I got a call the other day from an insurance carrier. I am contracting with them, and they are one of the big companies, like the type that has been around for over 100 years, so they take their contracting seriously and interview you pretty thoroughly. The question that caught me off guard, was this: “what motivates you?” I honestly had a blank air for a little bit too long (awkward silence is NEVER good in an interview like this). Ha! I’m usually not too speechless…
My answer was this: “I don’t know for sure, but my motivation comes from within. I am self-motivated, I guess.” Gratefully, he liked that answer.
That got me to thinking about motivation, and I’ve spent the last couple of days pondering on it. What is my motivation? Not only what motivates me, but from where does my motivation come? Does it come from outside pressures, or internal demands from myself?
Ultimately, it lead me down the path of thinking about success and motivation. Success is what motivates me, the end goal. Since I’m a top down thinker, I usually think about the big picture first, the whole plan, and the end game, success, is what drives me.
Now, trust me, I’ve failed a lot, and that’s OK. There is a fantastic TED talk on why those who don’t fail are creating a path where they never will have success, and I posted that a while ago on my blog HERE. Failure to me has only turned out to be a delayed success. The only times I allow something to be a failure is if the project ends up being not worth my time or effort. At that point I can walk away as I will see no progress or benefit to me. But, if something is beneficial and worth it, and it’s currently not working, it is success in progress, NOT failure.
So, here are four quick steps for success:
1. Figure out your motivation, and make it internal; by that I mean don’t let external factors define what success is to you in a particular endeavor; do it for YOU, not THEM.
2. Define what is success before you start your project. Make it difficult, but attainable.
3. Measure your steps and keep track of them.
4. Reset, and push yourself farther.
Now, go #DominateToday.