Day 239: Harnessing "Negative Motivation"

G'day,

Another day, another personal best! It's taken 10 days but I'm really starting to enjoy this process again. Slowly, but surely I am getting back "in the zone" on a mental level.

To be perfectly honest, it was quite daunting when I started Mission 3 ten days ago.

While I was (am still am) extremely confident in my ability to radically transform my physique over short periods of time there is still that element of uncertainty when starting a new mission.

Put simply, past performance is no guarantee of future success.

This is especially true of a physique transformation because you must execute your pre-determined plan with absolute precision on a daily basis.

There is no margin for error, every single hour of every single day really does count.

Along with that uncertainty comes the added pressure (a good thing!) of undergoing this 135 day journey in front of a much larger veiwership - just take a look at the world visitor map in the right-hand nav bar.

I know if I fail to follow through and practice what I preach on a daily basis the lack of results will be there for everyone to see.

As a consequence I will lose everything I have worked so hard to achieve since Day 1 on November 8, 2006.

While I always prefer to focus on the positive, the reality is that this fear of not achieving my publicly-stated M3 physique transformation goal is now a huge driver for me, as opposed to Mission 1 when it was just me talking to myself in my own little corner of cyberspace!

Here's the bottom line...Don't underestimate the power of "negative motivation" to drive you to your goals. In fact it is often said that people generally are more driven in their desire to avoid pain (fear) rather than gain pleasure.

Of course, you should always couple this with "positive motivation" because a total "fear-based" approach can only work for so long. If you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel you may be inclined to give up before you reach your goals.

Does this make sense? I'm not sure if it does or not as I am so sleepy right now...

Peace,
Adam Waters

P.S. Below are Day 239 pics for July 5, 2007 - Mission 3 Phase 1, Day 10 of 60