How to Stay Motivated

It might be the number one question we are asked. “How do I stay motivated when I have all this bad stuff happening?” Its code for:

“How do I get happy when everything is crappy?”

One of the most difficult things about obstacles in your life is that they are often have the appearance of being endless. They are not.

But the great thing about challenge- even crisis- is that it unabashedly shows you what you are made of. Our pastor taught us that it shows you what you really believe in faithfully. And it will force you to focus on what really matters in this moment if you want to move out of it. You’ll hear us often talk about defining your “Why” in life. If you truly want to “stay motivated” amidst daily challenge, chaos, or crisis, you cannot disown your path on the way to your Why.

We’re simplifying and breaking down the steps for you here:

1. Acknowledge where you’ve been. Your past is what lead you here, so there are lessons there. If you don’t like where you are now, it will be important for you to shift behaviors in order to not come back to this place you don’t like. And remember, its always more powerful to move toward what you want instead of away from what you don’t.

2. Acknowledge where you are right now. If you are waiting for your circumstances to change, consider that your circumstances exist until you are open to changing yourself. The challenges do not exist simply to pain you. They exist so you can grow. Key here is to unplug yourself from any hope that the circumstance will change, and instead seek how you can grow.

This is not a task in “putting on a happy face.” Nor “putting your nose to the grindstone.” Its a task in relinquishing control over the things we cannot control, and purposefully owning what we can. Which brings us to…

3. Own where you’ll be. Your success should never be a surprise to you. Your destination should never be a guess. When was the last time you got on a plane with non-stop service to somewhere-but-you’ll-find-out-when-we-land? Exactly. Know where you are going (not where you hope to go) and chose how you will use your existing challenge to get there. Faithfully own that you are intended for nothing less than incredibleness. And know without a doubt that this challenge will prepare you for that greatness far more than the victories in your life.

This crisis will pass one day, and the question will be… How did this make you a wiser person? A more compassionate person? A more open or willing person? A more successful person.