Motivate and Flow
Every day there is always a lingering question that comes up.
“What are you doing today?”
Whether waking up with the thought of what the plan for the day is, or someone casually inquiring what your plans are, we all are familiar with the dialog. Choosing which direction we venture for the day tends to fall into what we need to do and what we want to do. The “need” or “have” to do tasks carry consequences, typically. Most of the time, our more enticing “want” to do chores are the desired tasks we instead do. Deciding what the day is going to be is dependent on the motivation we exert. Enjoying a slow morning and doing nothing, maybe the morning we want to do, but you also need to get a paper written and go to work. If you do not get those things done, there will be consequences otherwise.
Motivation is the process of avoidance or desire. We either want to avoid doing something or want to do something. When we avoid something, there is a negative or unwanted outcome. These adverse and undesirable outcomes tend to be more powerful motivations. When there are consequences, naturally, the more powerful motive is avoiding the effect instead of risking it.
It seems we are at an unfair disadvantage, fighting to stay motivated in doing the things we have to get accomplished as opposed to our desires. As a dancer, the motivation is to improve. The difficulty in that is not the improvement but the motivation to follow thru. To develop, what are the requirements to enhance each day incrementally? When you list them out, it can be overwhelming or stressful. That list can mute your motivation to improve. Honesty in this evaluation is essential because this is the blueprint of your desired goal. There are internal and external motivators.
Our buttons to turn on the motivation vary from person to person. For example, in dance competitions, competitiveness is a big motivator to improve. Comparing the level of dance to another can play a huge factor in motivating to train harder and becoming the winner in a competitive outcome. This external motivation offers a sense of belonging within that community and gives recognition, improving our self-esteem. Another example would be the enjoyment of dance.
Having the internal motivation of experiencing the joy of dance as opposed to the external recognition or competitiveness can also motivate to improve. The interest in the task of dancing is within the person somewhat dependent on external factors. Again, everyone who triggers this motivation varies. How do we stay motivated with our goals?
That is the real question we should be asking ourselves each day. It should not be, “What am I doing today?” It should be the question of “How can I stay motivated for what I desire?”
Go back to your list of things you have to do for your goal. Listing these things out for me makes it tangible and real. Reflect on what keeps your motivation in your goal. Is it external or internal motivators? The intention of time is something else that sharpens my motive for my purpose. Time management sounds like a middle manager business keyword, but its meaning is more helpful. Managing your time, and having the intention of each day and hour, reveals the motive of your goal. It’s like your motivation is your path and road to your destination or goal. The intention of time is your GPS to keep you on the right way. Even with those tools, there is hesitation and delaying that oppose our motivation.
Avoidance always seems to play against us. A common way this avoiding happens is procrastination. Procrastination is the purposely delaying an action knowing this will affect your own goals. That only postpones the inevitable. Slowing down in this manner affects our motivation and allows distractions to blur our goals. When we lose vision of our goals, we miss the chance to enter that flow state.
The flow theory is the desired state we can experience when submerged in a challenging activity. This theory originates from Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, who describes the flow theory:
“A state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience is so enjoyable that people will continue to do it even at great cost, from the sheer sake of doing it.”
The Magic of Flow - Habits for Wellbeing. https://www.habitsforwellbeing.com/the-magic-of-flow/
I recommend hitting Google and looking him up. Concerning motivation, this perceives the goal, or activity not too complicated, but still not too easy. When achieving a perfect flow, the maximum potential in that activity is possible. When you hit that flow state, motivation seems to no longer be a factor because what you are doing is no longer the destination, but just something you enjoy doing. Isn’t that what everyone wants to do today?
