MOTIVATION FACTOR HOW TO STAY MOTIVATED NO MATTER WHAT Special Report prepared by ThoughtElevators.com
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Motivating Factors in Your Life Gratitude can be a powerful thing, specifically if you are motivated to change your life for the better. If you are properly motivated by the thing things, then you will be able to go after everything you want in life and actually achieve it. That s why we are going to discuss motivating factors in your life now. Let s start by getting a clear image of what motivation actually is. I found this quote by Kendra Cherry: Motivation is defined as the process that initiates, guides, and maintains goal-oriented behaviors. Motivation is what causes us to act, whether it is getting a glass of water to reduce thirst or reading a book to gain knowledge. It involves the biological, emotional, social and cognitive forces that activate behavior. In everyday usage, the term motivation is used to describe why a person does something. (Cherry) Motivation is what leads you to do virtually anything in your life: You are motivated to make money, so you get a job. You are motivated to not be alone so you seek out love. You are motivated to not starve so you eat. You are motivated to want better things for your life, so you are reading this book. Motivation can be a powerful force since it can keep you on the right path. As a human, you will have bad days. There will be times when you just want to quit trying. You probably will want to sit down and just give in because things are too hard, too rocky, or too confusing. In those times, you will need your motivators even more than ever. MOTIVATION FACTOR 3
Thankfully, you have a wide variety of motivators just waiting for you to use them. Let s explore those many different motivators so that you can turn to them whenever you want. Feeling Excited Do you remember being a kid on Christmas Eve? Do you remember how giddy you felt because something fantastic waited in your near future? You couldn t go to sleep. You couldn t sit still. Your mind imagined all the wonderful gifts that would be waiting under your tree. Sometime as you grew into adulthood, you forgot that wonderful childlike innocence and excitement. You lost that feeling and you probably don t get that same excited feeling. But, why should you lose that? You shouldn t! Because you are reading this book and finding all of this wonderful information on how to elevate your mind and live the better life, you are on the cusp of something amazing. It s like Christmas Eve for you! All of those wonderful gifts are waiting for you to open them. All you have to do is open the boxes. This is your first motivator. Learn to get back to that childlike excitement and look at the opportunities you have with wonder. Enjoy hat feeling and want more of it. This will motivate you to go after more. Knowing the Benefits of This Change Throughout this book, I have talked about the many benefits all of this will bring to your life. You will be able to enjoy all the things you have right now. Additionally, you will be able to see how many more opportunities you have available in your future. These benefits certainly work as motivators all on their own. To give you a real idea of everything you will be enjoying because of these changes in your life, here is a list of general benefits. Add your own personal ones as well. MOTIVATION FACTOR 4
You will be opening yourself up to so many more opportunities in your personal and professional life. You will be taking steps to improve yourself. As you learn to send out positive thoughts, you will see the Law of Attraction in action in your life. As you become more grateful for the things you have and will have, you will be happier now and in the future. What benefits could you add to this list? Surely you have a few things of your own and those benefits can certainly act as motivators. Anytime you feel tired of trying, just remind yourself of everything you stand to gain. Imagining the Future Your own imagination can be very powerful. It can give you real images of what your future will be like. That way, instead of saying I want, you can say I have The more you actually create the reality you want, the more the Law of Attraction will give it to you. So right now paint an image of what you would love for the future. Here s an idea to help you get started: My future will be like an enhanced version of now. I will have the big promotion in my job. I will meet the partner of my dreams. I will have enough money that I can take the time and learn my hobbies. I will be financially stable so that I don t have to stress about money. Go ahead and write down your image of your future. Keep what you wrote down somewhere safe because you may need to use it as a motivator from time to time. MOTIVATION FACTOR 5
Meditation As you try to learn how to focus on positives and forget negatives, you will have days when you slip. You can t be perfect and you can t change your whole way of thinking all at once. Even if you know this, you are liable to fall into a slump every time you slip just because you expect too much out of yourself. During those times, meditation can help you, and it s described well in this quote I found about the subject: Meditation can help focus your mind and renew your enthusiasm. When you meditate, you learn to let go of your negative thoughts and refresh you mind so that life feels new again. Meditation also teaches you discipline and gives you energy, giving you the will to do what you need to. If your lack of motivation comes from depression, cynicism, or from disenchantment with life in general, meditation is a great way to change your thought patterns. Often ruts come from the repetition of thoughts, words, and deeds. (141 Benefits of Meditation) In fact, you don t have to just save meditation for when you need a motivator. You can use it all the time in your life to maintain a calm, open mind. How to Meditate With all that in mind, how do you meditate? That s certainly a good question if you never have before. The whole purpose of meditation is to completely quiet and focus your mind so that you reach an inner calm and awareness you wouldn t be able to achieve otherwise. You can actually meditate no matter where you may be once you learn how to practice it. Here are the steps you need to take to meditate properly. MOTIVATION FACTOR 6
