17 ms·

Ask HN: How do you motivate yourself?

35 points by e19293001 10y ago

Cozumel 10y ago
Eric Baker has some good insights http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/01/how-to-be-motivated/ http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/01/how-to-be-motivated/ I struggle to get motivated as well.
- tedmiston 10y ago
  That was a great read. Here's my summary: Note: For convenience it's also available with slightly more detail (and formatting!) in my notes repo on GitHub at [1]. --- - Sometimes people don't feel motivated if they focus too much on the rewards involved rather than the task itself - Instead of focusing on the reward, how can we motivate ourselves to care about the task at hand? 3 ways: Autonomy, Mastery, Purpose. - The progress principle: the most powerful motivator is making progress in meaningful work (even just the perception of doing so) - From The Progress Principle: "People’s inner work lives seemed to lift or drag depending on whether or not their projects moved forward, even by small increments. Small wins often had a surprisingly strong positive effect, and small losses a surprisingly strong negative one." - If it's hard to see progress, focus on small accomplishments instead of big goals. What is intrinsically motivating to you? - In a study by Barry Schwartz on West Point grads, intrinsically motivated students performed better and were more satisfied than extrinsically motivated and those with hybrid intrinsic/extrinsic motivation - From Drive by Dan Pink: "So there is this kind of interesting zen-like thing. The route to these rewards is not to be cognitive of the rewards." - Extra motivation from Neil deGrasse Tyson: "The problem, often not discovered until late in life, is that when you look for things in life like love, meaning, motivation, it implies they are sitting behind a tree or under a rock. The most successful people in life recognize, that in life they create their own love, they manufacture their own meaning, they generate their own motivation." --- [1]: https://github.com/tedmiston/notes/blob/master/articles/How%20to%20Be%20Motivated.md https://github.com/tedmiston/notes/blob/master/articles/How%...
just_observing 10y ago
There is no one single unfailing way for me to do this. Some days it will be closing X issues, or a cold beer, or a gaming session with a friend, or tracking down that one annoying bug, or seeing that my numbers are low and I need to up my game (which can conflict with long work to find that bug of course), or reading a book, going for a bike ride. There are other ways I do it but no single thing hits the spot for every day and every situation. Having a stock of various methods works though and I'm always happy to add another.
siscia 10y ago
There is a popular comment somewhere in the internet (I would guess on quota, but not sure) about this subject. The point of this comment is that you don't need motivation you need discipline. Motivation comes and goes, discipline stick around which is what you need if you want to build anything meaningful...
williamkennedy 10y ago
I have actually written about this a lot as it is one of those topics that I am fascinated with. The trick is not to try and motivate yourself but to build systems and processes to get things done regardless. For me, it boils down to 3 things. Pre-planning, habits and elimination. I have written about each separately on my blog http://www.new2code.com/2016/06/deep-work/ http://www.new2code.com/2016/06/deep-work/ I plan a lot of stuff on my Google Calendar. My whole days are planned in advance including free time. When I am learning a new language, I set aside time for study. If a friend asks me to hang out, I can just check to see if I have prior commitments. I also have the regular gym slot and after 2+ years, I am simply routine when it comes to exercising. Next, learn how to build habits and routines. This saves a ton brain power. There is a great video on habit building http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdKUJxjn-R8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdKUJxjn-R8 Also, check out a book by Charles Duhigg called The Power of Habit. Finally, cut out the news and as much information as possible. Not watching the news added a ton of happiness to my life. This also cuts out distractions. Check out something called the Low Information Diet which goes into more detail as well as a book called Deep Work by Cal Newport I also wrote a guest post on the blog Simple Programmer that goes into more detail on the willpower.motivation side of things https://simpleprogrammer.com/2016/09/07/limited-willpower/ https://simpleprogrammer.com/2016/09/07/limited-willpower/ I hope that helps. Largely I don't believe in long-term motivation, it is more to do with becoming routine.
- cylinder 10y ago
  Thanks, I watched the video. I totally agree about avoiding news and being low information. Unfollowing all my Facebook friends so I have no feed has been great. I was until recently ignoring a lot of news but due to boredom have allowed myself to get sucked back in.
  - williamkennedy 10y ago
    I have a Chrome Plugin called News Feed Eradicator for Facebook. * I find it is a terrific solution for preventing you from browsing Facebook. Now everytime, I got to Facebook out of habit, I end up leaving because my news feed does not exist and I don't get sucked in. Works for me anyway. * https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/news-feed-eradicator-for/fjcldmjmjhkklehbacihaiopjklihlgg https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/news-feed-eradicat...
csallen 10y ago
DHH once gave a talk at Startup School. Watching that talk invariably pumps me up and leaves me motivated for hours. (Specifically, it gets me motivated to work on personal projects that make money online.) In general, reading about anyone's success is like a shot of motivation directly into my veins.
