5 of the biggest motivation myths

5 of the biggest motivation mythsActivate your potential for success Seize the day Everything is right there waiting for you Motivational slogans can be very appealing. They tug at our best selves, suggesting that theres a positive, productive human being just waiting to break free if we can just coax it out the right way. That sounds great, in theorybut in reality, a lot of this motivational-speak just doesnt cut it. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) Lets look at some of the bigger motivation myths floating out there that dont really work as well as they promise.Myth All you need is the right motivationMotivation is greatits also not the only thing. If you want to be more productive and successful in your career, its important to make sure youre building up your skills and experience in addition to doing those mega-positive self-affirmations in the mirror each morning. A positive outlook is great, but you need the goods to back it up if i ts going to propel you to doing great things.Myth Just do your best.This is one we likely all heard as kids. Just try, and youll be great. While that works well for little kids, as an adult, it doesnt do anything to push you beyond your level. As a professional adult, do your best is kind of like a participation trophy. If you truly want to motivate yourself, try to go beyond this is what I think I can do if you want to build ambition. In theory, youre doing your best anywayhow does this motivate you to push yourself higher?Myth Visualize what you want.Planning and goal-setting is a great way to get ahead. But if youre just visualizing the end outcome (you standing on the Olympic podium, singing along with the national anthem), youre missing out on the process it takes to get there (cut to a training montage of you sweating, swimming, drinking kale smoothies, and running up stairs, Rocky-style).Myth You need to reward yourself to achieve your goals.I will forever defend the idea tha t a little treatyoself is a necessary part of life. But you shouldnt be setting your career goals and working toward them just because of the personal rewards or incentives you attach to them. And theres the fact that it just doesnt always work. Look at salespeoplemost sales jobs have built-in commissions or incentives to perform well. Yet if rewards were all that are necessary to build motivation to achieve goals, then every salesperson would be performing at top capacity, all the time. Again, your career is a process, and incentives dont always motivate you to do your best.Myth Dont think about setbacks.Setbacks are disappointing, but they can also be good motivators. If you understand why things went wrong, and take from it that crucial knowledge about what you can do better or differently the next time, that gives you motivation to make improvements and show that you can bounce back.The thing about motivation is that its totally unique to youso platitudes only go so far. If your e doing careful planning and embracing a high level of self-awareness, youll find what specifically works for you as you build your career and reach toward your goals.