Find a peaceful place. As you get more in-tune with deep awareness, you will be able to meditate anywhere, but for now choose a quiet space with little or no distractions. Some people choose an extra room in their house, a walk-in closet, a quiet spot in the woods, or even their office. All televisions, phones, and appliances should be turned off. You do not need any interruptions. Consider using an ipod to play peaceful music or buy a small indoor water fountain so that your background sounds will be the repetitive, peaceful bubbling. You want to be perfectly comfortable when you meditate, so make sure your clothes are very comfortable. Consider something loose fitting and soft. Additionally, take off your shoes. Avoid any clothes that are restrictive or tight. You will probably want to start out with about five minutes of meditation a day. As you become more used to the process, you may wish to go up to two 20-minute sessions a day. Try to plan your meditations for the same time each day for the best effect. Make sure you do some stretches before you begin meditating. Since you will be sitting in one spot for the process, be sure your muscles are loose and warm. This will help you avoid sore spots and stiffness. Find a very comfortable position to sit in. You probably have seen that lotus posture that is commonly used on television, but as a beginner, you probably won t be flexible enough to stay in this posture comfortably. You need to make sure your torso supports your spine comfortable, so sit how you feel best. MOTIVATION FACTOR 7
Close your eyes and begin focusing on your breathing. All you want to be aware of right now is breathing in and out. Don t attempt to change your breathing. Just be aware of it. Use a mantra to focus your thoughts and clear your mind. You can make a number of different sounds or words, but two of the most common are om and sat, chit, ananda which mean I am and existence, consciousness, and bliss in Sanskrit respectively. You don t have to use a mantra, but many people find that it helps keep their mind from wandering. Find a simple object you can concentrate on, like a candle, a flower, or a rock. Anything that will help you focus your mind will keep your thoughts from wandering. If you do this, your ultimate goal should be to completely open your mind and veer away from the thoughts that are cluttering it up. As you grow more accustomed to meditation, you will find it easier and easier to get into this state. Believing It Will Work Your own power of belief can be a very good motivator or it could stand in your way depending on what you do. Because a big part of the positives coming into your life will also be from your own thought processes, you have to truly believe in the changes you want. If you do nothing more than hope things will get better, then they won t. That s because you don t truly believe in them. You don t have them and you are still focusing on that. So, to keep yourself motivated, truly believe it will work without any doubts. MOTIVATION FACTOR 8
Taking Action and Loving that Action Taking Action Good Feeling/ Motivation Good Feeling/ Motivation Take Action Action in and of itself is a good motivator too. Think about going to the gym: You probably were not really excited to get up, get ready, and go to the gym. But then, you get there and start working out. You start feeling really good because you are accomplishing something, you are burning calories and you are releasing those endorphins. When you leave the gym, you feel so much better than you did before. Any action to make yourself better will give you that good feeling of knowing you did something. So, when you take action, you will feel more motivated to take even more action. It s a continuous cycle, and once you find your way into it, you won t have to worry about it breaking down. Law of Momentum There is a law in physics. It would be too hard to explain in detail right now, but what it basically says is that if an object has momentum, something will maintain that momentum even if the object collides with something else. MOTIVATION FACTOR 9
Have you ever seen a Newton s Cradle? It s the contraption that graces many office desks all over the country. It is a simple set of two metal bars that support a series of metal balls hung from string. When you hold a ball on one side out and let it swing down, it will hit the whole line of balls. The whole line doesn t move. Just the ball on the opposite end. When that opposite one comes down, it will cause the original ball to swing out. This will keep on going. Why? The law of momentum! Although that momentum was translated to another object, it still existed. What does this possibly have to do with your ability to elevate your mind and get the things you want? Quite simply, once you get started doing something to better yourself, you will have set off momentum. You can continue using that momentum to move forward to do more and more and more. It s really a simple concept when you look at it in these terms. Get moving and you will find it so much easier to keep moving. Knowing the Right Approach The way you approach these changes in your life will have an impact on how motivated you can stay as well. When you approach things with the mindset that you will succeed, you will find it much easier to keep trying and keep going. On the flip side, if you approach this process with a skeptical or doubtful mindset, you will likely lose your motivation the moment you hit a bump in the road. However, if you go into the process with the belief that you will achieve and you have the right approach, you will find it so much easier to get through even the biggest bumps that may come in the road. So, let s talk about your approach. As you read through this book, how do you feel about the idea that you can elevate your mind and get everything you want in life? MOTIVATION FACTOR 10