- tmaly 10y ago
  Is this talk available online?
  - joshux 10y ago
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CDXJ6bMkMY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CDXJ6bMkMY
- tedmiston 10y ago
  That's quite interesting to hear. A lot of what DHH and Jason Fried preach about making money fast, having a profitable small business, etc goes directly in the face of venture-backed startup memes e.g., "grow like mad and figure out how to make money at scale". I actually prefer their approach myself. It's nice to see the two worlds collide.
tmaly 10y ago
The easiest for me is to just start doing something, even if it is a little thing. It may have been in the Power of Habit or another place. The person said if you wanted to get in the habit of flossing, just start with the front two teeth. Derek Sivers I think said something like do one pushup and what ends up happening is that you get to thinking, I am already down here why not do another one. This leads to a habit. I approach this the same way when it comes to motivating myself to work on a side project. Another good approach I picked up is the 5 minute journal. You invariably end up reflecting on things you could have done better. This helps you to focus yourself and pay attention to where you are not getting the most out of life.
- orky56 10y ago
  I've converted the 5 minute journal into 2 Google Forms one for AM & PM and have put links to those in a calendar invite for my notifications/alarms to wake up and go to sleep. Keeps me on point every day without being too cumbersome. PM me if you'd like access to the template so you don't have to recreate yourself.
ge96 10y ago
Everything was handed to me in life. Not much but enough to get to middle class if I had just followed the rules and stuck with it. But I didn't. I failed out my physics/engineering program. I now work in a factory, and owe around 50K which I barely make 19K a year. My life sucks. But I'm also young. I watch movies, sci Fi movies/shows which motivates me. I want that life. But then I try to program and I'm like "Holy crap. I'm so far away..." I hate going to work I perform the same tasks over 6,000 in a day. Everyday is the same. I am wasting my life. Motivation by fear isn't a good thing. Like the cliche, follow what you love. Me I'm about trying to get out of my situation. Make money. I HAVE AN IDEA!!! The problem is discipline. Sleep is a basic thing. Screw up your sleep pattern. You end up wasting time being awake and trying to fall asleep/not able to work. Yeah discipline is the big thing. And true motivation from a desire/longing to do whatever it is with an internal driving force.
- ge96 10y ago
  I am trying to quit watching shows/browsing websites. As soon as I start. My productivity is just sucked away. IQ points drop and I'm left as a drooling idiot.
- SyneRyder 10y ago
  Argh. That must feel frustrating & demoralizing. Are you working full time at the factory? Are you working on a project on the side to help lift yourself out of the situation? How do you keep your spirits up? (If it were me, I think that situation would weigh down my self esteem - hanging out with friends would be very important to me to stay upbeat.) I agree that motivation by fear isn't a good thing & doesn't work for everyone. The times I was most fearful, I found the fear & anxiety paralyzing and I wasn't productive at all. Being young is good. Things can change quickly - you never know where you'll be in 5 years, 2 years, even next year. I wish you good luck!
  - ge96 10y ago
    I'm not sure if I replied to you. I think I replied to myself. Also I'm new to HN so I didn't know how to check for messages. Yeah it sucks, but you know, I made the decisions to get here. Also I've burned bridges too, which made me concerned like "How will I get a job without references?" but factories you know, they'll hire just about anybody. I work on web development (freelance) on my spare time, but I'm bad at pricing/businessman and also I'm not that great (reinvent the wheel, use bad code, etc...). I'm really into technology, aviation, robotics, programming, I want to be one of those that I read about in the news. Space. AI, etc... it just sucks being there. I'm trapped. I have this miserable look on my face all the time. I feel bad that people see it. But I can't hide it too, I hate it. But other people also hate this job, but they don't seem to make it other people's problems. So I just day dream while I lose myself cutting meat in the factory. I dream of ideas, designs, etc... I fear I am delusional, if I make the money then I must not be right? So far I haven't made any money so... not going very well haha. I was in a box, for the last two years, now it's a corner, hopefully it'll be a room(box again)/house. Yeah it's hard to keep sane. Sorry I ranted.
gjolund 10y ago
Im motivated by my bills.
8611m 10y ago
This is not very scientific, but it has worked for me. I have curated this list of YouTube videos some of which have helped me and some of my friends a lot in the last year. I watch 1-2 of these in the gym when I am doing my cardio (elliptical or treadmill) three times a week towards the end of my workout. goo.gl/Xv4pwT I am a very distracted person, and need constant reminders. I have designed my life in such a way to be constantly reminded of my priorities. Once, I decide I need to include an activity in my life (be it learning, workout, eating healthy), I set up a time and corresponding reminders/ alerts. This sort of planning and tracking helps tremendously stay focussed on only things that matter.
- riotvan 10y ago
  This is interesting because I think this is my problem as well. I've tried TODO lists, writing things on paper, but I eventually forget about them. Do you use todo lists? Do you write everything down in paper?
