If you’re going to achieve your deepest dreams and desires, you must understand how your mind works. When you learn how to tap into the deep reserves of your mind, you turn:

* probably into possibility
* “I can’t” into “I can” and…
* “can I?” into “how can I?”

Here are 7 ways to get motivated and achieve your goals:

1. Feel It Already Done.

This works great for a fitness or wellness goal (or any goal). Most people have a hard time going to the gym because they’re so focused on all the pain and inconvenience of a workout – and since we habitually move away from pain – we dread going to the gym.

Instead, try feeling what it would be like if you had already finished your workout. Get those good vibes going. Feel what it would be like if you had already worked out. Feel energetic and alive. As you get into this state, your desire and enthusiasm to workout will inspire you to act.

2. Give Yourself A Reward.

This is very similar to feeling as if it is already done, but with one small difference. If you have a hard time feeling the feelings of having it already done, then the next best thing you can do is give yourself a reward. But don’t just give yourself a reward just for the sake of it – you want to feel the reward.

Feel the reward. Associate strong positive feelings with the end result – your reward. When you feel the reward, you reinforce that goal and your desire with your subconscious. You reinforce that goal to your subconscious when you reinforce the feeling. The stronger and more positive the feelings are, the faster you leap into action.

3. Ask A Buddy.

Recently I had to undergo a major WordPress upgrade on my blog so I asked a buddy to help. I phoned him up and told him about my situation. I explained all the details and asked him if he had a goal or activity that he had been procrastinating with.

It turns out he did. So I offered to partner with him – to do a trade – where he would help me in exchange for my help. The result was beyond amazing. I helped my partner with his marketing needs and put more money in his pocket while he helped me upgrade my blog to the latest version of WordPress – a definite win-win.

4. Work With A Finish Line.

Be clear with your outcome from the very beginning. Set a finish line.

When I worked on my WordPress upgrade, I set a finish line – not a deadline. I always work with a finish line – not a deadline – because I don’t want to be dead when I’m finished. Subtle, but effective.

5. Create Reasons Why You Will Succeed.

The majority of people are so focused on the negative aspects of their goals that they can’t help but talk themselves out of them. The way to gain back control is by gently bringing your attention to the reasons why you can do something – as opposed to the very opposite.

The more often you focus on what you can do – the easier and more natural it becomes for you to go out and start doing it. You must realize that your mind is not in control – you are.

Start managing your mind by creating a list of reasons why you can’t help but achieve your goal. As you begin this process, your confidence and enthusiasm will soar.

6. Have A Bigger Vision.

This is my absolute favorite way of getting motivated. It takes less time commitment on a day-to-day basis, but requires your persistence. This type of sustaining motivation is for much bigger goals.

It’s better fit for the ambitious type who has a much bigger project or goal to accomplish; one that will take you more than a year to complete. If you want sustaining motivation that grows stronger and more compelling each and every day, create a bigger vision. The way to do that is by visualizing your outcome daily for a minimum of 5 minutes.

7. Use “Pain” as Leverage.

I used to work with the owner of a construction company. He had this habit of telling everyone he knew about his goals and then doing nothing about it. Eventually he got to the point where he was afraid of telling the people in his life about his goals because he felt like a liar.

His construction clients were another story. Every time he promised one of his clients he would build a new home he would follow through. His track record for follow through with his clients was 100%.

Why?

Because he had a lot of pain associated with a failure to deliver to his clients. His business and reputation were on the line so he always took massive action.

Use pain as a motivator. Think of an important goal you would like to accomplish in the next year. Now that you have it in mind, make an agreement with your wife/husband/brother/sister or anyone who knows you well. Put a contract in writing with them that says if you don’t achieve your goal in the next 3 months you will give them $500 in cash. Sign it.

For most people, loosing that kind of money is more painful than taking action towards their goals. They will instantly leap into action to avoid loosing that money – and guess what else happens?

You get motivated and do the impossible to achieve your goals.

Steve is the creator of Freedom Education: Manifesting Your Desires Download Steve’s 7 Secrets of Rapid Transformation.

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“I’ll go for a run just as soon as I finish this article. … Right, should return that call from Roger. … Well, now I’m hungry and I can’t run on an empty stomach. … Now I’m feeling too full. … Rain clouds?! Better wait and see if it clears up. … Great. It’s getting dark now. … What a shame; I really was going to have that run. There’s always tomorrow!”

We lie! To ourselves and anyone who’ll listen. You see, part of me knew I had no intention of going for that run. Actually, I honestly love to exercise. And not just because it helps me sleep deeply and increases my energy.

I know that exercise motivation doesn’t come naturally to most people. It didn’t for me. I had to work at getting and keeping myself motivated to run, do yoga, and weight-lift.

The following tips work for me (and for many of my clients who need to exercise). I know they’ll help your exercise motivation, too.