Do you feel doubtful that your life really can change when you believe it can or are you able to see how this really can work? When you consider the Law of Attraction or the Law of Clarity, do you approach trying to change your thought processes in a positive way? If you approach he changes in your life with the full belief that you can have things so much better and you approach this with gratitude for everything you already have, then you will find it so easy to stay motivated and move forward. Flow States If you recall, a few chapters back, I mentioned flow states and their connection to hobbies and doing things you love. Now, let s talk about what a flow state actually is and how it can help you with numerous different things in your life. Have you ever heard an athlete, upon being asked how he performed that awesome feat, state that he was in the zone? Maybe you have even experienced the zone yourself a few times. It s that feeling you get when you are doing something you love and all focus, mental attention, and physical exertion is going toward that one activity. You are completely immersed in the experience and you feel total bliss in what you are doing. You may call it getting into the zone, but what you are experiencing is actually a flow state. Why do you need to achieve this flow state? It will help you get in the zone and use the energy, happiness, and capability that just flows out of you without any stress, anxiety, or other problems getting in the way. This article I found discusses how to get in your flow state: It is the full involvement of flow, rather than happiness, that makes for excellence in life. We can be happy experiencing passive pleasure of a rested body, warm sunshine, or the contentment of a serene relationship, but this kind of happiness is dependent on favorable MOTIVATION FACTOR 11
external circumstances. The happiness that follows flow is of our own making, and it leads to increasing complexity and growth in consciousness. (Csikszentmihalyi, 2012) A flow state is very helpful because it will assist in your motivation. It will also help you truly enjoy hobbies and experiences so that you can find real pleasure in everyday life. So, then, how do you achieve flow? 1. Start by knowing your skills. You don t want to choose an activity that is too easy or too hard for you. You won t be able to achieve flow if you aren t challenged or if you cannot achieve. For example, someone who has been running and training could achieve flow in a half-marathon. Someone who never runs would find this too hard and someone who regularly runs full marathons may not find it challenging enough. So, your first step to achieve flow is to find an activity or hobby that you have skills with and match your skill set to the challenge. 2. Be willing to stretch your skills somewhat, but not too far. A little challenge can keep your attention focused, but too much of a challenge can cause stress and frustration. For example, say you have been putting together puzzles and you have mastered 500 piece models. When you start a new puzzle, you could choose the 1,000 piece model or the 5,000 piece one. The latter may be too much of a challenge, but the 1,000 piece one could give you just enough challenge to achieve flow. 3. When you focus on a task and want to achieve flow, you need to make sure you have a clear goal set. This will give you something to focus on. Your goal could be anything like winning an athletic challenge, painting a specific picture, learning to play a certain piece of music, finishing a specific project, etc. Your goal could be anything. Just make sure you know what it is. MOTIVATION FACTOR 12
4. Concentrate completely on the task at hand. You need zero interruptions and you need to clear your mind from distractions. In other words, don t expect to enter a flow state if you are multitasking and splitting your time between the task and five other things. 5. Focus completely on the process, not the end result. If you are completely fixated on the goal, then you won t be able to enjoy everything you are doing to get there. This means you won t be able to achieve flow. So, stop thinking about the result. Stop giving yourself a timeline. Just go with the flow. When you achieve flow, you will be able to enjoy true bliss and this can help you relax, de-stress, and feel happier in life overall. Additionally, a flow state can be a fantastic motivator, so whenever you feel yourself getting dejected or tired, go do something that allows you to achieve flow. Then, you will be able to refresh your mind and keep going. Your Lesson Motivation will be very important to staying on track and fully believing in yourself and what you are working toward. No matter what, there will be times when you just want to give up, so having different ways to stay motivated or get back your motivation will help. So, let s see what you have learned about yourself after this chapter. Answer the following questions. Are you excited right now to elevate your mind and achieve what you want in life? Do you fully understand the benefits that changing like this can bring to your life? MOTIVATION FACTOR 13
Are you prepared to test out different motivators and find things that work for you? Have you ever meditated? If not, are you willing to try it? When is a time in your life when you got in the zone and achieved a flow state? How did you feel during and after that time? You have so many different was to stay motivated, and you may have to use a little trial and error to see what works for you. Use the motivators in this chapter and you will find it much easier to stay on track and move in a positive direction. MOTIVATION FACTOR 14