A long time ago, I used to work as a screenwriter.
A friend of mine in the movie business introduced me to a producer. He had the money but needed a good writer to write a TV series.
We met and discussed what he wanted. I shared some ideas, and he liked them. He was very kind and told me I could take as much time as I wanted to write the pilot episode. I told him I needed two months. The deal was finalised.
I was thrilled. We celebrated the big break. We drank until we passed out.
It took my brain three days to get over the hangover. Anyway, things went back to normal. Then came the hard part—the writing.
I created a routine for myself. Wake up, walk, work out, music, meditate, eat clean, stay away from drinking, and all that. Just focus all my attention on writing. Do everything by the book.
Two weeks passed, and I could manage to write only three pages. That’s like 3 minutes of screen time. I was scared to my bones.
I was doing everything, but I just couldn't stay motivated. I decided to take a little break. I went out that weekend with some friends and drank till the bar was closed.
Three days passed in a state of limbo. The clock was running, and my anxiety was driving me nuts.
I read a few fiction books to build momentum, meditated, walked, stared at some walls, and drank countless cups of black coffee. I applied everything I knew to get into a creative state. The state of so-called "flow".
Nothing came. I was blank. Blank as a desert at noon.
I knew I had to finish it. And I also knew I was doing something wrong. But I just couldn't put my finger on it.
Finally, it was Monday of last week. We had a meeting scheduled for Sunday. And I spent the next 4 days perfecting page 14.
Our meeting was cancelled. The deal was off. The producer was pissed and didn't pick up our call. And I locked myself up in my room.
Embarrassed. Demotivated. And feeling like shit.
But, it’s not over yet.
While I was in my room, drowning in embarrassment, and doing nothing.
No walks, no meditation, no workout, no reading, no music, no coffee, no trying to get into any kind of esoteric creative state, and absolutely no distractions, and then—something happened.
Ideas, characters, dialogue, and scenes just poured into my brain out of nowhere. I could literally see the whole storyline in my mind’s eye.
I was motivated, inspired, and full of mind boggling ideas.
And in the next two days—yes, just two days—I finished the pilot.
Though it never got filmed, it taught me one of the biggest lessons of my life.
The secret to staying motivated
After researching and reflecting on it for years, here’s what I learned.
Motivation works like the battery in your smartphone.
If that battery is depleted, the phone cannot run.
In human terms, that battery is known by many names.
In neuroscience, it’s called dopamine.
In psychology, it’s called willpower.
In spirituality, it’s called energy.
It doesn’t matter what you call it. Understanding its workings is more important. To keep things simple, let’s just call it energy.
This energy helps us stay motivated to pursue any goal and reach it successfully.
We all have limited amounts of this energy. And remember that every action, thought, and emotion taxes this energy.
Every minute that you spend thinking or imagining mental scenarios, you are losing this vital energy.
In my case, instead of writing the screenplay, I was doing everything else to get myself into a state of creative flow.
Instead of going straight for the goal, I was using other things like walks, meditation, coffee, and music, to help me get there. In a way, I was spending that energy not for writing, but to get into a mental state that could help me write.
I falsely convinced my brain that I needed to do all those things first to get myself to sit at my desk and write.
Look. I have nothing against drinking coffee, meditation, or going for walks. In fact, it’s been scientifically proven that they do aid creativity and raise your dopamine levels. That's why I was doing them.
But, my point is, sometimes we can get too stuck up in the process and preparation instead of doing the actual work. We pay more attention to making everything perfect before even taking our first step.
In this process of making things perfect, getting into the right state, we lose motivation. We lose our sense of direction. We deplete our reserves of energy. We get distracted by unimportant things, and forget what we want to achieve.
If you want to lose weight, you waste your time trying to find the right gym, the perfect shoes, the perfect gym attire, and the perfect day to start. But you never start.
If you want to start your own business, you wait for the right partnership, enough money, and more skills. But, you never start.
If you want to start your YouTube channel, you wait to buy the latest camera, all the equipment, software, and setup. But, you never start.
Here’s the rule of thumb for you,
When you feel motivated, ACT.
Don’t wait for the perfect conditions.
Don’t wait for the right time.
Don’t wait for the right mental state.
And for God’s sake, don’t wait for tomorrow.
Just do it. Right now. Right away.
You will have enough time to think, reflect, and correct it later. Don’t waste your energy and motivation in drinking coffee, going for walks, getting into the perfect mental state, or doing anything that takes you away from taking action.
Whenever you have a clearly defined goal in front of you, just dive in. Don’t let your mind tell you that you "need" something to get over the resistance.
Stop lying to yourself. You don’t need anything. And you know it.
And I’ll leave with this truth:
Only taking action can get you over that resistance, and keep you motivated, everything else is just an escape. Always remember that.
Stay blessed,
- Master
Thank you for this piece... Very motivating!!
My exams are starting in few weeks and I’ve not been motivated to read. I tell myself I’ll start but haven’t started yet.
Thanks for this piece, Master! ❤️