Defining Your Why: Tapping Into Your Inner Motivation

I count myself lucky to have had Dyslexia.

You see, my Dyslexia most definitely saved my butt in many instances throughout my life — especially in university.

The challenges to apprehend it and overcome it kept me striving to understand it better.

I am afraid that my ADHD alone would have left me locked in place, lost in decision paralysis, and too unmotivated to complete tasks due to feeling overwhelmed.

Dyslexia gave me a way to follow.

I was on a lifelong quest to investigate the divergent brain from that perspective. It meant to sit down and put in the work to make it happen.

I knew NOTHING about how to be studious.

In fact, I believed my whole life that it was IMPOSSIBLE for me to ever be studious.

Was I ever wrong...

I'd spend all my time off from responsibilities to study how to study and retain information.

As a student of cognitive science, I had an advantage. I would learn about the root of our nervous system, its inner workings, and its limitations in class.

My studies showed me how information processing worked practically and physiologically.

That said, I quickly realized that I processed information differently than the norm illustrated in my textbook.

No surprise there.

Still, it gave me insight into where I differed and how to compensate.

I couldn't read enough with my eyes, but I could have Siri read to me.

I couldn't see all my spelling mistakes, but I had friends who could look over my writing.

I couldn't manage my time automatically, but I could plan out a schedule to follow.

I struggled but had the support and determination to make it easier on myself.

I could depend on technology, friends and family, but it was clear I also needed a little more.

So Why are YOU Studying Again?

I have yet to mention one element that was also vital to my success. The reason I stayed motivated and on task.

Let's call it the "why" I put in all this effort.

It is impossible to find a sustainable and purposeful motivation without a clear why.

Why is sustainable and purposeful motivation important?

• Without a clear why, you lack direction — making it more difficult to see clearly and discern justification for motivation.

• Without a clear why, you feel overwhelmed — making it more difficult to find meaning when lost in the anxiety of the moment.

• Without a clear why, you feel bored — making it more difficult to care enough to engage with the tasks at hand.

All these lead to a lack of clarity of outcomes or the ability to hold a vision for the future.

That's normal.

Clarity comes in due time. Still, having an underlying purpose can make it easier to reach said clarity.

Motivation is a fleeting state and thus not conducive to relying on to find purpose in studies. Motivation needs nourishment to stay afloat.

Boredom is always lurking in this hyper-stimulating world. There are so many possibilities and much to choose from, and it can feel exhausting picking & choosing.

Even when we overcome all these hurdles, we may still face the anxiety of the study novelty. That is the uncertainty that comes with learning new material.

Making sense of what we don't know while trusting that we will (hopefully) learn something from the whole experience.

Find The Meaning Underlying Your Motivation

To be brutally honest, either you create motivation through a sense of purpose or risk facing despair.

It's a quick spiral that is all too easy to fall into. If you don't define meaning for your actions, then you risk falling into its vortex.

And once in its turbulence, it is quite difficult to get out of.

Plus, defining our own purpose for a task at hand provides us the opportunity to gain more agency.

YOU get to be the orchestrator of your destiny and of your day. This provides a sense of safety in the form of control over your actions and reality.

The thing is, though, it's an inside job.

I can sit here and talk all I want about why you should find your own why. But all my words are meaningless until you look into creating meaning for yourself.

You are the main character of your world.

You must write your very own story.

You will need to find your why.

No one is saying it would be easy... Even I still find it challenging.

That's normal especially in the beginning as we don't know what ought to motivate us at first.

Start by determining if internal or external rewards are more valuable to you.

Like do you study because to learn the material or purpose?

Other times, we are too overwhelmed to think about our why.

That's a sign that we are stressed and cannot think clearly. If that is you, then the best is to rest until you feel ready, too.

Go for a walk, paint, listen to music, sleep on it, and come back at it the next day.

But do make sure to come back to it — once rested!

It can be hard to justify, and you can feel like you just need to push through.

And yea. You can..

But remember that you will face these emotional challenges until you graduate — and possibly after, too!

So why not begin to justify a meaning now?

You may also feel that it feels like forced motivation. But, like, no one is saying to force yourself into motivation...

What is suggested is to look inward for personal validation and discern a why behind your work, behind your day/life's mission.

It doesn't need to all be figured and set in stone today.

You can chip and work at it in little chunks.

Little by little, a little becomes a lot!

You have so much to gain from taking the time to find meaning to do your work.

Whether it be to gain clarity — finding meaning in what you do!

Whether it be to gain agency — figuring out why you do what you do!

Or whether it be to gain satisfaction — creating a state of mind that only YOU can create!

Actionable Steps Towards Meaning

So, to summarize and systemize finding meaning, here are some steps you can take today:

1. Take a moment to wind down.

2. Make lists of what passionates you in your field.

3. See links & parallels between your passions and your studies and work.

4. Make connections between discerning your passions and the tasks at hand.

Ready to find purpose?
Not sure where to start?
Try out my Notion template The Novelty Itinerary and start defining your why right now!