Have you ever thought that the key to making progress in your life or in your business is motivation?

That if you could just stay motivated long enough, everything would finally fall into place?

You would get the momentum.

You would be able to see that outcome that you dream of.

But here is the really hard and real truth:

Motivation is unreliable at best.

It comes and it goes.

And if we are hoping that motivation is going to be our key to results, we’re going to be disappointed.

So today, what I want to talk through are some misguided, misunderstood ideas that we cling to, believing that they’re the answer when really they’re not.

And here’s what’s going to be so great about this.

The real answers—the real things that are going to help you—they are easier to obtain.

Not necessarily easier to maintain, but absolutely easier to obtain.

And you’re not going to need more.

You already have what you need.

That can feel really exciting.

It can also feel a little bit like you’re being called out.

But in the end, I really believe this episode can help you get forward momentum happening again without waiting for these external things to make it possible.

Okay, so let’s jump in.

You Don’t Need More Time — You Need Less Distraction

Every single one of us is working in the same twenty-four hours.

I say this all the time.

You don’t have a way to add more hours to the twenty-four that we are each allotted every day.

So what we actually need is less distraction.

And here’s the reality.

There is an entire billion-dollar industry whose business model—the way that they profit—is by getting you and I to stay distracted.

If we scroll a little bit longer.

If we watch one more episode.

And I’ve got to tell you, Netflix’s greatest feature that they ever rolled out was the auto-start.

They saw the biggest impact in getting us to stay longer by that little circle going around saying:

“Next episode starts in eight… seven… six…”

And they even tested that to find the exact perfect amount of seconds that wasn’t too short and wasn’t too long and got us to stay.

So that means we’re going to have to be way more vigilant.

There has never been a time in the history of mankind where distraction has been so prolific and so difficult to avoid.

I mean, it actually is unavoidable.

So what we have to do is create better tools and better systems for ourselves so that we can get the results that we want.

And not become someone else’s results.

Instagram.

Hulu.

YouTube.

Amazon Prime.

They don’t make money unless we’re spending time on their platforms.

In fact, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said at a summit that they actually compete with sleep.

Netflix is trying to compete with our ability to get the rest that we need.

To get the sleep that we need.

Because if they can get us to stay awake and watch one more—two more—episodes, it’s more profitable.

You Don’t Need Motivation — You Need Self-Control

Your life isn’t going to change because you did it when you felt like it.

Your life changes when you commit to do it consistently.

Whether you feel like it or not.

That is the secret.

That is the difference.

It’s when you show up day in and day out.

You put in the reps even when you don’t feel like it.

One of the things that has really helped me—and this is where we each need to find what works for us—is gamifying action.

What is your way to gamify so that you get yourself to take action?

I have a printable habit tracker.

I’ve tried different ones.

I’ve used apps that worked great for me.

But one of the ones that’s really powerful is just a printable habit tracker.

I write in all the different little micro steps that I want to take each day that help me feel better, more confident, more motivated, healthier—all the things.

Then I check the box.

And I get to see those checkmarks add up.

And I don’t want to break the chain.

Right?

I’m creating this chain of:

“I did it today.”
 “And I did it the next day.”
 “And I did it the next day.”

And I don’t want to break that.

So I work really hard to keep going.

It’s a simple way to gamify the results that I want so that I show up—even when I don’t feel like it.

Arianna Huffington has this quote where she says:

“Your attention is the most valuable currency of the digital age.”

And I want to flip that.

For our goals.

For the life that we want to ultimately live.

For the legacy that we want to leave behind.

For the people we love.

Our attention is also our most valuable currency.

So where are you investing it?

Are you just giving it away?

Or are you investing it?

It’s so easy to give ourselves permission to take a break.

To veg out.

Sometimes we are doing it to numb.

Sometimes we are doing it without even making a conscious decision.

You’re on an app and suddenly you’re like:

“Wait… I didn’t even mean to be here.”

“What was I doing again?”

