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Should You Even Try to Motivate Yourself? | Scott H Young

Why we miss opportunities

Some theories of motivation claim we're naturally biased. It may happen because we can't consider all the angles. At other times, as the world advance, the usual criteria no longer apply.

There may be only a few exceptional people like Elon Musk because we can't grasp the idea that one person can create wealth or drive progress. We don't notice opportunities and more easily dismiss them.

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Should You Even Try to Motivate Yourself? | Scott H Young

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Key Ideas

Theories of motivation

Rational motivation, which reflects our preferences. We're motivated by the opportunities we can notice.
Biased motivation. We often ignore obvious ways to better our lives because we're short-sighted and lazy. We may be better off boosting our motivation.

We often lie to ourselves about our true motives to save face with other people. We have a hidden logic that fuels our motivations. If we don't feel motivated, we may have reasons we don't consciously understand. If we are hesitant, it may be owing to our options and not our character.

Motivation: listen or nudge

If you think motivation is mostly rational, pay attention to what motivates you. You might not feel motivated because your current opportunities aren't that good.

If you think motivation is biased and nudging is necessary, create rules, systems, and habits to move you ahead. If you can't motivate yourself for months or years, your project may be at fault.

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Why is Taking Action Hard? | Scott H Young

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You're supposed to write an essay, but you procrastinate. The treadmill is collecting dust in your basement. You want to learn a language, start a business or change careers, but those ideas go nowhere. Inaction is something we've all experienced. Inaction, more than anything else, is the cause of our failures and our miseries.

Key Ideas

Taking action = eventual success

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Inaction is the biggest cause of our failures and our miseries. If we could consistently do the things we know we should do, we would be more successful, and our lives would be better. Yet w...

Explaining inaction

Some possible but weak reasons why action is hard:

Talent. But the world is full of brilliant stars that flame out and mediocre minds that build empires.
Preferences can explain our failure to try, but don't explain our inner struggles with inaction.
Capacity for effort. If your capacity for doing things is lower, it does not explain chronic bursts of activity with inevitable crashes in your goals and projects.
Motivation. Some people with the most reason have the hardest time taking action.

Confidence

Motivation and expectation of success create a feedback loop:

Your motivation to complete a task depends on the value of the reward and your expectation of success.
Your expectation of success depends on your motivation.

If your projects tend to fail, your expectations are low, and motivation fades. If your projects tend to succeed, your expectations go up, and motivation stays strong.

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First Principles: How to think like Tesla CEO Elon Musk [Video]

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We've reported on what it's like to work for Elon Musk. We've even curated some key Elon Musk quotes for a glimpse into the Tesla DNA. But, perhaps the real million dollar question is: how do you think like Elon Musk?

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"I tend to approach things from a physics framework. And physics teaches you to reason from first principles ra..."

Elon Musk

The Two Types of Thinking

Comparison thinking: comes up with solutions based on pre-existing ideas. It is the way we normally think but it also limits the solutions to possible permutations of what already exists.

First principles thinking: starts free of preconceptions by studying the fundamentals of something and then working your way to a new thing. This helps you understand complex problems.

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How the methods of First Principles thinking can gamify your life ~ æStranger

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Why can't we use a method to break down and simply our lives to better realize our aspirations? How can First Principles thinking gamify your life?

Key Ideas

Don't flow with the mainstream

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Moving away from analogy = Removing iterative steps based on other or older experiences and biases and prejudices

Keeping Yourself Motivated

Determination. Do something that you have willingly chosen to do. Have a sense of autonomy and self-empowerment.

Bring on companions. Shared memories and experiences are far stronger motivating factors.

Be impatient. achieve your goals as quickly as you can.

Stay curious. Do not just dream, but see the benefits for yourself.

Avoidance. Make the most out of your time and win the final pay off.

Applying the First Principles Thinking

Identify the Problem

What is something that I want to change in my life?

Deconstruct the Problem

What are the causes of my problems? How does it affect my life?

Solve the Problem

Start creating your new framework. You could think of multiple ways to achieve your goals easily.

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