Introduction
It’s rare that I can say that what you are about to read is already worth one billion dollars. In fact, I was going to call this series Motivational Secrets of the Billionaire. But as what you’re about to read is
not actually a secret – you can buy the book How to Be Motivated All the Time – I thought that would be dishonest.
However, in the next few posts you are going to read a précis of what Peter Daniels, billionaire, says he has learned about staying motivated.
He is now at least 77, still flying around the world to give talks, suffering from various nasty ailments – and is alive as any man you’ll meet. I’ve seen him talk and he’s an inspiration; and if he says these principles have worked for him, it’s worth taking note.
Why else am I doing this? Well, there’s a saying that goes “if you really want to understand something then teach it.” Do I want to be a billionaire? Not really? Do I want to learn principles for making me more
money? Yes. So I thought that reading, blogging and expounding would help the both of us.
As an aside, the book is real hard to get quickly plus I think I can add a few techniques for making what he is suggesting easier to grasp. He’s not the best writer in the world and tends to gloss over some explanations.
So, read on, and I hope you’ll get some firm principles to hold onto, and help you build your future.
Billionaire Teaching
1: Personal Motivation: It must come from within…
You are not born motivated (or not motivated). While it’s true that some people seem to have a more proactive nature and are wise (or lucky) enough to link it to a set of life goals that take them places, you can learn how to be more motivated.
Some personal development gurus make it seem like motivation is something you catch (like a cold) from those who have it. Not true. Whether at an Anthony Robbins meeting or a religious revival unless you are driven by your own motivating principles, the feelings you ‘picked up’ will quickly disperse.
Your motivation must come from within and according to Daniels, the first principle of motivation – as in any change of behaviour – is to want to change and have a very good reason for doing so.
This may seem obvious but you’d be surprised how many people spend years looking for things outside of themselves to get motivated with. You may argue “but I don’t know what motivates me.”
There’s no sweetening this – you’re going to have to find out what motivates you – or just make yourself motivated.
- One way is to do the first is to do a values inventory which means listing out answers to questions
like: - What is important to me in life?
- What do I want out of a job, relationship, house etc?
… and your answers will reveal some of what drives you. (You can find more comprehensive free values inventory tools if you search the internet.)
John Seymour, author of Training with NLP offers a useful exercise. He suggests you pick three times in your life when you were extremely motivated (they can be in different life areas), and write a page about each experience. Then compare them for themes and repeating keywords which signify values.
Next you rank them in order of the most to the least important. If you get stuck, use the question “If you had to drop one of these, which one would it be?” That helps you force yourself to decide when you’re finding ranking difficult.
This theme will come up again and again but knowing what your values are (and hence what motivates you, because we move towards the things we value) is important in helping you make life choices. When you go further and work out your principles (related to values) you can then start to exercise more and more control over your life and your time because you know what to say yes and no to in order to focus and succeed.
It is also possible to create motivation. Sometimes you can aspire to be motivated in a certain way and choose it Interestingly, Daniels states that “motivation in its very early stages is an act of discipline”.
He cites the example of a friend who was very shy yet at college forced himself to change by handing out business cards offering his help to anyone who needed it. He came into contact with hundreds of people, was a great help to them, and changed his character in the process.
So he believes in deliberately putting yourself in situations where you HAVE to develop the motivation rather than waiting for it to happen. This goes against much “doing what you feel” kind of teachings but makes sense if motivation is a behaviour like any other.
It reminds me of the old idea that if you spend enough time with any subject you can find it interesting.
Fundamentally, says Daniels, motivation must be permanently created from within. “You need to believe you can change, and that a pattern of principles adhered to and used repeatedly will not only direct your life but change it permanently.”
Next week
Know your principles and develop a deep personal integrity
Authors bio is coming up shortly. 
