Mottos and Motivation.
Warning: This is a long one because I have heard so many good nuggets as I have been reading and listening to audios. As I sit here typing I’m not sure what direction this will go. I’m going to start with mottos. Straight from Dictionary.com, the definition of motto is “a maxim adopted as an expression of the guiding principle of a person, organization, city, etc.” A guiding principle is something to think about and strive toward daily. Have you ever heard a motto or a great quote and took it to heart? I heard these two mottos this week and I wanted to share them.
The first is “Become allergic to average”. I was listening to Spotify and this episode was on becoming powerful and really putting effort into your life. About halfway thru I heard the words, become allergic to average, and they really struck something in me. When I think of average, I think right in the middle, not good or bad, just average. It doesn’t excite me or make me think of greatness. I am on this self-discovery journey and I know I want to be more than average. I want to make a difference and change lives, I want to be remembered.
I truly believe that average is another word for comfortable. Up till now, I have done what I consider to be average. I have a solid but not Harvard education. Worked my way from student intern to a lead in a specialized department. My apartment is small and simple but not the house I one day will have. I can’t remember really having done anything to stand out from the masses and its not that any of that is a problem. However, it will always be the same if I don’t get “allergic to average” and stretch my goals and capabilities more and more. I am going to apply for the higher paying jobs, that only in my mind, I am not qualified for. I am going to put more effort into writing this blog in hopes to reach more people. I am going to add in volunteer hours to get into charity work and find a platform to help others. You get it 😊
The thing with mindset and goals is really that you need to have some idea of a timeline, which brings us to motto #2 also from a podcast. It’s a really good one, “One day or day 1?” Is there something that you have been putting off because you aren’t ready or because its just not the right time? What about the idea of I’ll start on Monday? It really is as simple as changing the thought from “one day” to “today is day one”. I have really struggled with this concept, letting my mind win the battle and give me all the reasons not to just start now.
In all honesty, I have had those thoughts regarding this blog. I don’t feel like a writer 99% of the time and who am I to even have a blog? What do I know about anything that someone would want to read or what if everyone hates it? I have had these thoughts and I had to tell myself that the only thing that matters is that I start. Sure, it may take me a few days in between to write a post but I get going and here I am with five paragraphs already.
I have also learned this when it comes to creating habits and getting healthy. Not going into a lot of detail here, but I have made a few changes at home and with my eating. I started doing the chores now (right when I saw a mess) so they didn’t pile up and take all day Saturday. My apartment has never been cleaner because I do a bit at a time and don’t have to mentally prepare to tackle them. I drank that glass of water right when I decided to quit drinking soda. I put my gym shoes on right when I got out of work shoes. I still had soda in the house, no healthy groceries in the fridge and did not like the way my gym clothes fit. Not the ideal environment for a healthy lifestyle. But in the month that I have consciously chosen today to work on me I have lost 8 lbs and my clothes fit better, I feel better. The point is you don’t know the changes you are missing out on because you push it off till one day.
Which brings us to Motivation. No great shocker here but sometimes it is extremely hard to get motivated. We all have different things we struggle with finding motivation for no matter if it is home, work or goal related. It varies from the day to day right on thru a career change or a move. Im sure there are things that come to mind for you but here is a list of some of mine.
Everyday: getting up early for work, squeezing in a workout, grocery shopping, preparing for taxes.
Goals: write a post, schedule my CCW class, Uber for vacation money, start my half marathon training.
All sound fun and exciting right? I don’t think the key to motivation is that everything has to be an epically fantastic event. And I am no expert, but I think there are two keys to getting and staying motivated: You have to find the benefit and find the discipline. Finding the benefit is easy. Example: If I get up early for work I have more time at night for me, family time or other activities. If I do my shopping, I will eat better and be healthier. If I write another post I will feel like I have got my voice out there. See, its easy to determine what you get from the activity.
The second part isn’t so easy though. Discipline is a characteristic many people struggle with. (Raises her hand and waves it furiously). One definition of discipline is “an activity, exercise, or regimen that develops or improves a skill.” One of my goals is to do a half marathon, something that I cant wake up tomorrow and do without any training. I have to become disciplined in the training. I will need to follow a running schedule and stay on track even if I don’t feel like running. When I make this happen the benefit is 100% the bragging rights for sticking to a fitness goal and making it happen. (hopefully will come with a lower number on the scale too 😊)
I am still in the process of figuring out discipline but I am going to leave off with this for now. We get to choose what activities and what skills we want to build. Habits are a huge part of discipline because they literally can make or break you. I have been listening to Atomic Habits by James Clear. If you want to get started, keeping in mind Day 1, I highly recommend this book. Its about setting yourself up to make your goals happen by paying attention to the little things you do. Really take a look and see if the habits you currently have are going to get you not where you want to be.
I am hoping that by creating this writing habit and changing the way I spend my free time I will get closer to my goal of helping others. I know that I am “distracted” but If I try everyday to improve, over time that is a lot of growth. I hope that you will find a motto and keep moving forward. If all else fails, find a song that pumps you up, a friend to encourage you and a book or podcast for those goals that you have put off till “one day”. It will work wonders I promise!
The Distracted Damsel 