Why do you do what you do? (Try this powerful exercise!)
“Success comes when we wake up every day in that never-ending pursuit of why we do what we do” (Simon Sinek)
Asking yourself why you do what you do can make your path clear.
And understanding why you do the things you do can help to guide you towards the things you most want in life.
This is something that I just read about in a book I finished last week called ‘Someday is Today’ by Matthew Dicks.
In that book the author suggests making a list of the reasons why you pursue the things you do as a way to keep yourself motivated and inspired (especially on the days when you don’t feel like doing much).
Knowing why we do what we do can be very informative and inspiring.
It can help you to think clearly about what path might make you the happiest and then help you stay on that path when you start to question yourself.
It can also help you find tangible reasons for why you want to be successful.
As Dicks says in the book: “…the greater the number of reasons you have to achieve your goals, the greater the number of motivators you have to propel yourself forward.”
So after reading the book I decided to do the exercise myself.
The exercise
Before I share my list, let me first explain the exercise.
Here’s what to do.
Ask yourself why you are chasing the goals and dreams you are chasing (or perhaps not chasing yet but want to be). Or another way of putting it is to ask yourself why you want to be a success at whatever it is you are hoping to do.
Matthew Dicks suggests to dig deep with this and to look into your past for what these reasons might be.
Ask yourself what is motivating you to want to do this thing.
Ask yourself hard questions about why you want this so badly.
You’ll likely come up with both good and bad reasons.
Write them all down.
My version of this exercise
I did this exercise myself a few days ago.
Here’s what I came up with as the reasons for why I work so hard to build my business:
I don’t want to regret my life. I only get one chance at it.
I don’t want a boss.
I don’t want to ever have to ask for permission from someone to take holidays, pick up my sick kids from school or take the day off if I don’t feel like working.
I could die at any moment and I want to document my thoughts and ideas for my boys in case I’m not here one day.
I love helping people. This is a theme that’s run throughout my life that I never found the right outlet for (until now).
I want to earn a living in a career that allows me almost complete control over my time.
I want to make money so we can have amazing experiences as a family and live a great life.
I want to live up to my personal potential so I don’t disappoint the 90 year old version of me.
I want to push myself because I’m competitive and hard-working. I don’t like excuses.
I want to live in a nice house - and that requires money.
I want to make my Mum proud of me and show I’m making the most of the effort she put into raising me as a single mother (I was a difficult teenager!!!).
I want to give my kids every opportunity possible so they can do whatever they want in life.
I want to set an example for my boys about what’s possible for their own lives and show them they can build things of value when they put in the effort.
I want to have complete freedom in what I’m doing and choose projects to work on that I enjoy.
What to do with this list
The purpose of the list is to keep you motivated and on track with progress towards your goals and dreams.
Read the list on days when you’re feeling discouraged or you feel like things aren’t going your way or some troll writes something horrible to you on the internet.
Use the list on the days you feel low but you still know you have to keep moving forward (because time is always ticking and you’ll never get it back).
It’s a very simple exercise, but I think it’s a good one.
Give it a try and let me know what you think!
Thanks for reading. Enjoy the rest of your day!
Clare x
Dr Clare Le Roy
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