Introduction
We’ve all had things we wanted to accomplish, goals we set either large or small, and despite that initial drive to get them done we still come up short. New Year’s resolutions and the lack of follow-through make it pretty clear that this is not uncommon.
A recent study from the University of Scranton’s Journal of Clinical Psychology, that admittedly provides an estimate at best, concluded that only 8% of people actually achieve their New Year’s Resolutions. This is simply an abysmal statistic, and even if the figure is not totally accurate, it suffices to show how few people make it from the initial stage of setting a goal for themselves and feeling motivated to accomplishing that goal then actually making it happen.
The question becomes–why? Why do so many people, who were for some period of time motivated, end up failing to reach their goals? The answer is simple: a lack of self-discipline coupled with dwindling motivation. It’s a cyclical pattern. A few months go by, new goals are set, the person is motivated to work hard, and then the same thing happens. They stop working and fail.
By relying solely on motivation, these people are setting themselves up for failure right from the start. Accomplishing our goals takes more than that. We must commit to being disciplined in our efforts right from the beginning. By doing this, we can overcome the inherent flaws of motivation and actually get shit done. Motivation will always deplete but discipline keeps us on track regardless.
What is Motivation?
Motivation is simply a combination of internal and external factors that create drive toward accomplishing our goals. It’s all the things that keep us wanting to get to that end result whether it be running toward something, running away from something, or a combination of both.
Motivation is what causes people to set goals in the first place and this is where it’s really important. Without an intrinsic desire for something or some outcome life would be directionless; you’d be a feather in the wind.
The problem arises when we rely on feeling motivated in order to put in the work to reach our goals. Motivation comes and goes, and how motivated we feel in each moment is dependent on a hundred different factors, many of which we have no control over.
Why Motivation Alone Leads to Failure
The fact is this: motivation is fleeting. It rises and falls like the tide but the necessity to take action and put in the work is a constant. Herein lies the problem.
Sure, there are things we can do in an attempt to stay motivated like listening to motivational podcasts, inspirational speeches, writing down our goals and reviewing them daily, etc. Inevitably though, there will be times where we simply don’t feel like doing what we have to. In fact, sometimes we feel motivated to do exactly the opposite.
There will be days where we barely slept and feel too tired to workout. There will be moments where we seemingly don’t care about our diet and those weight loss goals we set. There will be times we really don’t feel like studying even though that exam is two days away and we don’t know shit. There will be times where the world seems to be falling apart and, for a split second, you don’t really care about throwing your sobriety away.
These times are going to pop up regardless of the goals we set, regardless of how crucial to our wellbeing they are, and regardless of how motivated we initially were to accomplish them. This is unavoidable.
Self-Discipline and the Path to Success
Self-discipline is simply doing what we need to do even when we don’t want to do it. It’s that simple. Where motivation fails us in consistency, discipline makes up for it. This is vital because consistent progress gives us the highest chance of success and the clearest path to accomplishing our goals.
Discipline is a learned skill and takes time to develop. Some people are naturally more disciplined than others but it acts like a muscle. The more we put it to use, the stronger it grows and the less we depend upon feeling motivated to put in the work.
We require discipline to go to our job, attend meetings, force ourselves to brush our teeth, or get to bed at a decent hour. How disciplined we are with certain tasks is dependent upon how urgent we categorize them in our mind. Most people won’t have much trouble getting out of bed to get to work five days out of the week, but waking up an hour early to read each day easily gets thrown by the wayside because there’s no one to hold us accountable and therefore doesn’t seem as urgent.
When we consciously commit to performing a task, day in and day out, and we hold ourselves accountable, true progress can be made. This means the task is performed whether or not we feel like it and whether or not we are motivated that day.
Why is This Important for Your Recovery?
We all have a goal in recovery: stay clean and stay sober. At the start, we were motivated to put in the work in order to do so. Everyone has their own path but this could involve making meetings, staying in touch with our support group, managing stress levels, daily exercise, etc. etc. Doing the things required to stay clean for the long haul requires a hell of a lot more consistency than you’re going to feel motivated for.
Lasting recovery requires us to build new habits, to do away with old ones, and to make consistent progress towards a new direction in life. Lasting recovery takes self-discipline so that when we don’t get enough sleep, or life throws us a curveball, or our spouse cheats on us and we don’t feel like staying clean… we do it fuckin’ anyway.
