Self Improvement Guide

What is motivation? Many people use the word to describe the inner push to get them to take a first step. For example, “I do not have the motivation to go to the gym,” or “I need the motivation to start going to the gym.” A search of the word in the dictionary may provide definitions that substantiate the use of the word in these examples. However, there is another angle to motivation that can be considered.

Instead of waiting for the motivation to start going to the gym or start eating correctly or whatever the action is, how about making a choice?

“I choose to start going to the gym.” That means that I am not waiting for motivation to go to the gym, I am simply making a choice. This is what would move me from passively waiting to actively pursuing a goal. Anyone waiting on the motivation to do anything is in a state of passiveness. The problem with being in that state is that there is no forward movement. Life is there for the taking. Sitting idly by and waiting for the fire to be kindled inside of you will only delay your destiny! Yet that is exactly what most people are doing when they wait for the motivation to do something.

On the other hand, if a choice is made to go to the gym then there is forward motion. This does not mean however that motivation is thrown out the window. In fact, after the decision is made, motivation steps up to the plate. Once the choice is made to go to the gym, do you know what it is that keeps you going back? Yes, it is motivation.

Motivation does not feed passivism. It is an inner propulsion mechanism. When there is motion, motivation will keep the momentum going. Do not think of motivation as the force that will take you from a standstill to movement. Think of it as the force that propels your movement in a given direction. So think of any area of your life where you are waiting for the motivation. If you find an area, then change your attitude and make a choice. Anything you have been wanting to do and you are not taking any forward action towards, does not need motivation. Those are areas where you need to make a choice to get going. Once you are moving, then motivation will play its part.

Let motivation be the force that keeps you going and not the one to get you going.

Life is stressful! These days stress seems like a fact of life! Most people have jobs, families, friends, community and social obligations - and all of these factors can add up to an overwhelming degree of stress!

If you are like most people, this has been your general outlook on stress - that it is an unavoidable fact of life which must be tolerated. If this describes you, you may be interested to learn that you do not have to allow stress to run your life, and you do not have to be overwhelmed by trying to cope with it!

There are two main points in stress management. One is learning how to prioritize; and the other is gaining a positive perspective.

Even if you are not familiar with these concepts, they are not nearly as difficult as you might think. In fact, once you have begun to put them into practice, they will become a natural part of your everyday routine.

Learning how to prioritize is simply a matter of clearly acknowledging the difference between what is urgent, what is important, and what is basically irrelevant. You would be surprised at how frazzled a person can be if he has fallen into the habit of believing that everything in his life and everything he must do is of equal importance! For example, if you have the habit of attaching the same degree of importance to everything from meeting a deadline at work to catching your favorite show on television, it is likely that you are getting little accomplished - other than keeping your stress level at an intolerable high! When you put some careful consideration into it, it is not difficult to prioritize!

This aspect of stress management can be tackled by assessing the factors in your life and what needs to be done, and begin assigning an appropriate degree of importance to each. You will see what needs to be done immediately, what can wait for a bit, and what really does not need to be done at all. When you begin addressing these factors with their appropriate degree of importance, you will not only get much more accomplished, but it will greatly assist in lowering your stress.

The other aspect of effective stress management is equally important; but if you have become successful with prioritizing, it should come fairly easily. When you have begun to put the aspects of your life into a more accurate perspective, it will feel as if your entire burden has been lightened! There will be less to worry about, you will feel less unnecessary urgency over things which are not urgent at all - and you will see how all of this adds up to far less stress!

Part of stress management comes from actively reducing the stress factors which do exist; and the other part comes from being more effective in dealing with those which are the most important. When you put this into action, you will see how much difference good stress management will make in your life!