tromple 10y ago
In general I stay motivated by reaching a base level of healthiness - physical, work, and social. The motivation comes naturally if I've met those needs. I'm not a superhuman kettlebell-swinging crossfit soylent paleo junkie by any means, but I walk to work every day and bike a good amount using my city's bike-share. And I've started (over the course of 2 years, it's so tough!) to eat less-unhealthy food. Being happy at work makes a big difference to my motivation, I'm able to channel some of that extra energy I get from feeling like I'm putting good effort in, into my side projects. I work 9-5 most days (as a programmer). I find I'm more motivated when I keep in touch with people, and also when I work on projects that get me interacting with people who are excited about what I'm doing. For me at least, it's not as fun to work on a project if people I know don't think it's cool. That was a snippet from a Paul Graham essay I took to heart and I think it's true. I also occasionally journal my thoughts down, which makes me feel calmer and more ready to approach a task.
- afarrell 10y ago
  Also: sleep. If you find yourself staying up late at night trying to focus and instead reading Wikipedia articles about the Hapsburgs, stop. Get yourself on a sleep schedule. Download RainyMood[1] and Freedom[2] if it helps you. [1] https://rainymood.com/ https://rainymood.com/ [2] https://freedom.to https://freedom.to
  - tedmiston 10y ago
    A similar app I've used is SimplyRain [0]. [0]: https://rain.simplynoise.com https://rain.simplynoise.com
JSeymourATL 10y ago
Shane Parrish recently gave an excellent review on motivation, good food for thought-- Daniel Pink on Incentives and the Two Types of Motivation > https://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2016/08/daniel-pink-two-types-of-motivation/ https://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2016/08/daniel-pink-two-typ...
orky56 10y ago
I think about the 24 hours in my day and see if the time I have spent/will spend expresses the priorities I have in my life. I create routines to ensure the decision-making is minimized as much as possible such that my habitual actions reflect my priorities. Lastly I consider the fact that will my future self think I am doing him a favor by the actions/systems I am putting in place. Motivation should be about putting yourself on the appropriate trajectory not just completing the individual action that leads to fleeting satisfaction.
ohgh1ieD 10y ago
It's very simple for me I just think that one day I'll be dead and that I just wasted my life and the only option to change that is to create something that has value to me and that motivates me. But the more I think about it ... I guess it's fear, it's the fear of a meaningless life. Eat, shit, fuck, breath, die ? No thanks
- tedmiston 10y ago
  This is a popular stance especially among entrepreneurs. "We're here for such a short period of time, might as well do something meaningful."
  - ohgh1ieD 10y ago
    And a very powerful one. I'm actually a lazy fuck but that thought makes me run circles.
sebg 10y ago
"Discipline is remembering what you want" - David Campbell, Founder of Saks Fifth Avenue. So if you want to motivate yourself, then remember what you want. Then if you find you are not doing what is necessary, it means that you have to confront the fact that you may not actually want what you are telling yourself you want.
- tedmiston 10y ago
  Alternatively, it may mean confronting the fact that you've never really sat down to examine your values and find out what it is that you truly want in the first place. :)
avitzurel 10y ago
I race bikes and train like crazy. I wrote about it before here: https://medium.com/@kensodev/how-bike-racing-is-making-me-a-better-engineer-cd2870bdaa87#.kledyyrt6 https://medium.com/@kensodev/how-bike-racing-is-making-me-a-... Racing bikes (and training for it) creates so much structure in life. What you eat, how you sleep, when you recover. Even though I work most of the time from home, it gives a clear order to the day.
mattbgates 10y ago
My motivation at my age: Make my primary job my second job and make enough money in my startup so that it becomes my primary job. How do I stay motivated to keep at it with my startup? Aside from enjoying doing what I do, developing web apps, I write down the potential profit involved that I could be making every month. Those are the numbers I want to be making that I'm currently not making and that is what keeps me motivated. Money isn't everything.. that is certainly true! But making enough money to pay off my mortage, my credit card debt, my bills, and still have enough left over to donate to a cause and have some peace of mind is the underlying motivator.
- ryanmccullagh 10y ago
  Hey Matt. What is your startup, if you don't mind me asking, of course.
  - mattbgates 10y ago
    Hey Ryan, although I'm still developing the projects, I began an umbrella business which specializes in delivering affordable communication services to companies and individuals.
0x54MUR41 10y ago
I heard that inner motivation (motivation from the inside, in other word, yourself) has more impact than outer motivation. That was my problem too when I was preparing college entrance examination. My teacher told me that you can get a motivation by categorizing what you love, what you fear, and what you hate. Someone can get a motivation because he hates something. So, write it down! Repeat what you've written regularly before and after you're going to bed. Side note: I would recommend James Clear's reading list for motivation [1]. [1]: http://jamesclear.com/motivation http://jamesclear.com/motivation
recmend 10y ago
Leaving the world a little better than I found it. Find opportunities where you can and want to make a difference, then do your best.

35 points by e19293001 10y ago

Eric Baker has some good insights http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/01/how-to-be-motivated/ http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/01/how-to-be-motivated/ I struggle to get motivated as well.

tedmiston 10y ago
That was a great read. Here's my summary: Note: For convenience it's also available with slightly more detail (and formatting!) in my notes repo on GitHub at [1]. --- - Sometimes people don't feel motivated if they focus too much on the rewards involved rather than the task itself - Instead of focusing on the reward, how can we motivate ourselves to care about the task at hand? 3 ways: Autonomy, Mastery, Purpose. - The progress principle: the most powerful motivator is making progress in meaningful work (even just the perception of doing so) - From The Progress Principle: "People’s inner work lives seemed to lift or drag depending on whether or not their projects moved forward, even by small increments. Small wins often had a surprisingly strong positive effect, and small losses a surprisingly strong negative one." - If it's hard to see progress, focus on small accomplishments instead of big goals. What is intrinsically motivating to you? - In a study by Barry Schwartz on West Point grads, intrinsically motivated students performed better and were more satisfied than extrinsically motivated and those with hybrid intrinsic/extrinsic motivation - From Drive by Dan Pink: "So there is this kind of interesting zen-like thing. The route to these rewards is not to be cognitive of the rewards." - Extra motivation from Neil deGrasse Tyson: "The problem, often not discovered until late in life, is that when you look for things in life like love, meaning, motivation, it implies they are sitting behind a tree or under a rock. The most successful people in life recognize, that in life they create their own love, they manufacture their own meaning, they generate their own motivation." --- [1]: https://github.com/tedmiston/notes/blob/master/articles/How%20to%20Be%20Motivated.md https://github.com/tedmiston/notes/blob/master/articles/How%...

just_observing 10y ago

There is no one single unfailing way for me to do this. Some days it will be closing X issues, or a cold beer, or a gaming session with a friend, or tracking down that one annoying bug, or seeing that my numbers are low and I need to up my game (which can conflict with long work to find that bug of course), or reading a book, going for a bike ride. There are other ways I do it but no single thing hits the spot for every day and every situation. Having a stock of various methods works though and I'm always happy to add another.

