RR#083 Motivation Is Bull$#it
Picture this:
You’re an employee in a corporate role, and your boss asks, "Did you complete that really important task you needed to do?"
You reply matter-of-factly, "No, I haven’t done it yet."
Your boss, curious, asks, "Um, why not?"
And you say, "Because I wasn’t really motivated to do it."
I don’t know about you, but that’s a "It’s been nice to know you" type of offense in my business.
So, why do so many entrepreneurs take this “feelings-based” approach to critical functions in their own business?
Procrastinating and avoiding the things they know they should be doing until they “feel like it.” These are the same tasks they’d have no problem finding motivation for if their boss had asked them to do it in their 9-5 job.
That’s why I believe motivation is overrated.
Your clients, prospects, and markets don’t care whether you’re motivated or not. Whether you feel like it or not, it needs to get done.
Motivation, like all feelings, is inconsistent. No matter how motivated you are, you won’t feel it all the time. Do you really want the level of execution in your business to be contingent on how you (or your team) feel at any given moment?
That’s why I rely on systems to get important tasks done—not motivation, inspiration, or any other feeling.
My personal systems dictate my workout routines, eating habits, and sleeping patterns.
My calendar systems ensure I’m completing key responsibilities in the business on time.
And the systems in my business help my team do what they need to do, when they need to do it.
In fact, this approach is baked right into our core values at Repeatable Revenue:
Don’t get me wrong, these systems aren’t perfect. But, because they’re systems, they can be improved gradually over time.
As James Clear says in Atomic Habits, “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”
And that’s why robust systems are the key to freedom for entrepreneurs. They are the only way to ensure the right work is done the right way, and at the right time, without your having to oversee and execute everything yourself.
As for motivation: I was recently asked how I stay motivated to create as much content as I do.
Here’s my response in a quick video:
