Why do I get excited by ideas quickly but don't follow through?

[LiveEntrepreneur]

So I have this weird thing, no idea why it happens but trying to figure out why. Maybe it's just a dopamine thing. So what I'm referring to is that I'll be unmotivated for a while, and I have a picture in my head of who I want to be, I can see what my perfect day looks like and that's just grinding out work everyday and being productive, and recently the gym popped into my mind. I get pump up about going, seems like a good idea then I ask myself "why?" and I can never come up with an answer lol then the excitement dies.

Or even I'll get excited about starting to reading self-improvement books again then think "why am I even doing this?"

Or one time I did go to the gym, and was there felt like I was there with no goal or purpose so didn't bother pursuing it.

There are reasons why I see the value of going like when I'm older so I'm not moving life a cripple that that's about it. Don't see the point doing it for any other reason, I know guys do it to get chicks and wanna look big and stuff but I don't see the point in that, waste of time to me.

 

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[Zcott]

You've got to do it for your own personal reasons, there's no point in doing something for the sake of it. You sound either just lazy or depressed. Either way if this is something that keeps happening, you are left with two choices: 1) stick with something and move forward with whatever, or 2) keep going in the cycle you're in.

 

[Wouter]

That's because there is no inherent goal or purpose in the act of 'going to the gym'

You figure out your own goal or purpose. I used to hate going to the gym, now I love it. It builds discipline, you start to feel better mentally and physically and you look better. But those things don't happen if you go once. You start seeing results after going consistently for months. Sounds like you're not giving yourself the chance to discover that for yourself, because you quit after going once.

Seems like that is not just happening at the gym for you, but other parts of your life as well.

 

[LiveEntrepreneur]

That's because there is no inherent goal or purpose in the act of 'going to the gym'

You figure out your own goal or purpose. I used to hate going to the gym, now I love it. It builds discipline, you start to feel better mentally and physically and you look better. But those things don't happen if you go once. You start seeing results after going consistently for months. Sounds like you're not giving yourself the chance to discover that for yourself, because you quit after going once.

Seems like that is not just happening at the gym for you, but other parts of your life as well.

There is a part of me I want to go and I want to find a reason to go, but I just feel as if it's very complicated there are so many other questions on my mind. Same with reading books, I want to find a concrete reason to do so but struggle to do so and if I do end up reading it I noticed that I do it out of getting a good feeling.

 

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[LiveEntrepreneur]

You've got to do it for your own personal reasons, there's no point in doing something for the sake of it. You sound either just lazy or depressed. Either way if this is something that keeps happening, you are left with two choices: 1) stick with something and move forward with whatever, or 2) keep going in the cycle you're in.

I feel like it's both, I've got multiple challenges that I've been dealing with. With the laziness, yeah that's true, I've noticed recently in regards to that where the problem lies and that's in 2 things, my attitude because I dread everyday doing the work that I need to do, and dopamine. I saw that the problem started once I started browsing YouTube videos and stuff like that then lost all my energy to do the work because of that.

So now I am trying to get rid of as much dopamine sources as I can.

With the depression, I don't know because I'm pretty happy with my life, I've always felt that I've had a good life but the last 2 years have been bad in terms of caring. I've stopped caring about of a lot of things in my life and one major one is work.

I just didn't see the purpose in working hard at my job, I felt like I wasn't getting anything out of it. Even doing simple stuff like doing certain chores.

For example I'll keep my room clean but I used to really care and made sure dust didn't accumulate as much but now I don't see the point.

But I've noticed the last few days where I avoided dopamine sources and worked hard I did start to care again and the day felt really good, I couldn't fall asleep a couple times cause was excited for the following day and getting shit done.

 

[ChrisGav]

I feel like it's both, I've got multiple challenges that I've been dealing with. With the laziness, yeah that's true, I've noticed recently in regards to that where the problem lies and that's in 2 things, my attitude because I dread everyday doing the work that I need to do, and dopamine. I saw that the problem started once I started browsing YouTube videos and stuff like that then lost all my energy to do the work because of that.

So now I am trying to get rid of as much dopamine sources as I can.

With the depression, I don't know because I'm pretty happy with my life, I've always felt that I've had a good life but the last 2 years have been bad in terms of caring. I've stopped caring about of a lot of things in my life and one major one is work.

