Your problem is not motivation, it's taking action

That's not working...

Hey there 👋.

It's Tuesday, again - where does the time go?

I often have best-laid plans for topics in this newsletter, and sometimes, they don't happen. I think of this as becoming the victim of your own goal-setting.

Coincidentally, this feels like a good topic to unpack. It made me think about why often goals don't work and we need more than motivation to succeed.

Get your tea or beverage of choice ready, 🍵 we've lots to discuss!

Also, not forgetting the usual dose of weird, wonderful and what I hope is helpful content from the rest of planet earth in my curated roundup.

The Big Thought

We're often told if we want to achieve our dreams, we just need to set some goals and go for them. But is it really that simple?

According to research, a whopping 92% of people fail to reach their new year goals. That's a lot of people not achieving what they set out to do. So, what's the problem?

Well, it turns out that motivation alone isn't always enough.

Sure, it's great to be fired up and ready to take on the world, but what happens when that initial burst of motivation wears off? That's where follow-through comes in.

Peter Bregman wrote an article for HBR where he suggests that the real issue is not motivation, but follow-through. And he's right, to a certain extent. You can be motivated all you want, but if you don't follow through on your commitments, you're not going to achieve much.

It’s more than motivation

Not everyone is motivated by the same things.

Some people are all about positive goal setting, while others are more motivated by the fear of missing out or the consequences of not taking action.

I fall into the category of motivation by fear of what I don't want in life (which is something I learnt from Tim Ferriss in his fear-setting talk).

(Get more detail from Tim with his thinking on this topic)

This thinking stems from the concept of loss aversion.

This fancy psychological concept suggests that we're more motivated by the fear of losing something than the prospect of gaining something. In other words, we're more likely to take action to avoid a negative outcome than to pursue a positive outcome.

So, what does all this mean for goal setting?

Well, it means that setting fears instead of goals might be more effective for some people.

When we set goals, we tend to focus on the outcome we want to achieve. And while that can be motivating in the short term, it can also create anxiety and stress if we're not making progress as quickly as we'd like.

Setting fears, on the other hand, allows us to focus on the consequences of not taking action. It might sound a bit negative, but it can actually be a really powerful motivator for some folks.

For example, let's say you're trying to save money.

Setting a fear of not being able to pay your bills or having to work longer hours might be more effective than setting a positive goal of achieving financial freedom.

An adaptable goal-setting formula

Having spent over a decade helping people set goals for personal and professional development. I have a long list of case studies of the good, bad and ugly. What's key is building an approach unique to you.

Cookie-cutter templates are great as a standing point, but it's your job to mould them to your unique style.

To achieve our goals, we need:

1️⃣ The right environment

2️⃣ The right mindset

3️⃣ Specific motivators

The next time you're thinking about setting goals for yourself, remember it's not enough to simply write them down and hope for the best. Instead, focus on creating an environment that supports your efforts, and adapt your approach as needed.

🤘 From LinkedIn

I post so much on LI, even I lose track of all the stuff. Here’s a quick roundup of drops to keep me and you in the loop:

1️⃣ The Wally/Waldo learning experience conundrum

2️⃣ If you build it, they won't come

3️⃣ How to become a great storyteller

4️⃣ L&D pros are much more than creators

5️⃣ The case for accelerated and relevant AI education in the workplace

If you're curious, here's three ways I can help you 👇

1/ My L&D toolkit stack with 20 free tools.

2/ Grab a copy of my book with strategies and tools to thrive in a 9-5 career.

3/ Work with me on your projects and L&D challenges.

Please do share your thoughts with me on these pieces or anything I share on LinkedIn or hit 'reply'. Chat to you soon.

Content that has caught my attention and might interest you too.

🤔 What skills will be worth learning in an AI-powered world for students?

A classic doom-scrolling find!

Five Ed-tech companies give their two cents on how AI could impact education and what this means for the future of students learning journeys. The craziest part of this article for me was the data showing the ability to code was no longer in the top five skills that Chief Technology Officers look for in new team members.

💡 From call centre to interior design advisors: How IKEA used AI to reskill over 8,000 employees

This is what I call a good news story.

We have far too many stories on doom and gloom, and not enough on opportunity with AI tools. This case study from IKEA is a good one. In 2021, IKEA identified the opportunity to optimise its customer inquiries with an AI bot named Billie. The good news was Billie helped resolve 47% of customer queries, which took the pressure off call centre advisors.

The downside was, as you expected, the bot could do more for cheaper.

However, instead of doing the popular trend of laying lots of employees off, IKEA took a different route. Since 2021, they've retrained 8,500 call centre advisors into interior design advisors as part of a new customer product.

A win for humans, robots and reskilling!

👏 Why new grads are in desperate need of social and human skills support for the workplace

Did the pandemic and lockdowns downgrade the social and human skills of today's Grads?

This is what the Wall Street Journal investigates in this briefing. It looks like schools, businesses and recruiters are noticing a trend of lack of both social and day-to-day human skills in the 2023 crop of new graduates. This is sourced from data in America, but it makes you wonder about the impact worldwide.

I've always believed that technical skills are the easy part and what actually sets you apart is your human skills (more to come on that in my next book to be released in late July).

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