On the back of my business card it says ‘’Do It For You’’. This is so because it is the answer to, probably, my most asked question; ‘’Why should I make a point out of creating my own life story?’’. The thing is most people think it has to be the you, you are right now. But that is not the case as one of the greatest sources for self-motivation is your younger self. If there’s anything you need heaps of when actively changing your life to the life of your dreams it is self-motivation. So why not use one of the most effective ways to stay motivated?
The Popular Story Of Old Age Regrets
I am pretty sure that you have heard the stories that start with lines such as:
‘’When I was younger I had so much potential..’’
‘’When I was younger I had so many capabilities..’’
‘’When I was younger I could have …’’
‘’.. but then life happened‘’
‘’.. but then I had to grow up’’
‘’.. but then I chose the smart thing’’
You can easily combine the first three with the last three at will. Or even come up with your own variations of these. One thing they all have in common is that they are all said with a big tone of nostalgia and potential hidden regret. I call it a potential hidden regret because it is not always expressively said that they regret not doing the things they are talking about and I don’t want to be putting words in other people’s mouths or minds. I do however want to introduce thoughts.
So here’s a thought for you to wonder about, why do you think many people still lament about their younger years specifically about those things they didn’t do?
There has to be more to the story, no?
The fact that you are here reading this right now indicates that you are probably already wanting to change your life in some way. Why wait till you create that story for yourself? Why not use the fact that you are your younger self right now in this moment and do the things you wish your younger self had done?
To be clear you are your younger self to the version of you that exists tomorrow. A lot of tomorrows together creates the far future which we usually use to look back on moments like these.
The simple fact that so many people have heard the stories of ‘’when I was younger I wish I had’’ means that it is not something that occasionally happens. When thinking about it like that how can this not be the kind of fire lit self-motivation that can fuel you to, at the very least, try not to make that a line or chapter in your life story book?
Your To Be Accomplished Dreams Had Something Special
I’ll forever have a hard time believing people that didn’t have any kind of dream of something when they grew up. This dream doesn’t have to be careerwise, like many had, but can also be of a life, owning a thing, anything really. For me, personally, I always dreamed of a life. Yes, it had specific aspects but that was not the main point. The main point was a feeling that only that life could give me.
Didn’t the younger you have a dream they were sure they were going to accomplish? You remember? The one you had before ‘’life’’ kicked in? I am going to repeat myself here but I can’t imagine you saying no to this.
The fact that you had a dream as a younger version of yourself is not the most important point. The most important point is what automatically came with your dream. All your younger self dreams came with hope and an imagination of accomplishment. They came with the powerful sentence of;
‘’One day I will … ’’
The blank was filled in with something certain. Something you knew, as a fact, that you were going to do. I don’t know about you but last time I checked facts are things that are known or proved to be true. Yet the fact that you are reading about how to use your younger self a self-motivation indicates otherwise, or am I wrong?
Why not go back to that? Why not instead of giving advice to your younger self, take a lesson that your younger you practiced without knowing? Believing in the ability to accomplish a dream. You should use your younger self as self-motivation because the younger you believed in the you that you are today. The one that is reading this, who is probably running low on self-motivation. Use the motivation your younger you had but couldn’t or didn’t know how to use in its full capacity.
Your Younger Self Was Smarter Than We Give Them Credit For
Perhaps this one is personal but for me all the things I really wanted to do but couldn’t due to age restrictions or other aspects are things that make me really happy. My younger self had things figured out. In theory of course.
This makes me believe that there is a reason why our past selves wanted to do those things. This reason is worth exploring solely on the off chance that your younger you was right as well. Isn’t that motivation enough? I mean people love being right about the weirdest things, so why not let the you from many moons ago have a chance at it?
Recommended: Young and Wise, Old And Wise or Old and Wiser?
This becomes especially more true when the things you wanted to do then, are the things you still want to do today. The motivation should stem from how long you’ve been wanting to do them. But also from the curiosity of finding out why this one thing has stayed in the back of your mind for as long as it has.
There’s a reason for that, how can there not be?
Many famous people have participated in the trend of writing a letter to your younger self, either with advice or telling them how things are now. Why not make your letter say “I’m working on it thanks to the motivation you gave me?”
Love,
DCPR.
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This post has made me think about listening to my inner child / younger self. We become tainted by adult life sometimes. X
I’m glad the post made you think about your inner child. Adult life sure can make us forget their existence.