One of the most important questions in life is, ‘What keeps me moving forward?’ To find the answer, you must clearly understand what you want and what you want to avoid in life. Listening to the stories of successful people, their motivation is not simply driven by a desire to ‘achieve good things.’ Rather, they harbor both a desire to ‘never return to a place they don’t want to be’ and ‘reach a place they must get to,’ which keeps their efforts unwavering.
The Stick of Life: A Place You Never Want to Return
Everyone experiences difficult moments in life. These moments can sometimes cause us to feel despair, but they can also become powerful sticks that push us forward. Difficult part-time jobs or hardships faced during military training often serve as these sticks for many. The times that approach like unpleasant nightmares become the driving force to long for a better life.
For example, working part-time at a restaurant might have been an excruciating experience. However, that pain instills a strong resolve that says, ‘I never want to return to this kind of life.’ This resolution provides the strength to keep moving forward even in difficult times.
The Carrot of Life: Goals You Must Reach
The carrot symbolizes the goals we want to achieve. These goals can be financial freedom, meaningful work, or time with loved ones. It is the presence of this carrot that enables us to endure painful processes and gain the energy to run towards our goals.
Successful people use the process of growing their own snowball as a carrot, improving themselves daily. This snowball can represent a dream, a goal, or freedom. What’s important is that the clearer this carrot is, the more passionately we work and the greater our achievements become.
Balancing Carrots and Sticks
With only carrots, you can easily become exhausted, and with only sticks, you risk burnout. That’s why it’s crucial to maintain a balance between carrots and sticks. Successful people clearly understand both the pain they want to avoid and the goals they want to achieve, and they use these two forces as the driving motivation for their efforts.
Even regular employees can apply this principle. They can use the stress and pressure felt at work as a stick to push towards a better future, and use rewards from achievements or the potential for future growth as a carrot to strengthen their motivation.
Conclusion: Find Your Carrots and Sticks
Life is a journey of balancing what you want and what you want to avoid. The difficulties you’re experiencing now can become the stick that drives you to move towards a better future. And the goal you desperately want can become the carrot that gives you the energy to overcome those difficulties.
In the process of avoiding your stick and moving towards your carrot, you will grow, and one day, you’ll look back on your current difficulties and smile. So, find your carrots and sticks in your life now. Use that motivation to keep moving forward.
I hope this article helps you find new motivation in your life. Keep pushing forward towards your dreams, never giving up.