There are mornings when you wake up feeling like you can conquer the world. You’re energized, focused, and ready to get after it.
And then there are those other mornings.
The alarm goes off, the bed feels particularly comfortable, and just about everything on your schedule sounds less appealing than another hour of sleep.
That’s the problem with motivation. It’s unreliable.
For years, I’ve followed a pretty consistent morning routine. My alarm goes off at 4:45 AM, and shortly thereafter, I begin my day. People occasionally assume that I must be incredibly motivated to get up that early.
Trust me, I’m not.
There are plenty of mornings when I’d much rather roll over and go back to sleep. But somewhere along the way, I stopped making that decision every morning. I made it once. Getting up early became part of my routine, and eventually, part of who I am.
That’s the difference between motivation and discipline.
Motivation asks, “Do I feel like doing this today?”
Discipline says, “It doesn’t matter. This is what I do.”
I think that distinction is especially important in our business.
One of the greatest things about a career in real estate is the freedom it provides. For the most part, nobody tells you when to start working, how many calls to make, how many people to follow up with, or how much time to spend developing your business.
But that freedom comes with a price because nobody is going to make you do those things either.
When you’re motivated, prospecting is easier. Following up is easier. Attending a meeting, making one more phone call, reaching out to a past client, or having that uncomfortable conversation is easier.
But careers aren’t built exclusively on the days when we feel motivated. They’re built on the days when we don’t feel like doing the work, but do it anyway.
Here we are at the beginning of September. Summer vacations are wrapping up, kids are back in school, routines are returning, and historically, we’re entering one of the most productive stretches of the year in our business.
This is a perfect time to reestablish some routines of our own.
Maybe there’s something you were committed to doing at the beginning of the year that has slowly disappeared from your schedule. Maybe it was making five calls every morning. Maybe it was attending your weekly sales meeting, spending an hour prospecting each day, exercising regularly, reading, or simply getting to the office a little earlier.
Don’t wait until you feel inspired to start doing it again. Start tomorrow.
Because something interesting happens when we practice discipline long enough. Eventually, it becomes a habit. And once something becomes a habit, we no longer have to negotiate with ourselves every time it needs to be done.
Motivation is wonderful when it shows up. Take advantage of it, but don’t depend on it.
You don’t need to feel motivated today. You just need to do what you already decided was important.
Have a great week!
