Lately, it feels like everyone I know is super-stressed out. They’re all trying to find ways to reduce their stress to be happier and healthier.
It can be challenging for some people because certain factors in life are beyond our control, but there are ways we can take control of these stressors. Understanding how self-motivation works is a great place to start.
Learning how to stay self-motivated can significantly relieve stress and boost happiness levels. However, many struggle with motivation because they’re unaware of their inherent strengths and what truly drives them. This is where tools like the HIGH5 strengths test can be invaluable. By identifying your top five strengths, you gain crucial insights into your natural motivators, helping you tap into your inner drive more effectively. Understanding your unique strengths profile can transform how you approach challenges and maintain motivation, even in stressful situations.
If you are one of those people, this article is for you. I will share some ways to discover what motivates you and stay motivated in any situation. Let’s get right into it.
What is Self-Motivation?
Self-motivation is the ability to motivate oneself to achieve a goal or desired outcome. It involves being driven and determined to succeed, regardless of the obstacles in your way.
It’s the internal force that powers us through tough times and helps us reach our goals. When you are self-motivated, you don’t need to rely on anyone else to push you in the right direction.
You are always ready and prepared to take action towards what you want in life. When the going gets tough, you persevere through it all with ease because there is no other option except success for you.
Understanding and recognizing why and how you are self-motivated is the foundation for boosting your motivation levels in life. This self-awareness often stems from a deep understanding of your innate strengths. The HIGH5 strengths test is designed to uncover these strengths, providing you with a clear picture of your natural talents and motivators. When you’re self-motivated, it’s usually because you’re leveraging these strengths towards a goal that aligns with your intrinsic abilities. By identifying your top five strengths through the HIGH5 test, you can more easily tap into this powerful source of motivation, driving you towards achieving your goals with greater ease and enthusiasm.
You stay driven by working hard and committed to doing whatever it takes to reach that result – sometimes even when things get tough and challenging.
It may seem like a no-brainer but staying motivated can be difficult if we don’t understand what motivates us and how to maintain our focus throughout the journey of working towards these goals.
For most people, setting long-term or short-term goals is an excellent way of keeping focused on what is important in life.
Pro Tip From HIGH5
Create a ‘Strengths Journal’. Each day, record how you’ve used one of your top five strengths identified by the HIGH5 test. This practice will heighten your awareness of your natural talents and how they contribute to your self-motivation.
Why Is Self-Motivation Essential?
Self-motivation is considered the basis for success in life. It’s been said that self-motivation is a habit and a skill, which can be developed over time with knowledge and experience.
Understanding what motivates you makes it easier to stay motivated toward your goals because something is driving you forward instead of holding you back.
By pushing forward and persisting through the tough times, you will realize that your motivation levels remain high because you know what motivates you, which is enough to keep pushing for it.
When we rely on external forces to motivate us, such as other people or things like money, fame, and fortune, we leave ourselves open to experiencing burnout and losing our motivation over time.
A lack of motivation often stems from not truly understanding our core drivers and strengths. This is where tools like the HIGH5 strengths test become crucial. By revealing your top five strengths, the HIGH5 test helps you uncover your intrinsic motivators, providing a clear “WHY” behind your aspirations. When you align your goals with your natural strengths, you tap into a wellspring of sustainable motivation. For instance, if the HIGH5 test reveals ‘strategic thinking’ as one of your top strengths, you might find yourself naturally motivated by complex problem-solving tasks. Understanding this connection between your strengths and your goals is essential for maintaining long-term motivation and achieving what you truly want in life.
You need to understand what motivates you to achieve anything in life because it will easily allow you to complete your desired tasks.
Pro Tip From HIGH5
Align your goals with your strengths. Review your current goals and see how they match up with your top five strengths from the HIGH5 test. Adjust your objectives to better utilize your natural talents, ensuring a more motivating and fulfilling journey.
Examples of Self-Motivation
Let’s now look at examples of self-motivation in various areas. There are times when we’re motivated and driven by our environments, such as school, work, or home, but there may come a time where you have to motivate yourself in these different areas.
Examples of self-motivation at work
Here are some examples of self-motivation at work:
- When your boss assigns you an extra task at work that they know is not included in your contract.
- Working under pressure or tight deadlines to finish a project at work.
- You receive constructive criticism about one of the projects you worked on, which forces you to improve it and make it better than before.
- You take on a difficult task, and you don’t want to let your colleagues or boss down, so you push yourself forward to complete it.
Examples of self-motivation at home
At home, five examples of self-motivation might include:
- You need to finish painting your bedroom, but you don’t want it to look half-done. You motivate yourself to start the job and do it properly even though painting is not particularly like doing.
