Why Motivation Always Follows Discipline
At a Glance
Today we’re talking about motivation.
More specifically, we’re talking about why discipline and a little courage are the first steps toward finding motivation.
Let’s discuss.
Motivation follows discipline, not the other way around.
How do I know?
Well, let me tell you.
It’s in the simple wins and losses we take for granted.
We think doing the easy thing won’t hurt us. And honestly, it doesn’t—at least not in the moment.
What really hurts us is the compounding effect of all the little decisions we made to do the “easy” thing, to do the thing that felt good.
One day I decided I’d been putting swimming off for far too long.
9 months prior, I was staring back at a newly minted ID Card that would grant me access to the one thing I had been avoiding for years—the pool.
SideNote: I’ve become a fairly active person over the past few years. But that doesn’t mean I’m not self-conscious. I lost 75 lbs from the heaviest weight I’d ever been in my life. But I still had issues with how I looked.
I put it off. I went and did other things that felt more comfortable. I turned to running, biking, elliptical. You name it, I did nearly every other exercise known to man. Except for the one, I wanted to do more than the rest.
I used to be a swimmer when I was a kid. I love the water. A calm and natural feeling washes over me when I’m in the water. It reminds me of the simple joy of being alive.
If I’m honest with myself, I had been avoiding the pool because I was embarrassed. I didn’t like the way I looked (even though I looked perfectly human). It wasn’t like I was the creature from the black lagoon. I just needed motivation.
I kept thinking, “Yeah, that’s it. If I have enough motivation—I’ll just automatically go the pool!”
Unfortunately, that’s not how motivation works. We gain motivation when we build confidence.
We build confidence by finding courage in the small things.
Take a step. Then another. And another still.
Don’t worry about how big the step is. Take the tiniest step imaginable—a step so small it’s uncomfortable—and then take one more.
One fateful day, I looked outside and told myself, “Today is the day you go swimming.”
I packed my bag. I placed it by the door. Got ready with coffee in hand. And picked up the bag with my other on my way to work.
Throughout the morning and into the afternoon, I could sense my mind playing tricks on me already. “Maybe go for a run? Huh? Maybe?” or “Maybe go to the gym and use the elliptical? Huh? Maybe?”
As time passed, I started second-guessing myself. I couldn’t tell if it was a good idea anymore to exercise, let alone swim.
I got in the car after work and sat there for a moment. Then I turned it on, set the GPS to “Pool” (not really, but you get the idea), and put the gear into drive.
It took a moment of bravery to just say, “F#ck It.”
“I’m doing this for me.”
Once I got to the pool building, I still had to find my way in—to the pool, not the building. I just went to the front door for that… obviously.
It was a maze. It was as if fate was throwing one more curve ball. The voice inside my head was back, “You won’t find the pool. Don’t even try.”
After a few minutes and just literally reading some signs, I found the locker room. It took some time, but I eventually made my way out to the pool deck. I made my way to the lane and sat down on the edge of the pool.
I couldn’t believe I was there. I had made it. I slopped into the pool and smiled.
Goggles down. A push from the edge. One hand over another. Flutter kicks. I was swimming.
I swam for half a mile that day, happy as a clam. I’ve been back many times in the weeks since. Now it’s like second nature.
The anxiety of being in my own skin. The anxiety of finding the pool. All gone.
In the end, that simple gesture to focus my car’s GPS toward the pool turned my entire day around. The smallest of steps. A moment of bravery turned into a rekindled passion.
Now, I’m confident, and I’m motivated. I love swimming again, and I can’t wait to get back in the pool.
Sometimes we let comfort decide the path for us. That’s how most people live their lives. Forks on the road happen all the time.
But you can pick your own path.
Go start a new career.
Go find a new passion.
Go build a new creative life.
Motivation follows discipline.
Discipline follows a moment of saying, “I’m doing this for me.”
All you need to change your life is one step.
Take the right one, and motivation will follow. You’ll make space for the new path because you’ll want to return to it. On the days you don’t, remind yourself how much better your life is because you took the first step. Remind yourself of who you’re becoming.
Motivation follows discipline, not the other way around.
That's all for now.
Stay creative, my friends—and have a great week!
