Fuck discipline
I used to hate motivation. People used to tell me motivation was unreliable — they parroted the same phrase as if their heads would implode if they went a day without saying it.
“Discipline over motivation”
I disagree with them now.
Motivation is fucking great when used right.
I used to watch self help videos and for the following days I would do it all right. I would wake up early, i would read and I would barely touch my phone.
And then I was back to scrolling on my bed.
I was motivated, I had the goals, I had the daily schedule.
But i always snapped back to where i started.
Usually i would search up a question on youtube and be satisfied with a few videos from creators who agreed with each other But when i researched motivation and discipline I was lost.
Everyone had different views. Some people told me to go extreme. Some told me to take it one micro-habit at a time.
Some told me not to rely on motivation and to be disciplined, and others told me motivation was awesome and that its weird for me to not be motivated.
Fuck those people for confusing me so much.
But they were all right, and they were all wrong.
They kept something out.
Motivation is not only something you gain from watching inspirational videos or getting a burst of energy at 4 am after realizing your life is shit.
Motivation is drive, and that can come from a million different things, But they fall into two categories.
External motivation. Think of the times you watched a self improvement reel and suddenly decided you would change your life in one day.
And there’s intrinsic motivation. This does not need an external source to spark itself, it’s in you.
I never skipped a day of working out because in my deluded head, I was a martial artist and I would become a world champion.
Why the hell would i miss training when it was tied to my purpose and my identity?
Of course i would show up, i had no reason not to.
Intrinsic motivation is a signal that you are moving in the right direction. Since this type of motivation only develops when your identity and goals are in the same lane.
You become motivated to achieve those goals because they confirm your identity, that’s why i was weaving and bopping as if i was Mike Tyson, when in reality a teacher would probably use me as an example of what not to do in a fight.
Most people live without having a single goal aligned with who they are. You want to lose weight but you view yourself as a fat person, you want to get better grades but you always tell yourself “I suck at math” or “I don’t know how to study”
Obviously identity isn’t the only barrier between you and your goals. But having an identity that doesn’t align with your goal is the biggest barrier you could place.
Because not only does it ensure that you reaching this goal is impossible, You do not have any motivation to reach the goal either.
Having one disadvantage is manageable, its the usual.
But stacking disadvantages will guarantee your failure in anything.
Stop asking how to stay motivated. If you have to force it, the goal isn’t yours. When it’s real, you won’t have to convince yourself.