Have you ever made big plans for increasing the number of clients you have as a golf instructor, only to flounder and not act on them? Or maybe you started with a bang and kept your motivation for a few days, and then suddenly lost interest.
It’s actually easy to lose motivation after the initial excitement wears off because:
- The planning phase is WAY more fun than the execution phase. Sitting alone at night and making plans for the future can be an exciting time. Everything seems possible, because you’re only limited by your imagination at that point.
However, when the sun comes up in the morning, it’s time to actually get busy. It all seems a little more daunting and less enjoyable when it’s time for the rubber to hit the road.
- You lose track of the end result. Remind yourself of the prize at the end of your journey. Visualize how it’s all going to be when you’ve reached your goal. You’ll feel an immediate boost of motivation.
- You feel uncomfortable and aren’t dealing with it effectively. Of course, it’s uncomfortable to do anything new. Whether it’s creating a new video to post on social media, putting together and offering high end lesson packages, or even developing a follow-up system to book more clients, it’s going to be uncomfortable. It’s important to deal with this discomfort effectively.
Expect to feel uncomfortable. Have a plan for working through it (shameless plug: like working with me). If you’re making changes to your life, discomfort is the norm.
- You have too many negative thoughts. Negative thoughts are paralyzing. Negative thoughts will make you rationalize that it’s a good idea to quit. Though it doesn’t always feel like you have control over your thoughts, you do. You can choose what you want to think about.
Take control of your thoughts. Catch yourself early in the process of thinking negative thoughts and redirect your focus to something more positive. It takes time to develop this ability. The key is to notice quickly that your thoughts are going off the rails. Negative thoughts come from negative limiting beliefs – take a look at those!
- You’re stuck in your old habits and routines. The older you are, the more challenging it can be to break out of your old patterns because of the number of years you’ve been “practicing” them. We find comfort in our old routines, and our brains become hardwired to repeat them. You’ll need to create new habits and routines if you want to change your behavior and your results.
Identify one habit that is getting in your way and one habit you need to create to attain your goals. Put your time and energy into dealing with these two items. When you’re successful, tackle two more.
Which of these reasons applies to you most often or do you have another one? Motivation and willpower can be highly variable depending on how you’re FEELING each day.
Understand that your motivation may falter and be prepared to deal with it. The easiest way to do that is to focus on creating habits that will take you to your goals, because habits reduce the need for motivation and willpower. Just sayin. 😉
