True Grit

New beginnings make for easy motivation. The vision of success before us is exciting! We see ourselves with a college degree in hand, or at the finish line of a marathon, or publishing our first book of insightful essays. Will we accomplish our goal? Of course! Nothing will stop us!

On a motivation high, we start out strong. We complete all our homework on time and review class notes each day. We rise before the sun and go for a long run. We clear space and time for our writing. We proceed toward our goal.

Slowly, however, our motivation descends from the airy heights and merges with day-to-day realities - an ill child, an extra project at work, a lack of sleep, a poor test score, a dearth of good ideas. Slowly our vision of success fades and a more narrow view creeps in. Now we just try to make it through each day. We are still fighting, still trying, still hoping to reach our goal. Yet our goal seems to be farther away, not closer. The vision of success that seemed a foregone conclusion at one point now seems to be slipping away.

Suddenly, motivation is much more difficult to come by. The time when you need it the most, it is nowhere to be found. You ask yourself: Why not just give up? It was just a silly idea, anyway. A college degree? Nah...that was just a stupid dream.

But wait: it did not have to end this way.

True motivation is gritty. True motivation allows you to get knocked down nine times, and get up ten. True motivation gets stronger as the going gets tougher. So, how do you create this type of motivation?

Motivation is a combination of value and expectation.

Value: why is it important that you complete this goal? Why does it matter? To engender true motivation, you need to be absolutely clear why you are pursuing this particular goal. And you need to frequently revisit the value of what you are attempting. Do you want to complete a college degree to set a positive example for your child? Then put a picture of her on the front cover of your daily planner.

Expectation: do you believe that you have the ability and the fortitude to complete your goal? To create true motivation, you need to believe that you will be successful. And I don't mean a fluffy belief not grounded in reality. I mean a gritty belief in yourself, the belief that no matter how many times you get knocked down, you will get back up.

By articulating and frequently revisiting the value and expectation of your endeavor, you will develop a tough as nails motivation that can withstand any challenges thrown at it. Remember, it is when the going gets tough that motivation is the most difficult to come by, but it is also when you need it most.