siscia 10y ago

There is a popular comment somewhere in the internet (I would guess on quota, but not sure) about this subject. The point of this comment is that you don't need motivation you need discipline. Motivation comes and goes, discipline stick around which is what you need if you want to build anything meaningful...

williamkennedy 10y ago

I have actually written about this a lot as it is one of those topics that I am fascinated with. The trick is not to try and motivate yourself but to build systems and processes to get things done regardless. For me, it boils down to 3 things. Pre-planning, habits and elimination. I have written about each separately on my blog http://www.new2code.com/2016/06/deep-work/ http://www.new2code.com/2016/06/deep-work/ I plan a lot of stuff on my Google Calendar. My whole days are planned in advance including free time. When I am learning a new language, I set aside time for study. If a friend asks me to hang out, I can just check to see if I have prior commitments. I also have the regular gym slot and after 2+ years, I am simply routine when it comes to exercising. Next, learn how to build habits and routines. This saves a ton brain power. There is a great video on habit building http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdKUJxjn-R8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdKUJxjn-R8 Also, check out a book by Charles Duhigg called The Power of Habit. Finally, cut out the news and as much information as possible. Not watching the news added a ton of happiness to my life. This also cuts out distractions. Check out something called the Low Information Diet which goes into more detail as well as a book called Deep Work by Cal Newport I also wrote a guest post on the blog Simple Programmer that goes into more detail on the willpower.motivation side of things https://simpleprogrammer.com/2016/09/07/limited-willpower/ https://simpleprogrammer.com/2016/09/07/limited-willpower/ I hope that helps. Largely I don't believe in long-term motivation, it is more to do with becoming routine.

cylinder 10y ago
Thanks, I watched the video. I totally agree about avoiding news and being low information. Unfollowing all my Facebook friends so I have no feed has been great. I was until recently ignoring a lot of news but due to boredom have allowed myself to get sucked back in.
- williamkennedy 10y ago
  I have a Chrome Plugin called News Feed Eradicator for Facebook. * I find it is a terrific solution for preventing you from browsing Facebook. Now everytime, I got to Facebook out of habit, I end up leaving because my news feed does not exist and I don't get sucked in. Works for me anyway. * https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/news-feed-eradicator-for/fjcldmjmjhkklehbacihaiopjklihlgg https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/news-feed-eradicat...

csallen 10y ago

DHH once gave a talk at Startup School. Watching that talk invariably pumps me up and leaves me motivated for hours. (Specifically, it gets me motivated to work on personal projects that make money online.) In general, reading about anyone's success is like a shot of motivation directly into my veins.

tmaly 10y ago
Is this talk available online?
- joshux 10y ago
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CDXJ6bMkMY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CDXJ6bMkMY
tedmiston 10y ago
That's quite interesting to hear. A lot of what DHH and Jason Fried preach about making money fast, having a profitable small business, etc goes directly in the face of venture-backed startup memes e.g., "grow like mad and figure out how to make money at scale". I actually prefer their approach myself. It's nice to see the two worlds collide.

tmaly 10y ago

The easiest for me is to just start doing something, even if it is a little thing. It may have been in the Power of Habit or another place. The person said if you wanted to get in the habit of flossing, just start with the front two teeth. Derek Sivers I think said something like do one pushup and what ends up happening is that you get to thinking, I am already down here why not do another one. This leads to a habit. I approach this the same way when it comes to motivating myself to work on a side project. Another good approach I picked up is the 5 minute journal. You invariably end up reflecting on things you could have done better. This helps you to focus yourself and pay attention to where you are not getting the most out of life.

orky56 10y ago
I've converted the 5 minute journal into 2 Google Forms one for AM & PM and have put links to those in a calendar invite for my notifications/alarms to wake up and go to sleep. Keeps me on point every day without being too cumbersome. PM me if you'd like access to the template so you don't have to recreate yourself.