- When you want to start exercising, but you feel lazy because it’s cold outside or if you don’t have enough time after work, then think about how good it will make you feel once you’ve started.
- Your parents give you a task to complete at home, which they know doesn’t really motivate you. You can still motivate yourself without feeling resentment towards them by simply looking at the positive side of things.
Examples of self-motivation with relationships
When it comes to relationships, here are five examples of self-motivation:
- An example might also include meeting an old flame for the first time in years. You would want to go by unnoticed, but you could motivate yourself to act confidently and casually so that they won’t wonder why you’re not over the moon with excitement.
- When someone close to you does or says something that makes you feel upset or angry, remind yourself of all the good things this person has done in the past. It might still be hard to look past their mistakes at that moment, but it’s a great opportunity for self-motivation because there is always more than one side to every story.
- One final example is when your friends convince you to come out with them on a night where you have other plans already made. You can easily motivate yourself by seeing a new side to a group of people you thought you knew well and thinking about how much fun everyone will have.
10 Techniques and Ways to Improve Self-Motivation
Take Responsibility For Your Life
Responsibility is always the key when it comes to self-motivation. Sometimes you might be in a negative place in your life because of certain things that have happened, but this is the perfect time to take responsibility for your talent, skills, and achievements.
Think about what you can do when everything seems difficult and use these solutions when necessary. The more responsibility you take, the closer you will get to achieving your goals, so make sure that’s something that stays in the back of your mind at all times.
Find Your Why
Many people struggle to motivate themselves when embarking on a new goal or project. However, finding your ‘why’ can be a game-changer, and tools like the HIGH5 strengths test can significantly aid this process. By identifying your top five strengths, the HIGH5 test provides a foundation for understanding your intrinsic motivations. For example, if ‘achiever’ is one of your top strengths, your ‘why’ might be rooted in a deep need for accomplishment. Armed with this knowledge, you can align your goals with your natural strengths, making it easier to stay motivated. When you ask yourself ‘why?’, you’re not just searching for a superficial reason, but tapping into the core of what drives you based on your unique strengths profile.
It’s much easier to motivate yourself when you know why you want to do something because your answer is what really counts. It could be helpful to write down these reasons and use them as a reminder when things get tough.
Reevaluate Your Goals
If there are days when nothing seems to go in the right direction, then take some time out to reevaluate your goals. Many people chase dreams that they might never reach, so make sure that your goals are realistic and achievable for self-motivation to come into play.
If you need help with getting started or staying on track, then ask an expert for advice; but remember that it’s your dream, and no one else will know the ins and outs of it as well as you do.
Create Empowering Beliefs
Positive thinking can go a long way in self-motivation, so you might want to ask yourself what empowering beliefs you already have.
Your answer could be something like “I’m going to reach my dreams” or “Today is going to be a great day.” but whatever your answer is, remember that this is what counts as an empowering belief because it inspires without being superficial.
You could also create empowering beliefs from scratch by simply writing down everything which excites you about achieving your goals. The more empowered you feel, the easier it will be to motivate yourself.
Learn Better Time Management Strategies
No one ever said that life was easy, so if you’re having trouble staying on task, then learning better time management strategies can really help.
This is why some people choose to write down their goals and place them everywhere they go – because seeing these goals makes them more likely to stick in your mind when self-motivation comes into play.
What’s also important is remembering to take breaks because everyone needs time for themselves at the end of the day, but make sure not to exceed this amount of time or else motivation might decrease. Set yourself an alarm as a reminder.
Create A Massive Action Plan
Self-motivation doesn’t come into play until you’re near the end of a huge goal or project, but it becomes much easier to stay productive by creating a massive action plan.
A planner can also help with this process because it makes you feel organized and prepared for every obstacle which might arise during your journey. Even if something doesn’t change minute-by-minute, it’s still important to have a general overview because that’s what allows self-motivation to come into play.
Remember that being proactive is much better than being reactive, so try thinking, “If this happens, then I will do this,” instead of just thinking about how you would react in a certain situation. This way, you’re always prepared and motivated at the same time.
Look To The Success Of Others
Modeling the success that others have achieved and using it as inspiration for your journey can be a great way to stay motivated.
If you’re not sure who to look at, then perhaps start with reading autobiographies and looking at their achievements; but remember that this is just one possibility, and you could also find inspiration from other people in any industry.
Banish Multitasking
When we multitask, we end up doing much worse than we would if we focused on one thing at a time, so whenever possible – such as taking care of children or cooking dinner – try focusing on one task before moving on to the next item on your list.
