I recently got an email from a reader that is struggling with making a big life change. She wants to make a career shift but is struggling with motivation since she is comfortable where she is. She doesn’t NEED the change but she WANTS it.
I have been in this exact same position many times and I know so many people that have been in it as well. I feel like it is a right of passage, of sorts, on the career path. We find a job, we enjoy it, we get bored, we want a change but we don’t know how to start.
The truth is, it is scary to take on a big life change — especially one that involves our livelihood and finances. For some reason it feels like too great of a risk to go after our hopes and dreams when money is involved. Seeking pleasure in career is a hard sell when you are making enough money to be comfortable.
In fact, being comfortable but not fulfilled is one of the most dangerous and daunting positions we can be in.
Read MoreI recently watched a talk with Mel Robbins about motivation and the idea that we have to feel ready in order to change. Her claim is that this is a huge falsehood that holds us back in life. She says that the way we are wired a humans, "we are not designed to do things that are uncomfortable or scary or difficult." It is a survival instinct that keeps us safe and out of harms way. And the belief that we will one day feel ready to take on a challenge only ends up holding us and preventing growth.
This was a powerful talk for me to listen to because I recognize the feeling. Many times I have felt a lack of desire to do something new or uncomfortable and hoping that I will one day get a spark of motivation that will make me actually do it. But this video helps remind me that is never going to happen randomly.
Read MoreWhen there is a new skill that I want to develop in my life, I sometimes find that I have trouble making progress and staying motivated. I can get easily sidetracked with the many other competing priorities for my time or simply by the desire to just chill out after a long day.
However, I have been inspired by my husband who has recently had success building skills by setting personal challenges. These challenges have kept him motivated to accomplish specific goals over a set amount of time. Witnessing his progress has inspired me to set some of my own personal challenges.
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