Do you ever wish you could stay motivated? All of us know someone who seems to be on target and on pace all the time. How does he or she do it? You will be joining the motivation masters after this episode. In this episode, Jimmy and Lori share their favorite strategies for regaining motivation and conquering your biggest challenges and goals in life.
Episode Keys
- The importance of protecting your emotional mindset to gain and keep motivated while others are being defeated.
- How to improve your motivation power by reading biographies of great men and women of history.
- Why you must give yourself the permission to re-set the goals you may have missed in an earlier period of life.
- When to prepare for success and why its critical in the goal achievement process.
- Who you must become to truly sustain long-lasting motivation and goal achievement (hint: you already have the source within you).
Podcast Transcript
JW:
Good morning to everybody in Live a Life By Design land. Hey, I’ve got to tell you, this is another beautiful Monday. You know, spring is here. I’m getting ready to hunt Easter eggs. And I gotta be honest with you, folks, I always, always find the lucky egg, you know, it’s just me has nothing to do with me hiding that particular egg. I find it every year, and I like to put stuff in the lucky egg. Now I don’t know about you people, but this keeps me motivated. And by the way, I think that’s what we’re gonna talk about with my friend, Lori Few in a few minutes, but I always put something in the lucky egg to really entice the young people that are looking for these eggs. So I’ll slip a $20 bill or a $10 bill or a $5 bill or even lunch with Jimmy, your choice of how many nuggets we order. I mean, I’m talking about really giving a good prize here. But before I mention anymore about prizes, let me mention to you one of my favorite prizes on a Monday morning. I’ll tell you, this person, she motivates me. She just energizes me. And it’s all because of who she is. Simply the best, the most host, if you will, Lori Few. Good morning, Lori Few!
LF:
Good morning! What an introduction this morning! And I have to say, I, I have to say Jimmy, I, I dunno that I’ve ever found a lucky egg.
JW:
Well, you’ve never been egg hunting with me obviously, because I would’ve pointed it out where to find that’s kind of what I knew to the older people. Now I will tell you something. I did Lori, I did this. It wasn’t very nice. Anybody listening to this podcast do not do this unless you wanna get in trouble. But here’s what I did at church. We’re hiding eggs and we always count the eggs. And this was back in the day when we used the real hard boiled eggs, you know the ones who had the color all night and you get that stuff all over your hands, your clothes, the your wife’s best table cloth. Not that I know how that happens, but she got a new table cloth. So don’t worry about it. It’s okay now. But anyway, we hide these eggs and I happen to always take one of these little salt shakers with me out while I’m hunting.
JW:
And I have to have maybe a little something to supplement, you know, the body, this sheen of muscle, if you will, or it has to have constant energy. So I down a couple of those hard boiled eggs out there and they’re still looking for ’em right. And it was so funny. They’re going, Hey, well there’s two more left. Two more left. These kids could hunt for eight hours. Man, looking for these two eggs. Finally, I let them know by looking at the yolk and the blue stain from the egg on my lips, you know, Hey, you know, it might be the two IA, but anyway…
LF:
Oh, I can’t, I can’t like I can’t do the hard boiled. The only way I like my eggs are Cadbury. I just can’t.
JW:
Oh man. Let me tell you though. Cadbury eggs. There’s not a prettier bunny in my world that lays eggs like that. I’m just telling he is the one. He’s the one.
LF:
Oh, so this morning we’re gonna talk about Jimmy mentioned that I’m a good motivator, but honestly there are times where I find myself needing some motivation. So this morning we’re gonna talk about how to find your motivation, how to keep and how to help others around you be motivated.
JW:
Oh man, I’m already motivated from you saying that. I mean, it’s incredible.