It might seem like things take longer because you’re only giving them half of your attention, but it’s definitely worth it in the long run because you will be able to get a lot more done without losing motivation.
Visualize Your Self-Motivation
Those who visualize their success tend to stay motivated for longer, but this is not the only reason you might want to try it out.
It can also help achieve your goals and dreams because it allows you to “see” what life would be like as part of your new reality, and these images can make a difference when it comes to self-motivation.
You could use images on Pinterest or create your own by simply writing down everything which excites you about achieving this goal and knowing that if you keep thinking and visualizing, then there’s no way that self-motivation won’t come into play.
Focus On Gratitude
Gratitude is often an underestimated emotion, but it’s one of the keys to happiness because people who practice gratitude are more likely to stay motivated than those who don’t.
You can take this concept and apply it to your journey by looking back at what you’ve achieved so far and ensuring that you’re not taking anything for granted. This way, you’ll always have self-motivation on your side whenever you need it.
However, if this sounds like something which might be beneficial, then maybe try writing down three things that you’re grateful for every night before bed.
10 Inspiring Self-Motivation Quotes
- “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” – Chinese Proverb
- “If people are doubting how far you can go, go so far that you can’t hear them anymore.” – Michele Ruiz
- “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” – Mark Twain
- “Don’t limit yourself. Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember, you can achieve.” – Mary Kay Ash
- “It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.” – Babe Ruth
- “I wake up every morning and think to myself, ‘how far can I push this company in the next 24 hours.’” – Leah Busque
- “All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.” – Walt Disney
- “Only the paranoid survive.” – Andy Grove
- “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life, and that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan
- “We need to accept that we won’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes – understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success.” – Arianna Huffington
5 Self-Motivation Books
1. “Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking” by Malcolm Gladwell
The appeal of Malcolm Gladwell’s self-help works stems from his extensive study and mastery of each idea before he expresses it. This book draws on psychology and neuroscience to illustrate the importance of making judgments rapidly instead of after much thought.
He gives real-world examples of individuals who have mastered the technique and how we may apply it to our everyday life.
2. “Who Moved My Cheese?” by Dr. Spencer Johnson
“Who Moved My Cheese?” is a self-help book in the form of a motivational fable about four characters who live in a maze and are looking for cheese, first published in 1998. The cheese represents anything we desire in life, and it is constantly in motion.
When one character successfully negotiates change to reach the cheese, the reader learns how to deal with change in their own lives.
3. “The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business” by Charles Duhigg
Charles Duhigg explains why habits exist and how to modify them after studying patterns across several success stories. “Understanding how habits are formed and utilizing researched principles to help readers change habits to change their lives” is what this book focuses on.
According to him, the key to attaining our objectives lies in understanding how habits are formed. He applies studied theories to aid readers in changing behaviors to improve their lives.
4. “The Secret” by Rhonda Byrne
“The Secret,” written after the 2006 blockbuster film, is a self-help book that details the law of attraction, according to Rhonda Byrne, who claims it may transform or redirect a person’s entire life.
Byrne encourages readers to find the power to apply “The Secret” to every aspect of their life and achieve nearly anything with this idea.
5. “The 5 Love Languages” by Gary Chapman
“The 5 Love Languages” is a self-help book that has influenced many relationships by incorporating its ideas. Dr. Gary Chapman describes five primary ways people receive and give love in this book.
You can improve your relationship by showing love more effectively if you and your spouse understand each other’s love language.
Frequently Asked Questions About Self-motivation
How do you keep yourself motivated?
Motivation is the driving force that moves you to act. But motivation itself can be divided into two kinds: intrinsic and extrinsic.
Intrinsic Motivation – Intrinsic motivation refers to doing something because it is inherently interesting or enjoyable, rather than because it may lead toward some outcome outside of the activity itself (e.g., reward or punishment).
Extrinsic Motivation – Extrinsic motivation refers to doing an activity to attain some outcome that isn’t part of the activity itself (e.g., a good grade, money, fame).
What is a self-motivation skill?
Self-motivation is the act of motivating yourself to perform every activity. This involves strategizing how to use your strengths to accomplish your goals and working on weaknesses so that they don’t obstruct your progress.
By focusing on certain methods to help develop your self-motivation skills, you will gain the confidence and motivation required to succeed.
What is a positive motivation?
Positive motivation, according to psychologists, is the ability of individuals to channel their energies towards achievement and accomplishment.
It is one’s ability to set realistic goals for oneself and work diligently towards those objectives which make up the core of positive motivation. This skill contributes significantly towards determining an individual’s personal and professional success.
