I'm Climbing Up!

According to my good friends over at wikipedia.com, a soapbox is a raised platform on which one stands to make an impromptu speech, often about a political subject.

The term originates from when speakers would stand on a wooden box meant for holding soap. The term is also used metaphorically to describe a person engaging in an often flamboyant, impromptu or unofficial public speaking – as in "She's on her soapbox" or "Get off your soapbox". A modern form of the soapbox is a blog or a website on which a user publishes one's thoughts to whoever reads the page.

Welcome to my Soapbox!

I’ve decided to climb waaaaaay up on that wooden box about a few topics that seem to always come up when I’m coaching clients. And since I kinda like being on my soapbox, I’m going to hang out there all week!

Tune in every day for my Soapbox Radical Rant of the Day:

Monday: Motivation
Tuesday: Time
Wednesday: Weight
Thursday: Theory
Friday: Friendships

So, let me pull out my ladder so I can climb on up for today’s RADICAL rant: Motivation.

I can't count the number of times I've heard:

• "I'm just not motivated."
• "I need someone to keep me motivated."
• "I start out strong and lose motivation."
• "I want a coach to keep me motivated."
• "I'm attending this conference/seminar/workshop/retreat to get motivated."

Why, why, why do people keep looking to others to give them what they already have???? (stomping on the box)

Let's take a look at what motivation is:

Motive is an impulse that causes a person to act. Motivation is an internal process that makes a person move toward a goal. Motivation, like intelligence, can’t be directly observed. Instead, motivation can only be inferred by noting a person’s behavior.

So, what does that mean? First, motivation causes people to act. Second, motivation is internal. Third, motivation can't be observed. Fourth, motivation is only inferred because of what you DO.

What, of those four things, has anything to do with someone other than you? Absolutely nothing. No one can give you motivation. No one can keep you motivated.

Motivation comes from inside of you. It's your internal drive that moves you to act on a goal that you say you want. If you aren't motivated to act, it's because your desire to reach your goal has not yet become bigger than your excuses, your comfort zone and your fears. Others can inspire you, teach you, help you, and encourage you (through workshops, seminars, coaching, CDs, formal education, and books). But the will to ACT can only come from you.

So, when you need a dose of motivation - don't look at me. Get up. Go to the bathroom. Look in the mirror. That is all the motivation you need.