I just didn't see the purpose in working hard at my job, I felt like I wasn't getting anything out of it. Even doing simple stuff like doing certain chores.

For example I'll keep my room clean but I used to really care and made sure dust didn't accumulate as much but now I don't see the point.

But I've noticed the last few days where I avoided dopamine sources and worked hard I did start to care again and the day felt really good, I couldn't fall asleep a couple times cause was excited for the following day and getting shit done.

As someone who used to struggle with this myself, it was important for me to build the discipline initially to commit these acts.
How I built my discipline:
How you do one thing is how you do everything. You are lazy about going to the gym, so it carries over into the rest of your life etc. You've built the habit of taking it easy on yourself when you don't feel like doing something.

I fixed this by doing everything I didn't want to do, when I didn't want to do it. Obviously nothing dangerous.. but, if I didn't feel like going to the gym, that meant it was time to go. Even the small things: after eating, take my plate to immediately clean it, don't allow myself to hit the snooze button when waking up, etc.

You must control yourself, or you will be controlled by self.

Now, I don't know that I believe 24/7 productivity, no days off, no relaxation, is a realistic way to live. However, I do think that you can be both very productive in a day, while simultaneously enjoy the day.

 

[Andy Black]

1) I’m don’t really get excited or disappointed. I see everything as a test or learning.

2) If I do something it’s because I enjoy the act of doing it, not just the result I might get out of it.

 

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[Pard]

While most suggestions are better than I what am going to mention,I think it is worth mentioning anyway.
And this is regarding training only.
Find something you enjoy. That’s it.
I have done the usual suspects,lifting,running and whatnot,but I do find it quite boring after a while.
But once I found something I really enjoy,I really look forward to going.
Been doing it a couple of years now and I enjoy it more than ever.

Lower the threshold for doing it.
Prepare whatever you need the day before,put your trainers,shorts whatever in you car,next to your sofa,whichever way will make it easier for you to go.
No idea what to try?Just try everything within reasonable distance from you job or place of living.
And do try to train with others.It adds another layer that will keep you going,especially after you get to know the people you train with.
Sorry for the incoherent rambling in my shite English.

 

[LiveEntrepreneur]

This is one thing im struggling to agree with and have for a while. "How you do anything is how you do everything" i just cant see it. I mean surely there are alot of people who just dedicate time to whats important while leaving out the unimportant. thats what i try to do because it makes the most sense to me.

Like i know people who are great at their day job but lazy as hell at home. What am i missing? I do agree with the taking it easy part.

 

[ChrisGav]

This is one thing im struggling to agree with and have for a while. "How you do anything is how you do everything" i just cant see it. I mean surely there are alot of people who just dedicate time to whats important while leaving out the unimportant. thats what i try to do because it makes the most sense to me.

Like i know people who are great at their day job but lazy as hell at home. What am i missing? I do agree with the taking it easy part.

It’s kind of along the lines of you build the habits. Michael Jordan has a saying “don’t ever quit because then you build the habit of quitting”.

I’ve personally noticed the benefits in my life of the philosophy of how you do one thing is how you do everything. Your brain is a muscle, and the habits that you want have to be continuously trained. That’s more of the purpose behind it, continual training.

No matter what industry, job, that you end up in, it’ll be you that shows up. You want to make sure you have the right habits that show up with you, because they carry over no matter the industry

 

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[LiveEntrepreneur]

It’s kind of along the lines of you build the habits. Michael Jordan has a saying “don’t ever quit because then you build the habit of quitting”.

I’ve personally noticed the benefits in my life of the philosophy of how you do one thing is how you do everything. Your brain is a muscle, and the habits that you want have to be continuously trained. That’s more of the purpose behind it, continual training.

No matter what industry, job, that you end up in, it’ll be you that shows up. You want to make sure you have the right habits that show up with you, because they carry over no matter the industry

Thats making sense to me. From what im getting from this is we put effort into all areas of our life to build and maintain the habit of having a good work ethic?

 

[sonny_1080]

So I have this weird thing, no idea why it happens but trying to figure out why. Maybe it's just a dopamine thing. So what I'm referring to is that I'll be unmotivated for a while, and I have a picture in my head of who I want to be, I can see what my perfect day looks like and that's just grinding out work everyday and being productive, and recently the gym popped into my mind. I get pump up about going, seems like a good idea then I ask myself "why?" and I can never come up with an answer lol then the excitement dies.

