What are your Motivations?

What makes you tick? What really gets you excited? What motivates you? Those aren't just great "getting to know you" questions. They are at the very core of self-improvement and personal success. Understanding your own personal motivations provides you with a key that will help unlock many of life's mysteries. Let's face it--all of us want a better life. We may define what constitutes a better life in a variety of different ways, but all of us want to see things get even better for us and those about whom we care the most. You want improvement and you recognize that the only person you can really improve (not to mention the one who matters most to you on a personal level) is YOU. That means you will have to go from your current "Spot A" to the "Spot B" of your dreams. That journey may involve a few stops along the way. It will certainly involve making changes and pushing ahead even on days when it would be easier to revert back to "Spot A." No one is going to be standing behind you as you walk that path, prodding you along. No one will be dangling a carrot in front of you, tricking you to march forward. If you want to get from "Spot A" to "Spot B," you will have to make that happen yourself. The only way to keep trudging along is by finding the right motivation to propel you down the road. If you latch on to weak motivations or shallow inspiration, you will soon find yourself abandoning the process. However, if you can isolate what really matters the most to you, it is possible to reach your goals. Motivations are important! So, how do you determine what motivates you? Some people know their motivations and can list them off without a thought. These people, for whatever reason, are perfectly in tune with "their calling" and understand what keeps them going day in and day out as they strive to reach their goals. Most of us, however, aren't quite that lucky. In the mad rush of work, home responsibilities, grocery shopping, paying bills, getting the car repaired, going to the dentist and doing task after task at high speed, it is easy to lose track of our core motivations. Most of us have to look for them. The first thing you must do is to remember that what motivates me may not motivate you. Motivations are very personal. They develop based on our own experience, background, educations, and understandings of the world. There is not universal set of motivations (aside from basic physiological needs, of course). If you're looking for your motivations in someone other than yourself, you are looking in the wrong direction. Finding your motivations requires a bit of introspection. You will want to think about past successes and what pushed you along the way during those projects. You will want to consider the goals you have always held to the most strongly; evaluating them to discover what core principles inspired them. Your motivations are your own, and no one else will be able to hand them to you on a handy list. You will have to dig within your own history and psyche to discover them. The good news is that doing so is well worth the efforts. Once you have isolated the motivations that "make you tick," you can begin to move forward to reach your own maximum potential. While others may struggle with plans and ready-made solutions that don't match them and result in frustration, you will be able to make sure your plan for personal success comports with the very things that keep you going strong. Aligning your plan of attack with a solid understanding of your motivations will supercharge your self-improvement efforts. What are your motivations? If you don't have an honest and correct answer to that question, it's high time to develop one.