ge96 10y ago

Everything was handed to me in life. Not much but enough to get to middle class if I had just followed the rules and stuck with it. But I didn't. I failed out my physics/engineering program. I now work in a factory, and owe around 50K which I barely make 19K a year. My life sucks. But I'm also young. I watch movies, sci Fi movies/shows which motivates me. I want that life. But then I try to program and I'm like "Holy crap. I'm so far away..." I hate going to work I perform the same tasks over 6,000 in a day. Everyday is the same. I am wasting my life. Motivation by fear isn't a good thing. Like the cliche, follow what you love. Me I'm about trying to get out of my situation. Make money. I HAVE AN IDEA!!! The problem is discipline. Sleep is a basic thing. Screw up your sleep pattern. You end up wasting time being awake and trying to fall asleep/not able to work. Yeah discipline is the big thing. And true motivation from a desire/longing to do whatever it is with an internal driving force.

ge96 10y ago
I am trying to quit watching shows/browsing websites. As soon as I start. My productivity is just sucked away. IQ points drop and I'm left as a drooling idiot.
SyneRyder 10y ago
Argh. That must feel frustrating & demoralizing. Are you working full time at the factory? Are you working on a project on the side to help lift yourself out of the situation? How do you keep your spirits up? (If it were me, I think that situation would weigh down my self esteem - hanging out with friends would be very important to me to stay upbeat.) I agree that motivation by fear isn't a good thing & doesn't work for everyone. The times I was most fearful, I found the fear & anxiety paralyzing and I wasn't productive at all. Being young is good. Things can change quickly - you never know where you'll be in 5 years, 2 years, even next year. I wish you good luck!
- ge96 10y ago
  I'm not sure if I replied to you. I think I replied to myself. Also I'm new to HN so I didn't know how to check for messages. Yeah it sucks, but you know, I made the decisions to get here. Also I've burned bridges too, which made me concerned like "How will I get a job without references?" but factories you know, they'll hire just about anybody. I work on web development (freelance) on my spare time, but I'm bad at pricing/businessman and also I'm not that great (reinvent the wheel, use bad code, etc...). I'm really into technology, aviation, robotics, programming, I want to be one of those that I read about in the news. Space. AI, etc... it just sucks being there. I'm trapped. I have this miserable look on my face all the time. I feel bad that people see it. But I can't hide it too, I hate it. But other people also hate this job, but they don't seem to make it other people's problems. So I just day dream while I lose myself cutting meat in the factory. I dream of ideas, designs, etc... I fear I am delusional, if I make the money then I must not be right? So far I haven't made any money so... not going very well haha. I was in a box, for the last two years, now it's a corner, hopefully it'll be a room(box again)/house. Yeah it's hard to keep sane. Sorry I ranted.

gjolund 10y ago

Im motivated by my bills.

8611m 10y ago

This is not very scientific, but it has worked for me. I have curated this list of YouTube videos some of which have helped me and some of my friends a lot in the last year. I watch 1-2 of these in the gym when I am doing my cardio (elliptical or treadmill) three times a week towards the end of my workout. goo.gl/Xv4pwT I am a very distracted person, and need constant reminders. I have designed my life in such a way to be constantly reminded of my priorities. Once, I decide I need to include an activity in my life (be it learning, workout, eating healthy), I set up a time and corresponding reminders/ alerts. This sort of planning and tracking helps tremendously stay focussed on only things that matter.

riotvan 10y ago
This is interesting because I think this is my problem as well. I've tried TODO lists, writing things on paper, but I eventually forget about them. Do you use todo lists? Do you write everything down in paper?

tromple 10y ago

In general I stay motivated by reaching a base level of healthiness - physical, work, and social. The motivation comes naturally if I've met those needs. I'm not a superhuman kettlebell-swinging crossfit soylent paleo junkie by any means, but I walk to work every day and bike a good amount using my city's bike-share. And I've started (over the course of 2 years, it's so tough!) to eat less-unhealthy food. Being happy at work makes a big difference to my motivation, I'm able to channel some of that extra energy I get from feeling like I'm putting good effort in, into my side projects. I work 9-5 most days (as a programmer). I find I'm more motivated when I keep in touch with people, and also when I work on projects that get me interacting with people who are excited about what I'm doing. For me at least, it's not as fun to work on a project if people I know don't think it's cool. That was a snippet from a Paul Graham essay I took to heart and I think it's true. I also occasionally journal my thoughts down, which makes me feel calmer and more ready to approach a task.

