Motivation. That urge, that desire, that sense of need and compulsion, that emotion that drives us to do whatever it is we do. That “whatever” different for each of us. And we can have different “whatevers” for the different parts of our lives. For instance, your motivation to help, care for, and nurture your family could be love. In your profession it may be money or a sense of doing a good job. If you volunteer, maybe it is a desire to help others. But what do you do when you lose your motivation?
My motivation in certain aspects of my life has definitely taken a downturn. This is definitely not a new experience for me. While I agree with everything I wrote back in August, I think I understand why a bit better.
I have my to do list of all the things I need to accomplish each day, each week. And I’ll admit, most of the items on it are really pretty basic daily chore type things. Water the plants. Walk the dog. My daily Duolingo. Boring. But a few are things that really do matter. The items needed to complete a project for my consulting company. The tasks that need to be completed for the nonprofit I started. The motivation for completing these tasks is easily defined:
- Duoling: My competitiveness kicks in; I will stay in the Diamond League and not break my streak.
- Consulting projects: I don’t get paid in full until a project is complete. But I also always want to go above and beyond for my clients.
- The nonprofit: I like to and want to help others. I truly believe in the cause, although I could be doing more.
To say I was horrified when I realized I hadn’t written a post here since February is an understatement. Because I really love writing. But if that’s true, why haven’t I been writing? The task has been on my to do list since February 20. And I just keep putting it off. Where did my motivation go?
I started this blog with the aim of helping others who find themselves in the same situation as me. But I’ve also done very little to really promote it, make people aware of it. Sure, I post (or did) to Facebook weekly, but I’ve done nothing to really make others aware of it. And that’s when it hit me. My reason for writing isn’t for others. It’s for myself. Because I love to write. Because I find writing cathartic.
I need to remember why I do the things I do. But I also need to remember that the reason I do something may change. And behind all of the “whatevers” there is passion. A passion to help others; a passion to do something I love. A passion to write.
Find your passion, and you will find your motivation.
