Good morning,
Sometimes after a snooze in my mayoral office, I wake up with a burning desire to etch my name into the hall of fame, by taking on the world and doing everything that has been lingering on my to-do list.
Then on other days, nothing. I am lying in bed, looking at the ceiling and wondering what the bloody point of it all is! Why should I actually do anything meaningful today? I bet there are some really interesting tv shows I can watch on Netflix, and there is a ton of tasty food in the fridge if I remember correctly… Mmmm Dairylea dunkers and Doritos, come to papa.
What is it with this motivation thing then? Why do we have it sometimes, and on other occasions, it’s lost in action, nowhere to be found?
Its a frustratingly elusive question to answer. Backing up for a moment though, can we just take a second to appreciate how nice it feels to be motivated? It’s like you are on a drug that improves focus, determination and your overall inner power. When motivation is coursing through your veins, its almost as if the universe has plugged you right into the power grid, charged you up and set you off to do whatever you need to achieve!
Personally, when I am motivated, I can reach deep into my mind and do my best possible work. This, of course, benefits my town and the community of mayors I write to on a weekly basis. If you are like me and its the espresso shot of motivation which kicks off the new projects and pursuits in your life, then you will know how awesome it feels to ride that wave!
If only that feeling lasted, eh!
Unfortunately, if we waited for motivation every time we needed to get something done, we would end up getting very little actually completed. This is because motivation is fleeting. Sprinkles of this fairy dust is dished out occasionally throughout your days in a frustratingly irregular way.
The puzzle we face as humans is how we can maintain positivity and productivity throughout the motivational times and during the low points where motivation is as elusive as a robber in a police convention.
*Future letter spoiler: Discipline is a powerful weapon in your arsenal, that you can use to get stuff done! Fear not, I will be writing a whole letter on this subject in the future!*
I want to talk about what you can do when you are next riding the waves of motivation, and find yourself flying high on its wings! When you next feel that power coursing through your veins, we need to start connecting that motivated feeling, to related actions that will push you closer to your goals and dreams. As the habit of motivation and action becomes stronger, the rewards from this will also become more pronounced and noticeable.
Next time you feel motivated, whatever you are thinking about, I want you to do something relating to those motivating thoughts or emotions. Got a story idea? Write it down! Have a lovely image in your mind? Draw it! What about an idea for an interesting business? Get that idea written down dammit!
Do this enough and you should be able to connect motivation with action for the long haul. With this, thoughts and ideas that are birthed from your head will be given the opportunity to exist and may grow legs in the real world. The enemy of motivation is inactivity and letting your brain think it’s okay to do nothing is training it to do more of that behaviour again in the future!
Yours sincerely,
Ryan Rose-Blanc
Rose-Blanc Town management
Atowncalledme 