Small Wins – The secret behind sustained motivation

For years I struggled to exercise regularly. I could never do more than 10 pushups. Every so often, I used to set a goal to exercise and forget about it a week later. Now I can do 50 pushups, 50 sit-ups, and 50 squats non stop in a single set. I have been exercising regularly for a year now. I am on a 211-day streak without missing a day of exercise. I guess that’s a win. Heck, it’s a win. 

What motivated me to workout? More importantly, what motivates me to keep going for more than 7 months now without missing a day? I want to know selfishly so that I can apply this to other areas of my life. 

We get motivated either by external rewards or by our inner drive.  

Extrinsic motivation 

Extrinsic motivation is all about carrot and stick. It is a reward system that follows this simple rule “If you do this, you will get this”. The salary at work and the grades at school are examples of extrinsic motivation. I used to motivate myself to exercise by rewarding myself with fancy things. Extrinsic motivation is short term driven to satisfy our dopamine need. It lasts only until the reward is satisfying. 

Intrinsic motivation 

As Anne-Laure writes, Intrinsic motivation is the desire to seek out new things and new challenges, to test and analyse your abilities, and to achieve your goals in and for themselves. With intrinsic motivation, the reason why you act is internal. While intrinsic motivation takes longer to build, it also has longer-lasting positive effects on performance.

I used to run regularly and I have run a half marathon once. Late last year, I went for a run and I was struggling to finish a mile. I was not fit and felt bad about myself. After that run, I committed to exercise regularly and get fit. 

The motivation to get fit came from my self-reflection and not because I was seeking an external reward. The goal of getting healthy and being fit got me started. But we need some kind of reward to sustain our motivation. 

Daisy Yuhas writes, when it comes to cultivating genius, talent matters, but motivation may matter more. Motivation comes from Autonomy, Value, and Competence.

Autonomy

You gain motivation when you feel in charge. If you pursue an activity because you want to instead of someone else forcing you, you will have high motivation to persist longer and achieve the goal. 

Value

Reflecting on why an activity is meaningful could make you more invested in it. You will be motivated to perform If the activity you are pursuing aligns with your beliefs and values. 

Competence

Competence comes from recognizing the basis of accomplishment. Believing that effort fosters excellence can inspire you to keep learning. 

Autonomy and Value got me started to exercise. I decided to exercise because I wanted to live a healthy life. But I was not competent when I started. I couldn’t swing a 25lb kettlebell 10 times. Competence builds as we put in the reps. To show up daily and to build competence we need to have small wins along the ways. 

Small wins satisfy our need for dopamine. Every few days I added one more rep to my swings. It’s a small win to boost my confidence and competence. When I jumped to the next weight, it’s another small win. After a few months, I felt good about my body. Another win. After 6 months, I visibly saw a difference in my muscle growth. Another win. 

Small wins act as rewards and serve our need for dopamine. Small wins are what motivates us to keep going day after day. Identify small wins and celebrate those moments for sustained motivation. 

Autonomy and Value will motivate you to get started. Small wins will build confidence and competence to sustain your motivation on the long run.