, action, or willpower. By training grit and willpower, we increase baseline levels of motivation, turning goals into reality, maybe even making the impossible possible.
The good news: we all possess the same neurology for maintaining motivation and achieving goals, and willpower can even be trained. The reward system, with its chief hormone dopamine, of the brain is responsible for our ability to set and achieve goals. If levels of dopamine decrease, so does our motivation and action. For example, depression, which is an extreme example of inaction, is characterized by low levels of dopamine.
Motivation can further be categorized as intrinsic and extrinsic. External motivation includes accolades, awards, or the praise of the audience, but internal motivation comes from within. We are the masters of this domain. It is the more sustainable of the two and resonates with a growth mindset. By choosing to control the controllables, we deter outside influences from disrupting our focus and instead keep our eye on the prize.
Sustainable motivation starts with sleep. Quality sleep effectively restores dopamine levels, promoting a stronger drive. Mindfulness practices like NSDR are also valuable bonus resources, and can be utilized to boost baseline dopamine.
Regarding tools, a priority and a schedule are optimal. The emphasis is on a singular priority. Not priorities. We must adopt an essentialist mindset. Find our most desirable, passionate, or interesting goal, that is ambitious but reasonable. And then, we clarify by specifying what success looks like and scheduling the number of times we will engage with the problem. It is not sexy, but it is sustainable.
Remember, motivation is a gauge. To increase the dial requires leaning into discomfort. There is no shortcut or way around it. If we wish to raise our baseline motivation, we must walk through the fire, accepting disdain or fear as a tool of greatness.
Lastly, we suspect most people are familiar with levels of heightened motivation at the start and finish, but reduced drive during the middle. We call this the “middle-game dilemma.” To prevent or reduce this natural occurrence, we have several secondary tools centered around visualization. It sounds contradictory, but visualizing our fears or obstacles will increase motivation. Additionally, rewriting our goals and placing them in different areas of our environment will further remind us of our goals. The point is we activate our most dominant sense and use it to overcome the “middle-game dilemma” and sustain motivation.
