Coaching clients day in and day out, I have a unique opportunity to observe the characteristics of people that we would call ‘motivated’ when it comes to creating lifestyle change.  I’ll admit it - not all the clients I work with achieve their desired results.  Specifically, when I am working with people in the areas of health and wellness, some really struggle to change nutritional and exercise patterns they have developed over tens of years.

The question that I find valuable to ask is not ‘why do some fail’, but rather what qualities do people have that succeed?  And what can others learn from these qualities?  While there is no one size fits all answer to the question ‘how do I change my life’, here are some qualities that motivated people demonstrate which are worth considering if you’ve been finding it difficult to take action. 

Quality #1:  Strong sense of commitment

If you’ve been struggling to create lifestyle change (whether its with your health and wellness, your finances, or your relationships, etc…), ask yourself what you are truly committed to.  People that make change, are able to make a commitment that they believe in, and they are able to hold themselves accountable to that commitment. 

Commitment is big.  Its not simply saying that I want to achieve a goal, its approaching that goal with an understanding that no matter how difficult it will be that you will do everything in your power to make it happen.  Being willing to commit can be scary.  It means you must make sacrifices.  If you’ve struggled with attaining goals, ask yourself if you have truly been committed to the outcome that you desire.

Consider how you can commit to something larger than you.  Can you commit to friends, to family, to organizations, or financially to a cause that will push you to your desired result.  It never ceases to amaze me that someone will verbally commit to riding their bike 100 miles, but when it comes to paying the $40 to register up front for the event - they hesitate!  Imagine how small of an investment that is in relation to the work one will need to put in to be ready to ride 100 miles!  Who do you think trains more seriously, the rider that committed to the date, or the other who has given it a verbal confirmation? 

If you hesitate to spend money, to tell others what you are doing, or to sign the dotted line then take a look at what you are really expressing to yourself.  Maybe the goal really isn’t that important to you.  If it is, take the next step and commit - you’ll be pleased with the results!

Quality #2:  Purpose Driven

People that create lifestyle change understand their purpose.  Simply put they know ‘why’ they are going to change.  In 2004 - after I was diagnosed with cancer, I had an extremely compelling reason to improve my nutrition and increase my exercise - I wanted to live a long healthy life!  Being that close to a potential catastrophe made me realize just how fragile I was and that health was not something to ignore.

People that build businesses, enter relationships, improve nutrition etc., all have a strong understanding of ‘why’ they are doing it.  And this why is so compelling that it is a continual reminder of the outcome that awaits them.  Its exciting, its fulfilling, its a vision that they long to create and know that they can only make it happen by taking appropriate action. 

Being purpose driven is a quality that motivated clients demonstrate by the actions they choose to do.  Someone that does not connect with (notice I don’t use the word understand) the compelling reason for their actions turns back the first time the road gets rough.  Its more than understanding the reason why, its feeling and believing in it. 

Quality #3:  Social

People that breed motivation are socially oriented to the area in which they are motivated.  If you’d like to see your finances grow, associate yourself and socialize with wealthy people.  If you’d like to improve your health, socialize with healthy people.  Those individuals with long term motivation and success surround their lives with people with similar interests and goals. 

Being social includes being communicative.  Discuss plans, goals, what excites you, and your life vision with others.  Bill Gates probably didn’t have a number of multi-billionaire friends when he first got started - but I am pretty certain he had a lot of conversations before he made his first billion.  If you are one to keep your goals inside, and you never express what it is that you want to create, then its likely that you will struggle to maintain a long term motivation (which is measured by action).  Start being social with respect to that which you’d like to accomplish and be amazed on the impact it has on your life!

Quality #4:  Confident

People with a high level of motivation are confident.  They are confident in themselves.  They are committed, connected with their purpose, socially engaged, and they know that they can achieve what they want.  Even if they did not achieve what they wanted in the time frame they expected, they nevertheless were confident of their actions while they were doing it.

Bigger than being confident in what they can accomplish, motivated people are confident in themselves!  They realize that they are human beings, that the journey we travel is imperfect.  In that imperfection we find who we are.  The motivated person is more interested in the learnings they can draw from their experiences than whether or not the specific goal that was set out for was achieved.  If it was not, the confident person knows that they can use what they’ve learned to do even better than was originally planned for.

Confident people lay aside the ego.  They are not consumed by the need to be right - even when accountable only to themselves.  The purpose is bigger than the person and therefore the motivation is to serve the purpose not the self. 

Summary

If you’ve struggled to take action towards your goals in the past ask yourself the following four questions:

• Am I really committed to making this happen, or am I just throwing the idea around?
• Is my goal founded in a strong purpose?
• Am I demonstrating these desires in my social network?  (and if not, what am I noticing about the previous two questions)
• Am I confident in myself that I can attain the goal? (again, if not what do I notice about this lack of confidence and how does it relate to these other qualities?)

If you are already comfortable with these answers you are well on your way to demonstrating motivation towards successfully attaining your goals.  If you are not, just as important as identifying the answers to these questions is asking yourself how you can change your approach or your goal such that you can demonstrate each and every one of these qualities. 

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Related Articles:

• How do I change my life?
• Developing Lifestyle Change Goals
• Developing the Vision
• 10 Steps to Success
• How to Keep a New Years Resolution

Written by Doug Nau, The Wellness Coach, i-grow.net