Tip 1: Don’t think; do

Don’t give yourself time to think about exercise; over-thinking saps motivation. If you scheduled exercise for 5.30 pm and find yourself thinking about it during the day, make yourself think about something else. When 5.30 comes, just do it. Analysis paralysis is not the way to exercise motivation. It’s like getting out of bed; the more you think about it, the more time you spend in bed. Just do it. There are times when it’s best not to think.

Emil Zátopek, one of the greatest middle- and long-distance runners in history, said: “If one can stick to the training throughout the many long years, then willpower is no longer a problem. It’s raining? That doesn’t matter. I am tired? That’s beside the point. It’s simply that I just have to.”

Tell yourself your upcoming exercise session is ‘non-negotiable’. Are you a contender or not?

But if you do start thinking about not doing it …

Tip 2: Imagine how not exercising will make you feel

This is a strange one. After all, most motivators try to get you to focus on how great you’ll feel (which also works). But this tip is shockingly effective.

If you find yourself trying to squirm out of exercise, focus on how you’d feel later if you didn’t exercise. If you don’t go for that walk, yoga, or aerobics session, you feel: disappointment in yourself, weakness, the lack of ‘feel good’ chemicals that would be circulating if only you’d been motivated enough to exercise.

Strongly imagining how you’ll feel if you don’t fulfil your scheduled exercise session may be enough to propel you into action. And, really, there is only ever one exercise session to think about.

Constantly telling yourself, ”I have to exercise three times a week” or ”every day” can feel overwhelming. Why do that? Just tell yourself, ”I am going to exercise today.” That’s all. All those single exercise sessions soon add up.

Tip 3: Remember the wonderful physical benefits of exercise

• Improved heart and lung function
• Healthier complexion
• Better sex life (and more chance of getting one!)
• Better digestion (and bowel function)
• Brighter eyes
• Slimmer and more toned body
• Deeper, more refreshing sleep
• More attractive appearance
• Increased youthfulness
• More efficient metabolism – you even burn more calories between exercise sessions!

I love the thought that, for almost twenty-four hours after an exercise session, you’re burning off more calories than you would have been. Even while sleeping!

Re-read this list between exercise sessions. Keep it fresh in your mind.

Tip 4: Remember the plentiful psychological benefits of regular exercise

• Better mood: Physical movement is the quickest way to produce serotonin (the brain’s ‘happiness chemical’). The more intense the movement, the higher the production of serotonin. Regular exercise three times a week has been found to be more effective at lifting depression than taking antidepressants (1).
• Self-confidence: Regular exercise gives you a sense of self-mastery, increased confidence, and higher self-esteem. This can have knock-on benefits to other areas of life.
• Stress management: Exercise makes you better at dealing with stress. Under pressure, fit people show less physical tension and a lower resting heart rate than less fit individuals.
• Increased intelligence: Working out improves your brain’s performance as well as your body. You can become smarter, and improve your memory and other mental functions! Chess champions often up their physical exercise program before big tournaments.

Tip 5: Vary your exercise routine

Take a week off from the gym or the aerobics class and go jogging in the park instead to get the additional mood-boosting effects of being in nature. A night of dancing is also great exercise. Do some gardening. Take the dog out for a run. Mix it up. Variation is the spice of exercise motivation.

Tip 6: Visualize yourself exercising

The body does what the mind envisions. You are much more likely to do something – anything – if you first strongly imagine seeing yourself doing it (2). The better able you are to visualize yourself exercising (as if watching yourself from the outside), the more motivated you’ll actually be to do it. You’ll have set yourself a mental blueprint that now wants to be activated.

Happily, I’m now at the point where I don’t actually have to feel super-motivated to exercise; it’s something I just do. And I feel bad if I don’t do it. Imagine not cleaning your teeth for a few days. You’d probably be quite keen to get back to it.

Right. With all this in mind, I’m feeling extremely motivated and am off for my daily run. : ) (Seriously.)

Mark Tyrrell is a Guest Blogger for PickTheBrain,  therapist, trainer and author. He has written thousands of articles on self help and personal development, many of which can be found at his website UncommonHelp.me

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(1) James A. Blumenthal, Ph.D. and his colleagues surprised many people in 1999 when they demonstrated that regular exercise is more effective than antidepressant medications for patients with major depression.  The researchers studied 156 older adults diagnosed with major depression, assigning them to receive the antidepressant Zoloft (setraline), 30 minutes of exercise three times a week, or both. According to Blumenthal, “Our findings suggest that a modest exercise program is an effective, robust treatment for patients with major depression who are positively inclined to participate in it.  The benefits of exercise are likely to endure particularly among those who adopt it as a regular, ongoing life activity.” A follow-up study in 2000 showed that patients who maintained their exercise patterns were doing much better than those who were just taking medication.

(2) Psychologist Lisa Libby, Ph.D. and colleagues found that participants in her research were much more likely to vote if they had first visualized themselves voting from a third-person perspective. Visualizing ourselves doing something primes the brain and body to actually do it.