LF:
Well, we’re gonna get into it this morning. Most of us have been worn down by constant activity over the past couple of years, we’ve pivoted to a digital world that started to be just as busy as the physical world during the pandemic. And now that we’re seeing some of that subside, we’re going back to the daily grind of being extremely overbooked and overcommitted. So life doesn’t allow for one to simply post. Nope. You know, we only have so many hours in a day. I like to think it’s 28 somewhere. I make those four hours up. I don’t know. Or if not hours, you have 1,440 minutes, but we’re not getting that specific. But in case you’re keeping track, but those are truly the minutes, the hours, the moments that you have to protect your emotional wellbeing in order to have success. And we’ve talked about that before, but today we’re gonna share some of our favorite strategy, an idea to help you regain your motivation, to create greater value for the world and increase your self esteem and your net worth each and every day. So Jimmy, what is one of your favorite strategies, strategies? See,
JW:
But you mean one of my favorite strategies besides just listen to you after you’ve had that giant venti size cup of coffee with the double shot, this lady, this lady gave the Energizer bunny a run for his money. You know what I’m saying? So, hey, one of my favorite strategies, you’re gonna laugh. So Hey, people ask me to go, Jimmy, what is it? You take, man, you are always like in fast mode. You’re always up and moving and you’re smiling. And I gotta be honest with you, Lori. And I’m honest with everybody on this podcast. I always like to be out front with everything that this is neither drug nor caffeine induced, Lori. This is just a 100% pure Jimmy Williams. Okay. And
LF:
Well, I, I have I’ve like that all the time. And I said, I always have to say yes, that’s just Jimmy and I, it it’s contagious.
JW:
Yeah. Just call my wife folks and she’ll say, oh man, it is, it’s just him. Anyway. At five in the morning, he wakes me up. I got her up this morning a little bit before five. It was so cool. I just knew she, I just don’t know. We’ve been married 34 and a half years. That’s just something about my heart tugging toward her heart. I said, you know, she really wants a, a kiss this morning to get things going. I’m sure. And so I unwrap her like she’s in a burrito wrap cause I keep house kind of cool. You know, she’s wrapped up. Like I find her little face and her cheeks there and I give her a kiss and she goes, what time is it? I said, it’s a beautiful sunny 5:00 AM. And she says, honey, the sun’s not up at 5:00 AM. And I said, cuz I’m an eternalist it’s up somewhere. Anyway.
LF:
That’s right.
JW:
My idea of how to regain my momentum is real simple. I go back and read biographies or, or listen to PO podcast from influential and successful people. Right now. I am reading a very lengthy biography of president Ronald Reagan. So I’m a young guy, lawyer. I’m just 57. So very young. And I remember the first president I could vote for in my lifetime was resident Reagan’s second term. And I thought that was so cool to go in there. Now back then we did have these electronic machines. I had to take this little magic marker and make an X or fill in a square. And that was just so awesome. So I’m reading all about what he did in his life and how much success he gained, but how much he also endured. Now he could have said, Hey, you know, I ran for governor in California.
JW:
I got beat. I wanted to be the nomination for the United States. Presidency in the sixties, got beat. He could have done all of these things and said, you know what? I got beat I’m one and done I’m outta here. I’ll just keep acting. I’m making plenty of money, blah, blah, blah. But he had a heart and a mind for service. Now, folks, if you want to gain motivation, the one thing you have to do is get yourself out of the way and put those in greater need in your crosshairs. Now that sounds totally backwards, but it works wonderfully for me. So I’ll read these stories and the brain takes these powerful stories of all of these men and women that have accomplished so much. And that puts it into your mind now. And it starts those endorphins. You’re going well, Hey, if they could do it, I can do this.
JW:
And in some way, each of us can make dramatic changes in our local communities where we are. It doesn’t have to be an international stage start where you are. You know, I, I tell people work with the tools you’ve been given now. Not all of us are eloquent speakers. Like my co-host not, all of us are beautiful people on the exterior and interior, like my co-host, but work with what you have. And so I won’t tell you, she’s also like miss Southeast Oklahoma at one time. I mean, come on folks. She’s been a competition winner from way back anyway. I, I won’t say anything, but I think the bathing suit year that she did it was that kind. You saw where it goes all the way to the knees and they were blue striped. Don’t remember those,
LF:
We about those. We not talk about those, but interesting, Jimmy, this topic really hits home for me. And, and when you talk about ways to find yourself to, to re regain your motivation, you know, I work with a lot of young people and I hear so many adults say, oh, I’m so worried about the future of our society. You know, these young people, they’re so lazy, they’re so entitled. But I think that if you’re really opening your eyes and listening to what’s going on, there are far more positive, motivated, young people that are trying to get adults to listen to them and to get around the table and have conversations. And so I find great motivation in working with young people. They’re smart, they’re outside the box thinkers. They bring great ideas to the table. And I always tell an adult when I come across somebody who’s being negative about young people, I always say, but have you had a conversation with them and you can’t necessarily judge an entire group based on one interaction that you’ve had with someone. So working with young people is so motivating. And I know it sounds cliche and I’ve learned so much. I didn’t think I was that old either, but I mean, 41 is old and they’re teaching me vernacular and grammar and how to be much more cruel than I am. So
JW:
S
LF:
No, I’ll take it. I’ll take it.