Or even I'll get excited about starting to reading self-improvement books again then think "why am I even doing this?"

Or one time I did go to the gym, and was there felt like I was there with no goal or purpose so didn't bother pursuing it.

There are reasons why I see the value of going like when I'm older so I'm not moving life a cripple that that's about it. Don't see the point doing it for any other reason, I know guys do it to get chicks and wanna look big and stuff but I don't see the point in that, waste of time to me.

I know what this feels like. In my experience, all of these shortcomings - laziness, boredom, depression, lack of discipline - stem from 1 or 2 root defects within my character. For me, said shortcomings are pride and fear. Let me explain...

Pride keeps me in a mindset of "I'm too good for this" or "I don't need this"... job, gym, socializing, educating myself, anything productive, etc. There is also pride in reverse - "I'm not good enough" or "I need [blank] in order to be better" - this is also the same character defect. Pride leads me into self-justification keeping me stuck in the same place.

Fear has a symbiotic relationship with pride. It's like a chicken and egg situation. My pride is afraid of being hurt, so it keeps me from taking an honest appraisal of myself. Fear - of the unknown, of the truth, of myself, etc. - creates a reason for my pride to exist (to protect me).

Being aware of these things is the first step toward freedom from them. I'm usually not aware of them until I've reached what MJ calls a "FTE" that shocks my automatism enough to take effective action instead of just get high on the dopamine of thinking about taking action.

The effective action is usually the opposite action of what I'm hardwired to do. Pretty much what Chrisgav was saying. I've found that thinking about myself is the cause of all of my problems. We humans are selfish and self-centered. This selfishness manifests itself in my pride and fear. If my usual way of doing things is causing me pain, it isn't until I've reached my threshold of pain that I'm spurred into action.

My advice to you is to find someone to help. You'll find freedom from yourself when you are helping someone else. When I'm thinking about you, I'm not thinking about me.

I hope that helps!

TL;DR -> you're selfish as F*ck and only thinking about yourself. Go help somebody and you'll find that the solution to all your suffering is underneath someone else's problems.

 

[sonny_1080]

Oh and 1 more thing...

STOP MASTURBATING

SERIOUSLY

You literally carry the seed of life/God/energy/creation in your nutsack. When you spill your seed recklessly, a massive amount of energy is taken out of you. Thats why when you're having sex with a woman you roll over and go to sleep. Less energy -> sloth -> unproductive -> depression -> all the shit you posted about.

When I first learned this I didn't believe it. Then I tried an experiment... I stopped masturbating for a week... the results were damn near instantaneous. The experiment worked so well I did it for a month.

1. Way easier to get out of bed in the morning
2. Tons of energy throughout the day -> forced me to be productive
3. More productivity -> more self-esteem
4. More self-esteem -> more inspiration to do things that keep me excited and engaged

Theres a lot of other reasons to try it and I highly suggest you give it a shot. It'll definitely be a test of your discipline. Like fasting.

 

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[minivanman]

Oh and 1 more thing...

STOP MASTURBATING

SERIOUSLY

You literally carry the seed of life/God/energy/creation in your nutsack. When you spill your seed recklessly, a massive amount of energy is taken out of you. Thats why when you're having sex with a woman you roll over and go to sleep. Less energy -> sloth -> unproductive -> depression -> all the shit you posted about.

When I first learned this I didn't believe it. Then I tried an experiment... I stopped masturbating for a week... the results were damn near instantaneous. The experiment worked so well I did it for a month.

1. Way easier to get out of bed in the morning
2. Tons of energy throughout the day -> forced me to be productive
3. More productivity -> more self-esteem
4. More self-esteem -> more inspiration to do things that keep me excited and engaged

Theres a lot of other reasons to try it and I highly suggest you give it a shot. It'll definitely be a test of your discipline. Like fasting.

Roll over and go to sleep? I usually watch a little tv then get out of bed and do some work for a few hours. I'm glad no masturbation was not a requirement for me in my younger years. What would I have done with 23 hours a day? All jokes aside, if I quit masturbating and having sex.... do you know what it feels like to have restless leg syndrome? I actually get restless penis syndrome. And I hate restless penis syndrome so I ain't going without