Don’t measure your motivation levels before you do the thing… your mind will be consumed and distorted with lies.
Think about all the things you say to yourself before you have to workout, or meditate, or read that book, or start that project, or do deep stretching… It’s probably something along the lines of:
- “You’ve been so good lately… you deserve a day off.”
- “You’re so busy today… better to skip and get back to it tomorrow.”
- “You didn’t really sleep that well… today should be a rest day instead of that other day.”
It’s almost as though that little devil on your shoulder gets the megaphone and tries to spread misinformation and lies to distract or dissuade you from doing the tasks that’ll put you temporarily outside of your comfort zone.
…Contrast this with what’s going on in your head after you complete the task. It’s probably something along the lines of:
- “That was so good. I deserved that.”
- “So glad I didn’t skip. That was amazing.”
- “I feel so much better now that I’ve got that behind me.”
…There’s a whole lot less mental chatter and whole lot more clarity.
THIS is when you should measure your motivation levels towards the thing. If you’re still resentful, upset, and/or frustrated about the self-improvement tasks after you’ve finished it, then, yes, I’d say it’s time to reflect and make some changes.
But, don’t make a decision about something that’s long-term good for you without completion clarity.