by | Jul 21, 2014 | 20 comments

Happy Motivation Monday!

motivation monday

Have you ever heard of the concept of finding your ‘why?’  Regardless of your goal, it’s important to have a truly deep-seated reason for accomplishing that goal.  Finding this ‘why’ often requires some thought, self-reflection, and soul-searching … the real ‘why’ is often not something on the surface level.  This Forbes article says, “knowing your why is an important first step in figuring out how to achieve the goals that excite you and create a life you enjoy living (versus merely surviving!).”

 

know your why(picture source)

My Health Coaching clients come to me for a variety of reasons.  Most say they “just want to get healthy” … because they know they “should,” because they’re getting a bit older, or because they’ve gained a bit of weight.  But part of my job as a Health Coach is to dig a bit deeper and find their true motivation for wanting to improve their health.  For a woman who says she’s getting a bit older, it might be that her husband’s health is faltering, her kids are now on their own, her best friend passed away unexpectedly, and this all leaves her feeling like she’s headed for a rapid decline if she doesn’t change something quickly.  For another client who says she’s gained a bit of weight, her ‘why’ might be that she hasn’t dated in 3 years and doesn’t feel good enough about herself to reflect a positive outward image to potential partners.  Do you see how your true ‘why’ is just a bit deeper than your initial reaction?

what is your why

Today, whatever your goal is, I encourage you to find your ‘why.’  You can continue asking yourself ‘why’ over and over in order to find the response:

  • If you say you want to start exercising, ask why.
  • If you respond that you think you ‘should,’ ask why.
  • If you say because you want to be healthy, ask why.
  • If you say because you want to live 50 more years, ask why …. you get the point.  Continue this until you get to a deep-seated response that really means something to you.

If you need help finding your ‘why,’ feel free to shoot me an email.  I hope it helps you find more clarity and motivation to achieve your goals, health or otherwise! he who has a why(picture source)

So tell me in the comments … What is a goal that you are currently working towards?  Do you have a ‘why’ for that goal?

20 Comments

  1. Carina

    Haha, I wish I’d read this before I went home for the Fourth as it would have probably helped me be more patient with my niece who seems to ask why incessantly. Maybe you and she are both trying to tell me something! I don’t feel like I have a good answer to “why” with my current fitness goals — sure, I have my dream marathon time, but in reality, I don’t have the burning desire to get it that I did with getting a BQ. It’s more a goal because I needed a new goal, and it had a certain appeal to me. But in reality, that’s not a good “why” and probably won’t be enough to motivate me to push through when the going gets tough…

    Reply
    • Megan Lyons

      Is it striving to beat yourself so you know you’re always improving? It is getting recognition for your hard work? Is it about just having a goal time out there so you can prove to yourself that you can reach your goals? I think you’ll get there if you think about it!

      Reply
      • Carina

        I like the latter two of those thoughts a lot. I’d like to think about always improving, but I hope to be running 10 & 20 years from now, so I don’t want to focus on constant improvement as that will certainly end. Those other two really resonate!

        Reply
        • Megan Lyons

          Have you noticed Jay keeps saying “find your ‘why'” lately?!? I get your point on constant improvement, but it doesn’t have to be just about running times … maybe you improve as in you can do more push-ups, or stretch a bit further, or something like that 🙂

          Reply
  2. Tonya@Budget and the Beach

    Love this! I’ve been thinking of how I need to take things to the “next level” in my health and fitness, and that doesn’t include going crazy in the gym, but more along the lines of working on my mind/body connection. I have the food and fitness part down pretty well, but I’ve struggled being able to be calm and sleep well. It’s frustrating because that feels so hard to control, but I can certainly try, so I’m making some changes regarding technology, learning better meditation, reading books on stress, and my next step is to try qi gong or thai chi. Can’t hurt right? All of that has nothing to do with how skinny or fit I look, but more about living a long quality life, trying to avoid chronic this and that, or having to take pills. It’s just such a huge epidemic. 🙁

    Reply
    • Megan Lyons

      I love that you’re really exploring what your body needs, Tonya! Have you tried the qi gong or tai chi yet? I have heard a few really great success stories with exercises like that. I read a book a few years ago called “So Stressed” by Stephanie McClellan and would recommend it! Good luck on finding your mental peace and health!

      Reply
  3. Bre & Ree

    It’s a great way to think about your goals and to ensure you’re trying to achieve something for the right reasons. Thanks for sharing, I’ve never really thought about it before so I know it will be incredibly helpful moving forward.
    ~Bre

    Reply
    • Megan Lyons

      I love Mondays, too, Deborah – enjoy tomorrow’s chance to start fresh!

      Reply
  4. Michael Anderson

    Wow – not just a great post, but amazing comments from everyone already. I read this on my phone waiting for Lisa to get her breakfast so we could sit outside together.

    There is a root-cause seeking process in manufacturing called the ‘Five Whys’ – and it is a continuation of what you are discussing: getting below the surface. Five Whys will take a problem and almost always get to the root cause.

    Seeking your WHY is critical to determining whether or not you will succeed, and also what the things are that will help or hinder you along the way. As bloggers most of us put many of our WHYS out there on a regular basis (I sure feel like I do), but they are still just the top couple of layers.

    Seeking to get at the root cause of why we do and think as we do is really important for understanding ourselves and our paths to happiness!

    Great post for this Monday!

    Reply
    • Megan Lyons

      Glad you liked the post, Michael! Now that you mention it, I think I remember learning about The Five Ways in Operations class in b-school!

      Reply
  5. jill conyers

    I’ve learned over the years that the WHY is so important. Truly and heartfelt knowing your why can make the difference between success and not.

    Reply
  6. Sara @ LovingOnTheRun

    I love this and it fits perfectly with starting my marathon training this week! Sure, I have goals of BQ but my WHY and purpose is to go into this marathon the STRONGEST that I have ever been. That means doing the things that i Don’t necessarily WANT to do and eating the right things for the fuel that I need to complete my training. Great reminder this morning Megan!

    Reply
    • Megan Lyons

      Glad you’re running and fueling to be STRONG! Great goal!

      Reply
  7. Lisa @ Running Out Of Wine

    I love this! I have been thinking about “finding your why” in a slightly different way lately, more related to why we make the choices we do. For example, there are many ways to eat healthy, but in order to know what is best for you, you need to think about why you chose a certain plan/certain foods/etc. I think that the downfall for some is doing something because others are doing it. By focusing on why we do something it will hopefully avoid that and ensure we are doing things that will benefit ourselves first and foremost!

    Reply
    • Megan Lyons

      I agree, Lisa – I’d say that “because everyone else is doing it” isn’t even the deep-rooted “why” that I’d be going for. If people are doing something just because everyone else is doing it, I’d try to work with them to find some self-motivation.

      Reply
  8. Susie @ SuzLyfe

    No joke, I was actually just about to write a post on finding your why for this week. YOU STEALER OF MY BRAIN THOUGHTS! I might still write it, but from a different angle.
    But I agree–you have to have a deep seated belief and driving force in what keeps you going. Otherwise, you will fall off the wagon when the going gets even the littlest bit tough.

    Reply
    • Megan Lyons

      Ha! I love that we’re on the same page!!! It must be an idea worth repeating 🙂

      Reply

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Megan Lyons Headshot

Hi! I'm Megan Lyons,

the voice behind The Lyons’ Share. I love all things health, wellness, and fitness-related, and I hope to share some of my passion with you. Thanks for stopping by!
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