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The Almighty Push from Within

All managers know that part of “the job” is to motivate their workforce of direct reports. Motivating others is a never-ending responsibility and most managers are continually searching for new and creative ways to encourage employees to get the job done. But, too little has been written or shared about how managers can raise their personal level of motivation. The challenges managers face on a daily basis can send them home in the evening emotionally drained. A manager may rightfully ask, “How am I supposed to motivate others when I am not personally motivated?” That is a great question. The following six tips will encourage you to explode in a positive and exciting way, even in the toughest of times.

1. Create a positive, compelling vision. The word vision is used to describe a clear mental picture of a desired outcome. Everyone has one of three types of visions of their future. The first type is a positive vision of your future. This is the deep-seated belief that tomorrow is going to be better than today and you have a plan to help create the better tomorrow. The second type of vision is one of status quo. This is the hope that tomorrow is going to be the same as today. One person in our seminar summed up the status quo vision when he said, “I hope I do not get laid off.” The third type is a vision where you visualize things getting worse. This is where you create a picture that tomorrow will be worse than today.

   The only vision that taps into personal motivation is a deep-seated belief that tomorrow will be even better than things were today and you have a plan to create it. It is important to remember that employees follow managers who have positive vision. It is this positive vision that gives you the passion and excitement to jump out of bed in the morning so you can turn your vision into reality.

2. Set goals to achieve your vision. After you have created a positive vision of your future, set goals to turn the vision into reality. The goals need to be S-M-A-R-T. That means Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and with a Time Frame. They must be written to increase your commitment and so you can see if they are obtainable. State a clearly defined time frame so the completed goals can be checked off the list.

3. Develop positive self-talk. Most people who lack motivation wake up in the morning with negative self-talk. Self-talk consists of the words we string together in our mind to communicate inner thinking. Whether we say, “I am really excited about going into work today to make progress on the XYZ project,” or, “We just keep falling further behind on the XYZ project, so I don’t even feel like going to work,” will make a huge difference in our level of motivation and our actions. Self-talk is usually self-fulfilling. The phrases, “It won’t work in our company,” and, “We can figure it out and it will work,” are examples of self-talk: negative or positive. Remember, the words you choose become your thoughts. Your thoughts become your actions. Your actions become your destiny. Craft your self-talk with care.

4. Take action and accomplish tasks. One of the great lessons about personal motivation is that action leads to motivation. Most people get angry with themselves when they lose their personal motivation and do not accomplish what they want. We have all gone to work intending to get something important accomplished, only to find this important task still left undone for the next day. If you ask people why the task remains undone, they are liable to tell you they were tired or just lacked the motivation. The hardest part about getting motivated is taking action to accomplish a task. But, if you take action and accomplish the task, you usually feel better about yourself, and in turn, you feel more motivated. The next time you feel a lack of motivation, force yourself to get up and take action. It is that very action that will build higher levels of motivation.

5. Associate with positive, motivated people. Associating with motivated people is a critical piece of the personal motivation puzzle. There are a lot of negative people in this world who would love to sit down and talk to you about how bad things “really are.” As Rod Stewart sings, “If I listened long enough to you, I’d find a way to believe that it’s all true.” If we hear something long enough, we start to believe it. My dad once told me, “Pigs don’t know pigs stink.” If you associate with people who are negative and lack motivation, then being negative and lazy seems perfectly normal. If you associate with positive people who are personally motivated, then their words become a positive encouragement to you. You will find it much easier to maintain high levels of personal motivation if you surround yourself with motivated people.

6. Acknowledge your accomplishments. We all know people who never seem to be satisfied. Usually, these individuals suffer from a case of the, if only‘s. “If only I had accomplished the task sooner.” “If only I had made more money.” “If only this other area of my life were better.” In the motion picture, As Good As It Gets, Jack Nicholson visits his psychiatrist and looks at six depressed people waiting in the lobby and asks, “Hey, what if this is as good as it gets?” What a great question! When you take action and accomplish a goal, acknowledge the accomplishment. Celebrate! These are the good times. And just maybe, this is as good as it gets.

Start today to create and maintain a higher level of personal motivation. If you try these six steps, you will immediately feel your level of personal motivation beginning to rise. You might even explode! Good luck!

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