Motivation refers to the act or state of being stimulated toward action. To succeed, it is critical that you be stimulated, excited, and driven to some action or actions. Although the definition of motivation suggests that there\’s a reason behind the action, the study of successful people also makes it apparent that their high levels of activity are fueled by being goal-focused and mission-driven. The unsuccessful demonstrate low levels of motivation, wandering, and lack of clarity or purpose. Elevated motivation is obviously critical to 10X actions and persistence. This isn\’t the kind of enthusiasm that lasts for a few hours, a day, or a week; it\’s based on what you do each day to stimulate yourself toward actions and inspire yourself to keep going. Highly successful people continually seek and uncover reasons to stay perpetually provoked to new levels of success. This may be why successful people are never satisfied. As they continue to be compelled by new reasons to move forward, they achieve these new goals and then regenerate for the next round. They are constantly stimulated to higher levels of action and achievements.
There\’s one question I get in my seminars more than any other: “How do you stay motivated?” The answer? I create new reasons to keep showing up. The unsuccessful unceasingly suggest, “If I had what [that person] had, I would retire.” But I don\’t believe this claim for a second. First of all, they don\’t know if that\’s true, since they can\’t tell how they\’d respond to success. It is possible—and highly probable—that the success they\’d create would also include some responsibilities and obligation to continue to produce in order to keep things going. Motivation is an inside job. I can\’t motivate you, and you can\’t motivate anyone else. You can encourage, you can challenge, and you can inspire, but true motivation—the underlying reason for doing something—must come from within. I do it by setting goals daily to keep myself enthused. I look at things that seem to be out of reach for me—not just material things but other people\’s accomplishments and achievements—to keep my attention on the possibilities. Anything you can do to stay highly motivated will be critical to your 10X commitment. Grant Cardone. “The 10X Rule.”