Pure Wisdom

CHAPTER 21

Act

For a long time I’ve been curious about the difficulties that most of us have when it comes to taking action – the type of action that leads to a healthier and more fulfilling life. We vow to stop smoking, go to the gym or stop bingeing on junk food. We may get motivated for a while and take action for a day or two, but it doesn’t last. So how do we maintain our motivation, not just for a couple of days, but for weeks, months or even years?

In a word: emotion. In fact, the word ‘emotion’ is derived from the Latin movere – to move. And therein lies the key to staying motivated. You see, we often know what we want to achieve and the reason why. But this intellectual understanding is not enough to get us going, let alone keep ...