How motivated are you? Do you have a challenge getting motivated? Or, is your challenge staying motivated?

These next two articles are focused on getting motivated and staying motivated.

How to Get Motivated Part I

There are four basic ways to get motivated:

1. Find something that you deeply desire.
2. Write a clearly defined goal.
3. Make a list of the things that you will do to get it.
4. Take action.

1. Find something that you deeply desire.

One of my client?s was recently looking to purchase a new home. He had a list of the requirements for his new home and began a pursuit. In the search for a new home he visited many different models; both new and resells. It wasn?t until he found the ?perfect? home, that he became highly motivated. Here?s an interesting twist. The home that he became highly motivated to own was $100,000 more than his budget.
He knew purchasing a home within his budget was doable; however, it wasn?t until he found something that had him awe-struck that he truly became highly motivated to buy.

2. Write a clearly defined goal.

Continuing with the example from the previous point, my client was so fixated on purchasing this home that he sat down and wrote a clearly defined goal, which looked something like this: I, John Doe (not his real name, obviously), am thrilled to own and be living in my new amazing custom designed home at 123 Any Street in Histown, State.

He created three goal cards with the same goal statement. One of the goal cards he carried with him in his pocket. The other goal card he displayed at his desk and the third was placed on his nightstand beside his bed.
He read the goal card several times throughout the day. Each time imagining what it would be like when he lived in his new home, becoming fully associated with the experience.

He also took the photograph of the home from the MLS (Multiple Listing Service), made a copy of the photograph and with his computer modified the photo to include his goal statement. He printed the page on his color printer and posted the color photograph of the new home with his goal statement on the wall in his office. He also created an image file and saved the file as his background for his desktop. In addition, he printed out mini versions of the color photographs of the house and pasted them on the back of his goal cards.

3. Make a list of the things that you will do to get it.

My client had an objective to raise the extra $100,000 in cash so that he did not incur any additional debt. He was in business for himself, thus, very flexible to find new ways to increase revenue. He took a sheet of paper and he wrote at the top of the page: 50 ways that I will get the extra $100,000 cash for the purchase of my new home.

He started to write out ideas. Some of his ideas were logical and others were out in left field. He did not move from his chair until he wrote 50 new ideas. He was amazed at the ideas that started to come to him. When he felt himself getting tired, he picked up his goal card, read it, visualized and started to write more ideas.

4. Take action.

After careful evaluation of the list of 50 ways to raise the extra $100,000, he then created a plan to put some of these ideas into action. Having the ideas is one thing, taking action is another thing.

In our next Achieve Your Goals Newsletter we will continue with the story of my client and his goal for his new home. We?ll also focus on the steps to stay motivated.

To get motivated find something that you are truly excited about. To keep that initial motivation, follow through with these 4 simple ideas.

Read How To Stay Motivated? (Part II of II)