Summary

The article emphasizes the importance of having a compelling reason to motivate oneself to tackle challenging tasks and achieve goals.

Abstract

The article discusses the concept of compelling reasons as a crucial motivator for initiating and completing tasks or projects. It explains that a compelling reason is a personal and meaningful statement that connects the task to one's values and desired outcomes. The author, a researcher and self-proclaimed overthinker, advocates for the use of SMART goals in conjunction with compelling reasons to enhance goal achievement. The article also highlights the significance of envisioning success and the emotional benefits of doing so, such as feelings of accomplishment, pride, and contentment. A four-step process is provided to help readers create their own compelling reasons, which should be personal, concise, aligned with one's purpose, and motivating. The article suggests making these reasons visible and integrating them into daily routines to maintain motivation. It concludes by encouraging readers to reframe or abandon tasks without compelling reasons, emphasizing the power of reframing to find motivation even in mundane activities.

Opinions

The author believes that every important task or goal requires a compelling reason to overcome procrastination and doubt.
Visualizing success and the positive emotions associated with it is considered an essential part of goal-setting that is often overlooked.
Compelling reasons should be crafted to resonate deeply with the individual, reflecting their personal values and purpose.
Tasks without compelling reasons may be reconsidered or reframed to align with one's motivations, or potentially discarded if they do not serve one's ultimate goals.
The author suggests that the process of creating and using compelling reasons can help repel negative thoughts and maintain focus on what truly matters to the individual.

You need a compelling reason

A simple way to motivate yourself to do the hard things

Sailboat at sunset image by Goldream at Getty Images

In this article, I share what a compelling reason is and why every important thing you do needs one.

When we’re stuck at the start

Sometimes it’s hard to begin a task or project because we aren’t in the right frame of mind. We may be feeling doubt about…

what we’re doing,
how long it will take,
if it will change things,
if we’re doing it right
or good enough.

Sometimes we procrastinate because we truly don’t want to do the thing.

Sometimes it’s because we actually do want to do the thing, but our reasons are unclear or seem nonexistent.

All of these are why we need to get clear on our compelling reasons. These will help you the most when you feel the doubt. Or dread. Or whatever thought gremlins haunt you.

What a compelling reason is (and what it isn’t)

As a researcher and a life-long overthinker, I’m a big believer in SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-based). And not just creating them and measuring progress, but also coming up with compelling reasons for each goal.

A compelling reason is a single sentence that explains how a big task, project, or goal is meaningful to you — a ‘why’ that reminds you what matters.

More reasons why

There’s an important part of goal-setting (and goal-achieving) that I think most people skip: Imagining what your success will look and feel like.

We’re very good at picturing failure. We have stinging memories of what that feels like.

This is another reason why compelling reasons are so important:

Compelling reasons allow us to paint pictures of our success. They remind us of why and how to persevere.

And most importantly, your compelling reasons will motivate you to actually do the thing.

There are long-term benefits too. As you complete several things, your compelling reasons create a collage of the incredible value of all the work you’re doing.

The thought gremlins hate that. It repels them.

Creating compelling reasons in 4 steps

Compelling reasons are reminders of why it’s important to do the thing and how we’ll feel when we’re done. Accomplishment. Pride. Contentment. Freedom. Delight. Whatever other feelings you enjoy.

Here’s how to get started:

Take a few minutes, pick a goal or project and write down a few reasons why you’re doing this.
Notice which of the things you wrote generate better feelings; these are the reasons you connect with more strongly.
Now see how you can combine the strong reasons into a single sentence.
Next, reframe or rewrite that sentence to be as empowering and motivating as possible.

Now that you have a single sentence, check it against the criteria below.

Well-crafted compelling reasons should:

Feel compelling to YOU
Be short and memorable
Speak to your purpose and values
Inspire or motivate you (at least a little bit, but ideally a lot)

A compelling reason isn’t:

What the brief, your boss, parent, partner, or the ‘should’ voice in your head says
Boring, technical or trite
Something that feels obligatory or like work
Goes against what you believe or ultimately want to achieve

A compelling reason is a custom-made motivational poster that doesn’t make you cringe. Done right, it will do the opposite. You’ll look at it and think: YES! Or at least, I can do this.

Make it visible

Now that you have your compelling reason, make it visible in a way that is meaningful to you.

Write it out on a nice sheet of paper or card. Or add it on your calendar. Put it wherever makes sense to you. It’s there for you when you need it later, especially when you’re feeling less motivated.

Bonus tip: It can help to give your tasks compelling titles in your lists and calendar blocks. This is so that when it’s time to do the thing, you get a boost of motivation through reminding yourself why it’s important to you. For example, ‘Do taxes’ is never thrilling and probably generates feelings of UGH just reading those words. However, ‘Demonstrate to the government why I’m a kickass professional’ is much more compelling. At the very least, it’s mildly amusing, which is a much better way to get started.

How far does this go?

Sometimes we have to dig real deep to find our compelling reason for doing something.

If you dig and dig and you can’t come up with a compelling reason, dump the task.

If you absolutely can’t dump the task, you’re not digging deep enough.

That is, you do want to do it. There is a reason — you’re just not fully aware of or on board with it yet.

You need to realise what that reason is and reframe it in the most empowering way possible.

Sometimes our compelling reasons aren’t what we (or society) typically expects, and that’s fine. The only thing that matters is whether your reasons for doing things are motivating to YOU.

It’s perfectly ok to have “I’m doing the inventory audit for my boss because it’s important to me to lay low at work and not get fired while I look for another job” as your compelling reason.

Or better yet, “By doing this task now, I ensure that I’m in good standing at work, which gives me peace of mind and positive energy for job searching later this evening.”

Notice if you experience a slightly better feeling in your body as you read the second sentence. That’s the power of reframing.

You can do anything you want, as long as you like your reasons for it. Might as well make them the most compelling, empowering reasons you can think of

If you want help with figuring out your reasons for doing stuff and how to make them more compelling in a way that motivates YOU to go do it, get in touch

Originally published at https://www.witten.kim on July 27, 2022.

Kim is a life-long overthinker who has overcome many challenges to turn her mental energy into a super skill for getting things done and feeling great about it. She’s on a mission to help others do the same. Join the expert thinkers who are gaining clarity and focus with weekly insights in the Hold That Thought newsletter.