JW:
60. Right? So our entire company is built on experiences background that, that I kind of brought to the table, but let me tell you, what’s really helped in our growth and had really been an integral part of our future and plan away. We work as a company to meet our clients needs and goals is I’ve hired a bunch of gen Z and millennials, and they are so creative. So outta the box and they come up with things and I’m going, wow, how’d you come up with that? And they go, well, just kind of, you know, this or that and how it came to them. And they do have that sense of accomplishment that many of us need. That’s what motivates me though. I go to these team meetings and I’ll have the agenda set, and they’ll come up with something on a tangent on agenda.
JW:
I, and I’ll go, wow. How did you come up with that? And we’ll sit down and start talking and, and fair to that out a little bit more. And some of the most brilliant ideas of services we provide have been delivery mode. Well, during the pandemic, as other things, they’ve come from these team members that are just killing it and what keeps them motivated. I ask, well, let me tell you what keeps them motivated. Same thing that keeps you an eye motivated challenges in our career, keep our mind motivated our spirit motivated, and then also give them opportunities to lead. Now, folks, I hear you, you I’m, I’m one of those guys I’m right after the boomers, right. That’s us. And what happens is, is we think there’s one way to do things. Cause we’ve been doing this for 34 years and I got news for you. There’s always more than one way to quote skin the cat. And they come up with some really creative ideas, Lori, that say, Hey, if you’ll let me lead, I am motivated. I’m engine neared for greatness. I am endowed with success. Let me show you what I’ve got. It may be different than what we like to see or what we used to see or want to see, but the end results are really much better.
LF:
Oh, absolutely. And it brings such a sense of positivity. And that goes hand in hand with being motivated. But one of the things that I find for myself and I’ve really had to give myself some grace, you know, we talk about a lot during COVID about how we just kinda let things go. And we kind of, we didn’t know what to prepare or how to prepare or how to feel or where things were headed. But one of the things that I’ve learned from myself, just not even personally, but professionally is that I have to have a setback plan. And I know that that sounds ridiculous. And that’s not something that, you know, we, we wanna talk a whole lot about, but you have to be willing to say, okay, great. I’m in a rut. I’m unmotivated, I’m unwilling. I’m UN just everything. I don’t, I don’t feel like doing anything.
LF:
I get you get your mindset down in a funk and you have to say to yourself, okay, what’s the setback plan. Look at that, go back to your goals, figure out what it is that you’re trying to accomplish and give yourself a break, give yourself a mental moment, a, a sense of clarity, talk to other people about what you’re going through and how you’re unmotivated and find out what works for them, have convers with other people. And, you know, I always keep that setback plan in the back of my mind or in the back of my journal. Yes. It’s Jimmy’s fault that I’m journaling. I never thought I would be a journaler because I I’m a very, I’m a type person. I like to type, I like to do everything on computer, but I have found that during COVID I, I picked up Jimmy’s journaling and it’s motivating. I mean, it’s one of those things that I never dreamed that I would actually enjoy. But even during COVID, I’ve started to kind of, you know, go back and look at some things that I wrote two years ago and think, wow, what an unhappy, unmotivated place I was in. And, and now I’ve, I’m, I’m better. I, I, moving forward were we’re, we’re thinking forward, we’re moving forward. We’re talking to ourselves in a positive way, and that helps keep you motivated as well.
JW:
You’re gonna laugh. So there’s a book in my library. I’ve got many great biographies, autobiographies. I’ve got all kinds of books on motivation and those things and how still I, I call it basically philosophical books as well. But I will tell you the greatest book in my library, and I’m not exaggerating are my own journals. Let me tell you what motivates me in that. It’s not so much the recording of what we did for that day, or what’s on my mind for that day or how I think the world’s treated me wrong that day, whatever comes out comes out. It’s just there. But the weekly review that I perform every week goes, ah, high two or three things come out, I’ll go back to those pages and I’ll maybe highlight them or I’ll circle it. And I’ll make a note. The margin, those things motivate me to say, you know, I was in a pretty dark place during the, the COVID thing.