afarrell 10y ago
Also: sleep. If you find yourself staying up late at night trying to focus and instead reading Wikipedia articles about the Hapsburgs, stop. Get yourself on a sleep schedule. Download RainyMood[1] and Freedom[2] if it helps you. [1] https://rainymood.com/ https://rainymood.com/ [2] https://freedom.to https://freedom.to
- tedmiston 10y ago
  A similar app I've used is SimplyRain [0]. [0]: https://rain.simplynoise.com https://rain.simplynoise.com

JSeymourATL 10y ago

Shane Parrish recently gave an excellent review on motivation, good food for thought-- Daniel Pink on Incentives and the Two Types of Motivation > https://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2016/08/daniel-pink-two-types-of-motivation/ https://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2016/08/daniel-pink-two-typ...

orky56 10y ago

I think about the 24 hours in my day and see if the time I have spent/will spend expresses the priorities I have in my life. I create routines to ensure the decision-making is minimized as much as possible such that my habitual actions reflect my priorities. Lastly I consider the fact that will my future self think I am doing him a favor by the actions/systems I am putting in place. Motivation should be about putting yourself on the appropriate trajectory not just completing the individual action that leads to fleeting satisfaction.

ohgh1ieD 10y ago

It's very simple for me I just think that one day I'll be dead and that I just wasted my life and the only option to change that is to create something that has value to me and that motivates me. But the more I think about it ... I guess it's fear, it's the fear of a meaningless life. Eat, shit, fuck, breath, die ? No thanks

tedmiston 10y ago
This is a popular stance especially among entrepreneurs. "We're here for such a short period of time, might as well do something meaningful."
- ohgh1ieD 10y ago
  And a very powerful one. I'm actually a lazy fuck but that thought makes me run circles.

sebg 10y ago

"Discipline is remembering what you want" - David Campbell, Founder of Saks Fifth Avenue. So if you want to motivate yourself, then remember what you want. Then if you find you are not doing what is necessary, it means that you have to confront the fact that you may not actually want what you are telling yourself you want.

tedmiston 10y ago
Alternatively, it may mean confronting the fact that you've never really sat down to examine your values and find out what it is that you truly want in the first place. :)

avitzurel 10y ago

I race bikes and train like crazy. I wrote about it before here: https://medium.com/@kensodev/how-bike-racing-is-making-me-a-better-engineer-cd2870bdaa87#.kledyyrt6 https://medium.com/@kensodev/how-bike-racing-is-making-me-a-... Racing bikes (and training for it) creates so much structure in life. What you eat, how you sleep, when you recover. Even though I work most of the time from home, it gives a clear order to the day.

mattbgates 10y ago

My motivation at my age: Make my primary job my second job and make enough money in my startup so that it becomes my primary job. How do I stay motivated to keep at it with my startup? Aside from enjoying doing what I do, developing web apps, I write down the potential profit involved that I could be making every month. Those are the numbers I want to be making that I'm currently not making and that is what keeps me motivated. Money isn't everything.. that is certainly true! But making enough money to pay off my mortage, my credit card debt, my bills, and still have enough left over to donate to a cause and have some peace of mind is the underlying motivator.

ryanmccullagh 10y ago
Hey Matt. What is your startup, if you don't mind me asking, of course.
- mattbgates 10y ago
  Hey Ryan, although I'm still developing the projects, I began an umbrella business which specializes in delivering affordable communication services to companies and individuals.

0x54MUR41 10y ago

I heard that inner motivation (motivation from the inside, in other word, yourself) has more impact than outer motivation. That was my problem too when I was preparing college entrance examination. My teacher told me that you can get a motivation by categorizing what you love, what you fear, and what you hate. Someone can get a motivation because he hates something. So, write it down! Repeat what you've written regularly before and after you're going to bed. Side note: I would recommend James Clear's reading list for motivation [1]. [1]: http://jamesclear.com/motivation http://jamesclear.com/motivation

recmend 10y ago

Leaving the world a little better than I found it. Find opportunities where you can and want to make a difference, then do your best.