But here’s what I want us to understand.

And I read this recently and I loved it:

If you can stay stuck, you can also stay disciplined.
 Because both are habits.

You Don’t Need More Resources — You Need Resourcefulness

After we’ve talked about how you don’t need more time and you don’t need more motivation, we need to talk about resources.

You don’t need more resources.

You need to be more resourceful.

There’s a big difference between:

“If I just had more resources…”

versus

“I can be more resourceful.”

We default to blaming the opportunity we didn’t get.

The training we haven’t had.

The certification we don’t have.

Or the lack of money.

We think if we just had that, then we’d be able to change our lives.

But that’s not what’s actually holding us back.

It is not a lack of resources.

It’s always the same thing.

It just shows up under a million different names and stories.

But it is always fear.

Fear is the thing that holds us back.

Remember what fear stands for:

False Evidence Appearing Real.

And the moment we see fear for what it is, we realize we have a choice.

You can:

Forget everything and run.

Or

Face everything and rise.

Running can look like a million different things.

It can look like numbing out and scrolling.

It can look like giving yourself excuses for why you don’t do the thing you know is actually the needle mover.

But when you choose to face things and rise, that is when fear begins to dissipate.

The Freeway Story

I remember when I was fifteen years old in driver’s ed.

I found out that my next drive was going to include merging onto the freeway.

And I was terrified.

I had this idea that I would just drive backroads forever.

I would never have to get on a freeway.

All the fear was that I would get in a fatal accident.

I would mess everything up.

I would get pulled over.

I would never even get my license.

It reminds me of that animated movie where the character is yelling “Merge!”

Because merging feels terrifying.

But getting onto that freeway didn’t take more resources.

It took me being brave enough to take action.

Power, Love, and a Sound Mind

My favorite scripture is 2 Timothy 1:7:

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

That phrase—sound mind—is really interesting.

The NIV translation says self-discipline.

The ESV translation says self-control.

So a sound mind is discipline and control.

Robin Sharma said:

“The fears we don’t face become our limits.”

If I had never faced my fear of the freeway, the freeway would have become my limit.

We have to stop giving obstacles excuses and power.

Instead, recognize that we can break them down whenever we choose to.

You don’t need to know how everything works out.

You just need to take uncertain action and trust that you’re going to figure it out as you go.

We shift our mindset from:

“I can’t.”

to

“I’ll learn.”

“I can figure this out.”

“I will get the tools I need for the next step.”

The Real Gap

The gap between the life you want and the life you’re living is not:

More time.

More motivation.

More resources.

More luck.

Or more knowledge.

It is:

Power.
 Love.
 And a sound mind.

Power is the courage to act.

Love is caring deeply about the life you’re building.

And a sound mind is clarity and self-control.

Stop asking:

“Do I have what it takes?”

Because honestly…

You probably don’t.

Yet.

But that’s how every story works.

In every great movie, the hero doesn’t have what it takes in the beginning.

They gain it along the way.

They face uncertainty.

They push forward.

They keep learning.

And they grow into the person capable of the ending.

The Truth

By protecting your focus.

By taking uncertain action.

And by putting fear in the back seat.

That is how we begin to change our lives.

Because the truth is:

You already have what you need.

You have the power to act.

You have the love that fuels the life you’re building.

You have the ability to choose discipline—even when you don’t feel like it.

And yes.

You are absolutely going to mess up.

You’re going to get distracted.

You’re going to feel defeated.

But then you’re going to pick yourself up.

And you’re going to try again.

Final Thought

So today: Don’t wait for motivation.

Don’t wait for clarity.

Don’t wait for the perfect plan.

There isn’t one.

Just take the next small step.

Then tomorrow, take another.

In the movies, there’s always a giant moment that changes everything.

But real life doesn’t work like that.

Real life changes through small acts of consistency.

So give yourself the gift of discipline.

Give yourself the gift of focus.

Give yourself the gift of showing up.

And remember:

Stick to the plan, not your mood.

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