JW:
And I, and this podcast board out, I had some difficulties there because I’m so optimistic, but I I’m also gregarious. I like to be around people. And what’s the one thing the pandemic did pushed us all back to our own little domains. Right. Mm-hmm. And so to me, looking at that weekly review of that journal is so inspiring. And that sounds a little bit like I’m bragging on myself. I’m not what it does for me. It locks into my brain, Hey, look, what we accomplished. Let’s see what we can do next week. So I set those big, hairy, audacious goals, set it up a little higher and you know, what, if I don’t kill it, guess what? I’m still further along than I was. Right.
LF:
That’s it. I mean, that’s it. And I, I, when I first started, I only wrote a couple of sentences and now I, I write paragraphs of pages and I go back and I look and I read, and I think some of the things that I was struggling with, how to be a better communicator, I was so frustrated in my personal life and my professional life. I just felt like people weren’t hearing what I had to say. And so journaling about that and writing about that and really kind of working through some of that to figure out, okay, well maybe it’s me. Maybe I’m doing something. And then learning that yes, part of it was me. But part of it was also the people that were receiving the communication on the other end.
JW:
You know, it’s amazing too. Some people look at 266 pages in a Molo skinny journal. And they look at that and they’re all blank pages. Sometimes I like the ruled lines. Some sometimes I’ll wear ’em out and I’ll go get one of just blank pages, no lines at all. And, and they’ll look at that and they’ll be so intimidated by it. And to me, I look at it and I get that Molo pin and I just start writing and I just don’t laugh. I just pour it all out, just get it off my mind. And why do that folks is because I can’t get motivated if I’m stuck in that wheel, like the hamster, you know, and your brain’s going over and over. What’d you do that for? Why did that have, and how did that go? Well, get that stuff off your mind, put it on the paper, move on. And that’s how you gain that motivation back in my opinion. So another method of regaining motivation is simply to prepare for the process. Now, Lori, I understand you’re an avid speed Walker. Now I’ve not seen you run a, but I have seen you speed walking and don’t laugh folks. She can do it while carrying an open li cup of coffee and not spilling. I mean, this lady’s movement is like a gazelle smooth on the trail.
LF:
I’m committed. I listen, I’m committed. But my theory about running is have you ever seen, it’s like watching a turtle run through peanut butter.
JW:
I believe that was my line.
LF:
That is me when I try to run. So there’s no running. It’s not pretty but it is a very brisk walk.
JW:
If you could only imagine a baboon running through the woods on all fours kinda haired over hair, sticking up that’s Jimmy at the end of a 5k, you know, they take pictures of men and they don’t even know who the person is, except for the bib number. Right? They go, was this, the guy signed up. I mean, it looks rough folks. It looks rough. But you know, to me, Lori, how do I get motivated? Is, is I prepare to get motivated. So a lot of people get so disappointed. They wake up and they go, well, I’m just motivated today, cuz it’s raining. Or I’m not motivated today because something didn’t happen. My alarm didn’t go off and whatever I do this, if I’m gonna exercise tomorrow, tonight, I get prepared. How do I do that? Set the bag out. I put the shoes in the socks, the shorts, the shirt, the towel.
JW:
Cuz I, I, I tend to sweat, but that’s another episode. But anyway, I, you know, I’m not one of these guys to go work out and there’s not even a puddle underneath them. Give me a break, come on, you guys. Aren’t sweating then. But my point is I get prepared for it. If IM going to do a project, now don’t laugh. If I’ve got a big Harry audacious goal, I set all the components I need for it. Don’t laugh folks. The day before that night, before I go to bed, I set everything out. Or if I leave the office before I leave, I set that project in the middle of my desk square one first thing I see soon as I get there in the morning. And that to me, Lori is setting yourself up for success. You can’t build a house without a foundation. What’s the foundation, the preparation.
LF:
That’s absolutely true. People make fun of me all the time because I, I checklist everything for the day before, you know, I’m I, I check my calendar. I check for my meetings. I check all the things that I’m gonna need. I put it all in a bag or I, you know, I also do that with snacks. I know I’m gonna be busy and I know I’m gonna have those Stressless day. I’m like, okay, so I’m gonna make this snack and I’m gonna make this snack. And then I might eat all the snacks by 10:00 AM, but I prepared the night before. So,
JW:
So I love it. So she prepares these snacks. Folks, her husband comes in late in her son and they’re in there snacking away. She’s lying down in bed, empowering that body to take on the next day she wakes up the next day the snacks are gone and she’s like, no
LF:
True story. That’s happened before. It was not for the,
JW:
Hey prepare all you want, you leave snacks out. It’s your own fault. That’s what I would say.
