3 Daily Habits Of People Who Are High Achievers, According To Psychology
What years of stuckness showed me about living a high-achieving life.
Mason Wilkes | Unsplash I’m not going to say I’m motivated and high-achieving all the time to impress you. I’m not. I often procrastinate and I certainly do not always feel motivated. However, my productivity has consistently far outweighed most.
Many people have asked me if I have ADHD or some kind of mental imbalance. Some have labeled me a ‘freak’ because I like to work and create so much. Being motivated is important to me, and so I’ve spent many years looking closely into the dynamic of what happens when I’m at my best.
Here are three daily habits of people who are high-achievers:
1. They choose motivation every single day
You can set all the goals in the world, but if you’re not willing to choose to be motivated as a lifestyle, you will live to avoid it. You can have a motivated hour; a motivated day, or a motivated life. It’s up to you, not anyone — or anything — else.
Your habits and your desire to be motivated can’t be out of alignment. Treating your body well, and giving yourself all the physical advantages you can get is foundational. You can’t say that you choose motivation, and then eat crap all day and wonder why you’re not motivated.
You choose the motivated life, and you can make it a very motivated life if you want it to be. Understanding this was huge for me. As soon as you have committed, your lifestyle choices reflect the commitment. It’s a loop. Motivation is a way of life — it’s not a character trait. You can’t have one or the other. Choose to be crazy motivated right now, and you will be. Try it.
According to the American Psychological Association, motivation can be considered a choice, particularly within the framework of Self-Determination Theory, which highlights the power of feeling autonomy and agency when selecting actions, significantly impacting one's level of motivation. Studies show that providing individuals with the ability to make choices within a task or activity generally leads to increased intrinsic motivation, better performance, and more remarkable persistence.
2. They shift like gears in a car
fizkes | Shutterstock
This is also how confidence, passion, and purpose work. You gain energy from being in action. You don’t first feel motivated. Motivation works like the gears in a car. You must always progress through the 1st and 2nd gears to get to the 5th and 6th.
Many people are sitting in 1st gear wondering how Brian got to 5th gear, thinking he has an ‘unfair advantage.’ Brian simply knew to move through the lower gears first. This trips up many. Start small and simple. Then keep moving.
Passion and purpose have a significant positive impact on motivation, with individuals who feel passionate about their work and have a clear sense of purpose demonstrating higher levels of drive, engagement, and performance than those lacking either element. Essentially, aligning passion with purpose leads to the most impactful motivation, according to a 2022 study by Frontiers in Psychology.
3. They tell themselves the right narrative
fizkes | Shutterstock
A lot of people limit themselves by buying into a story about being an ‘unmotivated person.’ You hear it all the time, and some people even see laziness as a badge of honor. If your story is one of being unmotivated, your life will mirror this belief. This is why, in a sense, if you’re lazy, it’s because you want to be lazy.
The way past this? Stop making this about you, and focus on what you’re doing next. Create a longer-term vision if you like, but the key thing is simply to let go of the idea that you are not motivated and just act. Make the next step small and simple. Now you are in the game.
By being in action you are already a motivated person. You have already proven your story incorrect, and you will find motivation comes easier and easier.
2010 research suggests that motivation is not solely about an individual's internal state. Still, it is heavily influenced by external factors like social context, relationships, and the purpose or meaning attached to a task, meaning "motivation is not about you" because your environment and the people around you significantly shape it. This is especially highlighted by the concept of "intrinsic motivation," which emphasizes the importance of feeling a sense of autonomy, competence, and relatedness to a task to be genuinely motivated.
Alex Mathers is a writer and coach who helps you build a money-making personal brand with your knowledge and skills while staying mentally resilient.