Motivation vanishes when you start something that you were initially very motivated about.
People often feel very excited about a new project or habit, but it becomes a chore as soon as the motivation is gone. Many people think that they are lazy or lack discipline.
It is rather normal and psychology can explain the reasons behind it too.
What is Motivation?
Internal drive to start an action is called Motivation. It is influenced by emotions, mood, rewards and expectations.
Motivation is often temporary and unstable. So, relying on motivation is a fool’s errand. It can lead to inconsistensy and eventually failure.
Discipline on the other hand is a difficult but very reliable way of achieving anything.
Discipline vs motivation
Motivation is based on feelings, emotions, failure, desire and rewards. It is a temporary feeling that comes and goes.
Discipline on the other hand is consistent behavior based on habitual efforts. This does not require motivation or any internal force.
Why Motivation is Strong at the beginning?
Motivation is directly proportional to dopamine release. Dopamine is the reward or happiness hormone, that is released in our brain.
When we think about starting something new, our brain feels excited. This excitement can be because of the curiosity, feelings of what we can achieve, positive future outcomes or excitement about change.
All or any of these thoughts can produce dopamine. This creates a strong motivation.
Why Motivation Disappears?
Feeling nothing new
The brain gets used to repeating the same actions and feels nothing new in it. The curiosity is gone, and so is the excitement.
Difficulty of Tasks
The brain had seen results without seeing the efforts that you need to put, to get to that result. The efforts become visible and it is only boring stuff.
No Quick Rewards
Most tasks give us long term rewards and require a good amount of patience. But our brain mostly gets the dopamkne from short term rewards. So, no immediate benefits reduce the dopamine.
Unrealistic Expectations
We often expect things that are not realistic. Like going to the gym for a month or two, and seeing big biceps.
Progress is usually slow and long term, not fast and immediate. Without consistency and patience, a task can’t be carried out for longer periods of time.
The art of Consistency
Consistency always beats motivation. Staying consistent, even in your bad mood, is what makes your progress unstoppable.
Habits
Habits reduce the need for motivation. You already have a habit of doing something and can keep on doing that without thinking much.
Just like you have a habit of brushing your teeth at a fixed time, you can build a habit of studying at a fixed time.
You can read more about habits here.
Smaller Goals
Smaller but realistic goals are easier to achieve. This also gives you a feeling of achievement that is not false.
Make goals smaller and gradually improve on them.
Expect Motivation to Fade
Your motivation will definitely fade and you’ll feel like the smallest tasks are the hardest to do. But that’s alright. You don’t need motivation anyway.
Track Progress
One of the best and yet most underrated thing to do.
Tracking doesn’t mean to write or count your progress. Tracking easily means seeing the smallest improvements and comparing them with your past self.
When you track progress and see how far you have come, you’ll gain a sense of acknowledgement from yourself.
Read more about self-control