I know that might be a controversial take given the emphasis we place on motivation as a society, but hear me out.
Let’s take a typical scenario that we need motivation for, in this case, exercise. Conventional wisdom tells us that in order to exercise we need to increase our motivation. If we could effectively do this we could surely lose weight, increase our strength, etc. But that’s a big “if” that motivation tactics seldom effectively address. These tactics tell us we need to find the “right” goal, or punish or reward ourselves for achieving or not achieving the goal. The challenge with these methods is they fail to effectively acknowledge that motivation is fighting an uphill battle against human nature. Humans are inherently efficient and it’s important that we are that way. What is often oversimplified as laziness is often the body and mind doing what evolution has conditioned us to do, to take the path of least resistance, do what conserves energy, and above all to survive.
For ages, unknown humans struggled to survive against the cold, unforgiving challenges of living on earth with things like threats from animals, other humans, and starvation. In order to survive, conservation and rest were extremely important factors that maximized the likelihood you would outlast a given danger. If you live in a developed country then chances are good that you don’t battle these challenges at the same level as your ancestors. Nevertheless, they have passed their survivalist traits onto you. It is this mismatch between our modern ecosystem and our anciently formed brains that can make things like losing weight so difficult.
I like to compare this to using Windows 95 on a modern computer. The software was great for its time, just not today. So what is the solution? The answer to that lies in working with and not against human nature. I call this letting your environment do the heavy lifting. For instance, if you want to work out more frequently make it as easy as you possibly can, to do so. Keep a small dumbbell near your couch. Keep exercise clothes on when you go to bed so you can work out in the morning. Better yet don’t work out in the morning if you know that’s a time you’ll struggle. If you want to eat healthier find food you enjoy that is healthy and limit access to food that is unhealthy. For me, that looks like only buying ice cream at a restaurant and never keeping it in my freezer.
It’s at this point I usually hear the most objections. “But I should be able to work out in the morning. I’m just not trying hard enough.” Or “I could buy ice cream from restaurants instead but it’s less cost-effective.” To address the first objection I’d say first that being overly hard on yourself won’t help you achieve your goals.
Research shows that punishments and rewards tend to decrease motivation rather than increase it. Great is so often the enemy of good. Secondly, what you “should” be able to do is less important than what you are able to do and what you are able to do is less important than what you will do. In terms of cost-effectiveness, I have a lot of sympathy. Money is a precious and limited resource for many people and that specific suggestion should not be applied in every situation. But if you are in a position to do so, I would argue that you are buying not just ice cream, but maintenance of your goals.
Whether you apply that idea or not the principle is to create an environment that makes your goals as natural as possible. Motivation is therefore not doing the heavy lifting and rather than being motivated all the time, you need only to be motivated at the right times.
For more help and insights on motivation, check out this article from Psychology Today.