Photo by Matthias Weinberger
Isn’t Motivation Enough?
Motivation is defined as the general desire or willingness of someone to do something. How many of us have a stack of books or magazines in our home that we genuinely intend to read? We may have the best intentions, but why haven’t we actually made our way through that stack? The answer to that question lies in a process called follow through.
Writing for the Harvard Business Review, author Peter Bregman described follow through like this: “Motivation is in the mind; follow through is in the practice. Motivation is conceptual; follow-through is practical. In fact, the solution to a motivation problem is the exact opposite of the solution to a follow through problem. The mind is essential to motivation. But with follow through, it’s the mind that gets in the way.”
Steve Levinson’s kindle book Following Through: A Revolutionary New Model for Finishing Whatever You Start is another great resource for gaining a deeper understanding of follow through.
Learn Follow Through
How best to turn motivation into follow through? Here are some ways to begin:
Start Small. Don’t get overwhelmed by the big picture. Instead, focus on the here and now. What matters most is to do something small consistently, so choose goals that are realistic for you.
Example: “I’ll take one book from my stack and set it on the nightstand. Then I can read a page or two each evening before I fall asleep.”
Identify Your Triggers. What triggers the habit you want to change?
Example: “When I stack books, mail, flyers, I no longer see them as individual items to be dealt with; it’s just another heap in my environment to walk around and not knock over.”
The key here is to examine the exact details of why your motivation doesn’t translate into follow through. Once you better understand these mechanisms, you can create positive interventions to achieve different results.
Example: “I will set my unread books on a shelf close to my desk and not on the floor or off in a corner.” Or “I’ll put my gym clothes and shoes in my bag and stow it in my car so I can go right from work to the gym.”
There’s An App For That. Software tools are a great way to get organized and stay motivated. Use the reminder function on your computer, iPad or smartphone, or purchase a dedicated to-do app. There’s even an app called Lift that was specifically designed to help you build better habits.
Be Accountable. Reach out to your support system. Let another person know about your goals. Accountability is the backbone of the immensely helpful 12 Step programs, and it is a powerful tool for change.
Overcome Urges With Affirmations. Urges only last a short time. Affirmations can help you stay on track.
Example: “I feel great when I give myself the time to read my new book.” “I enjoy my time to exercise.” “I am good at follow through.” “I get things done.”
Share Your Progress. Each daily goal you achieve imparts a sense of accomplishment that can fuel that next effort. You can reinforce that feeling by sharing it with others, either in a personal email or a simple online status update. If you prefer face to face sharing, join a class or group, where you can help each other keep focus and get support.
Accept Setbacks Gracefully. If you have a setback, simply recommit and move forward again. Don’t waste time or energy berating yourself. Follow through isn’t about perfection, it’s about continuity.
Give It A Month. Habits don’t change overnight. Give yourself at least one month when trying to develop any new habit. Matt Cutts’ TED talk “Try Something New for 30 Days” has some good tips on this.
Move Towards Mastery
Learning to understand follow through is the key to turning your intentions into real actions. And with it, beginning the exciting journey from motivation into mastery.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
Aristotle
Photo by Ben Kilgust
