How to Get Motivated Even When You Don’t Feel Like It

Most people think of willpower as a virtue, an admirable trait that we strive for but don't always achieve. But science tells a different story. Willpower—the ability to exercise self-control when you need it—is an instinct that's wired into our brains. Yet it seems like willpower vanishes at crucial moments, like when your coworker shows up with a box of donuts.

To harness your innate willpower, you need to understand what factors make you give up your self-control. In The Willpower Instinct, Stanford psychology professor Kelly McGonigal details how our natural willpower gets compromised by stress, distraction, lack of sleep and exercise, and a host of other factors. Using the latest psychology and neuroscience research, she offers strategies to help us defeat procrastination, control cravings, and achieve our goals.

Is there something you indulge in more often than you'd like? Maybe it's checking social media, eating junk food, or binging shows and movies on streaming platforms. In Dopamine Nation, addiction treatment specialist Anna Lembke explores what causes these behaviors and how you can take back control. She explains both the neurological and emotional causes of overindulgence and provides clear actionables to help you stop.

In this guide, you'll learn about how pleasure and pain motivate you to consume, strategies for keeping your brain’s natural chemicals in balance, and solutions to the psychological reasons so many people have a hard time stepping away from their favorite indulgence. Our guide supplements Lembke’s advice with targeted strategies while placing her principles in context with broader conversations on the nature of addiction.

Unlimited Power is a classic self-help book that teaches you how to take control of your life. Tony Robbins claims that the key to this is ensuring that your actions, beliefs, and goals all work together and complement each other. He believes that doing so will allow you to harness a level of energy and conviction that would normally be impossible to access, and he says you can use that energy to achieve all of your goals in life.

Robbins is a world-famous life coach, motivational speaker, and business strategist. Our commentary will explore how some of Robbins’s theories have changed since this book’s 1986 publication. We’ll also draw connections to other prominent self-help books like Flow and Extreme Ownership, offering clear and actionable advice on achieving your goals and living a happy, productive life.

Positive behavior change is one of the most persistent challenges of personal growth—and in How to Change, Katy Milkman draws from the latest research and presents a powerful strategy for creating lasting change. She argues that real behavior change comes from a deliberate, scientific understanding of how human nature gets in our way and how we can leverage it to our advantage.

Milkman, an economist and professor at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, explains how to tailor solutions to your specific challenges, subvert common human failings, and cement lasting change. In this guide, we’ll detail her evidence-based approach to behavioral change and discuss her “playbook” for overcoming human foibles ranging from a lack of self-confidence to forgetfulness and procrastination. In commentary, we’ll look at adjacent perspectives on behavioral change from books such as Atomic Habits, Nudge, Awaken the Giant Within, and Hooked.

Many people assume their ideal life will never be more than fantasy, but in reality, you have the power to create the life you dream about. In this book, life coach and self-help guru Tony Robbins provides insights and strategies to help you take control of every aspect of your life, from your emotions to your focus. In many cases, you can make transformational changes to your life through small adjustments, such as swapping out just one word in your vocabulary.

In this guide you’ll learn how your bad habits are wired in your brain, how to decode your negative emotions to find solutions to them, and how to create your destiny.

This guide compares and contrasts Robbins’s ideas with those of other popular self-help authors, as well as current scientific theories. This will provide you with background and a deeper understanding of the lessons in Awaken the Giant Within, as well as some alternative methods for taking control of your life.

Unlimited Power is a classic self-help book that teaches you how to take control of your life. Tony Robbins claims that the key to this is ensuring that your actions, beliefs, and goals all work together and complement each other. He believes that doing so will allow you to harness a level of energy and conviction that would normally be impossible to access, and he says you can use that energy to achieve all of your goals in life.

Robbins is a world-famous life coach, motivational speaker, and business strategist. Our commentary will explore how some of Robbins’s theories have changed since this book’s 1986 publication. We’ll also draw connections to other prominent self-help books like Flow and Extreme Ownership, offering clear and actionable advice on achieving your goals and living a happy, productive life.

Is there something you’ve dreamed of doing, but never have? Are you waiting for the right motivation to move you toward your goal? If so, then you’re going about it all wrong. In The Motivation Myth, Jeff Haden argues that you shouldn’t wait for motivation to start you down the road to success. Instead, you make your own motivation by creating a plan, breaking it into achievable steps, celebrating every win, and persevering through disappointments. Motivation isn’t a push—it’s momentum that you generate yourself.

In this guide, we’ll explain Haden’s approach to kickstarting your path to success and creating a cycle of positive reinforcement that builds motivation as you go along. We’ll compare Haden’s suggestions with those of other productivity experts with practical tips on managing time, avoiding distraction, and maintaining mental focus. We’ll also explore what wellness experts say about chasing ambition versus finding contentment in everyday life.

How do exceptional people achieve exceptional things? What's the secret to their extraordinary success? We often think it's luck, talent, or skill, but sports psychologist Bob Rotella argues that people achieve excellence because of their mindset. In How Champions Think, Rotella explains that champions share similar ways of thinking that set them apart: They nurture a positive self-image, break down ambitious dreams into realistic goals, and learn to grow from setbacks. By adopting the mental habits of a champion, you can unlock your full potential and achieve excellence in whatever you pursue.

In this guide, we’ll discuss ways to develop a positive self-image, train and master your skills, and perform under pressure. We’ll also explore methods for overcoming and learning from setbacks and challenges. Along the way, we’ll present other experts’ tips for high performance and provide additional actionable advice to help you apply Rotella’s principles to your goals.