The 4 Elements that Drive the Development of Self-Motivation
Yesterday I wrote about the moment when self-motivation takes over in an young athletes life. In order for this moment to come, there are four elements that must first exist.
- One or more goals
- A strong desire to achieve those goals
- One or more sacrifices that when made moves one closer to achieve those goals over time
- A reoccurring choice to either sacrifice for the goal or not
First off, typically a young person has no reason to develop self-motivation if they don’t have a goal. Not just any far off, be the “best in the world” type goal. Instead, the goal must be something that feels real to them. Some like to call this a S.M.A.R.T goal.
- Specific
- Measurable
- Actionable
- Realistic
- Time bound
Without these types of goals, the only thing that typically motivates a young person is the desire for immediate gratification. The reality is that it’s a challenge to get anyone who hasn’t lived very long to think long term. Therefore, someone must invest effort into creating a desire to achieve difficult goals that can only be attained through hard work and sacrifice.
Creating The Desire to Achieve Difficult Goals
I believe it’s better for a parent or coach to invest their effort in creating this desire than trying to force a young person to do something they don’t want to do. When you force a young person to do what they don’t want to do, to achieve something you want for them more than they want for themselves, you stunt their ability to develop self-motivation. Therefore, becoming a master of the proper use of reverse psychology is a must.
This requires both parents and coaches to be very intentional in how they discuss choices and decision making. You must teach young people to understand how short term pleasure and long term sacrifice impacts their future. In addition, you must show them how their goals are impacted by the choices they make with their free time.
The four elements above, combined with the skills to make choices based on facts instead of emotions, create the fertile ground for developing self-motivation.