LF:
But anyway, well, true story, true story. But, and I think that once you get your mindset going in that preparation mode, it makes for a less stressful day to keep your motivation at a higher level. Because, so what if the alarm doesn’t go, I’m prepared. So what if it’s raining, I’m prepared. I mean, and you keep yourself going in a forward motion like that so that it’s, it’s all positive movement. It’s all positive moving forward. That just because you have one little thing that doesn’t trigger the domino effect to have a completely bad day there’s value in there’s value in the struggle. I mean, we’ve talked about that before and you can’t let that struggle deter your motivation.
JW:
Oh, well said, let me tell you a quick story. So I’m my parents are in their eighties. Mom will be 86. Dad will be 83 soon. And they love to eat ice cream. And that doesn’t matter if it’s winter, doesn’t matter if it’s summer, they want ice cream. We’re gonna have ice cream. So I’m in their area near where they live on some business. And I go and I called, I said, Hey dad I’m gonna be in the area about X time this afternoon. If you got some time, he said, let’s meet at bro. I mean, that’s the first thing has mouth. Let’s meet at bra. Okay. So bro, for you folks international is the best ice cream store in the area. I mean, that’s just all I can tell you. And so, oh good. So we go there and I buy them, whatever they want.
JW:
Dad wanted an ice cream. Mom wanted an ice cream and here we go and dad wanted a large, a glass of water. Now dad doesn’t like lids and straws. I don’t know why he just said he doesn’t like lid and straw and he doesn’t like ice. Lori. Now he would fit in great in France and Europe like England, they don’t give any ice. You order ice, you get one cube. I mean, it’s in, it’s ridiculous. But anyway, my point is, is he sets his glass down there and I’m sitting across from him at this table and it’s been raining all day long around here. Folks. It’s like ducks even run for cover. I mean, it’s ridiculous. So I’m sitting there and I have missed this rain all day. Lori, I have been dry as toast and my dad pick his cup and drops it. And it just goes all over me right down in my left shoe where my sock is and I jump up and he says, oh my goodness. And I say, Hey, don’t worry about it. It’s raining outside. It was bound to happen at some point, dad, don’t worry about it. So I get up and I get a napkin and some for several, actually he can clean this thing up and my dad’s sitting there going, Hmm. You know, maybe I do need to get a lot a straw on a lid from time to time.
LF:
There is a time and a place for everything.
JW:
You know, it motivated me is my whole point for the story to get up and outta the chair. Cuz it now suck the bone much. Yeah.
LF:
And just the left sock.
JW:
Yeah, just the left sock is amazing. It ran right down the left leg and went right down in the shoe. I mean, I stop it. Gravity folks is a powerful thing. That’s all I can tell you.
LF:
Gravity. You didn’t know you were gonna get a mini science lesson this morning.
JW:
That’s exactly right.
LF:
Well, this morning, as we’ve talked about these simple strategies how to regain your motivation and finish the next quarter with great accomplishment. We’ve talked about Jimmy’s favorite thing to do, reading his biographies to be inspired. And then we talked about how to prepare for the process. And of course my fallback plan or setback plan or whatever you want to call it, grace period plan. But to be cognizant and to be kind to yourself, those are the things that we, we want you to take away from this episode this morning. And the fact that Jimmy likes brom’s ice cream. Can’t forget that.
JW:
I’ve gotta be honest with you folks. I’ve been kind of some inflammations developed around my midlevel area where my bell is. Doctor tells me it’s curable. Don’t worry about it. Just stay away from Braum’s ice cream. No.
LF:
Well, you know, you better take doctor’s advice,
JW:
Folks. All we want you to do to get that motivation back is I call it restart from the heart. Anybody can sit here and say they wanna do something, but to your heart’s in it, your mind won’t engage. So start from the heart and get back out in it, right? The world’s got a game to day to play and you’re the star player. Folks. This is time to be motivated. Go back. This is a new quarter. We want you to go hit the ball out of the park, whatever you want to do, whatever sport analogy you want use, but this is your week to live large.
LF:
So here’s the challenge for this week. The challenge is to implement one of the strategies we talked about this morning to help you regain your motivation to set new records and goals and in your life.
JW:
Go ahead…
Both:
Live a life by design!
JW:
Thank you, Lori. We’ll see you next week here, folks, at Live a Life By Design and until then go make a difference in someone else’s life. It may just be you that gets the benefit.
