How to Increase Your Motivation and Stay Focus: Goldilocks Principle

Have you ever found it difficult to stay motivated to complete a task? Perhaps you need to learn about the Goldilocks Principle and apply it to your life and business in order to boost your motivation and focus.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears is a children’s story. In the story, the three bears cook porridge but it is too hot to eat. And the three bears decided to take a walk outside as it cools. And while they are away, a little girl named Goldilocks appears.

Goldilocks tries each of the three bowls of porridge on the tables and chooses the one that is neither too hot nor too cold. She sits on a chair that is neither too harsh nor too soft for her. She tries the beds when she finishes the porridge and chooses the one that is neither too hard nor too soft.

And this is what Goldilocks Principle is all about. Choosing and going for something that is not too easy nor too difficult, not too hot nor too cold, not too hard nor too soft, etc.

How Does the Goldilocks Principle Affect Your Motivation and Life?

Source: James Clear

So what has the Goldilocks Principle has to do our lives and the success that we want?

Well, just imagine that you are playing a tennis match with a five-year-old. If you get too serious, guess what will happen?

The match is going to be boring because you can easily score. The match is not challenging at all.

Now, what if you are playing against professional tennis players like Serena Williams or Roger Federer? It will be a game that is too difficult and maybe you can’t even score a point.

Again, because the competition is too tough, you can’t win at all and you lose hope. You will quickly lose motivation because you can’t find a way to win the game.

What if you are playing tennis against someone who is your equal? Someone who’s skill level is almost the same as yours?

“As the game progresses, you win a few points and you lose a few. You have a good chance of winning, but only if you really try. Your focus narrows, distractions fade away, and you find yourself fully invested in the task at hand. This is a challenge of just manageable difficulty and it is a prime example of the Goldilocks Rule.”

James Clear

The Goldilocks Principle states that while you are working on something that is just right, your motivation will be at its peak.

You will be more motivated to complete a project or achieve a goal if it is neither too difficult nor too easy.

How to Use the Goldilocks Principle to Achieve Your Goals

1. Apply The Goldilocks Principle
2. List the Reasons You Want to Accomplish the Goal
3. Break it Into Smaller Pieces
4. Visualise Your Success
5. Reward Yourself
6. Involve Others
7. Measure Your Progress
8. Check in With Your Reasons

Now that you know how the theory works, it’s time to put it into practise. It is always preferable to set a goal or an aim that is neither too easy nor too tough to reach.

This is especially vital when you first set out to achieve your goal.

You don’t want to establish a goal that is too difficult to fulfil because it will quickly demotivate you.

You will lose hope if your goal is too far away from your current abilities. You’ll begin to have doubts about yourself. Your misgivings can also derail your motivation.

And you don’t believe in it when you doubt yourself.

You will sabotage your own action if this happens. You might not give it your all because you don’t believe your objective is achievable in the first place.

When your objective is too easy to achieve, on the other hand, you will feel that it isn’t tough enough, and you will rapidly lose motivation to seek for anything better.

Therefore, set a goal that is not too difficult nor too easy to achieve.

Set a goal for yourself that is at the top of your game.

Tasks that are below your current talents are tedious, while tasks that are well beyond your capabilities are demoralising.

You must select a goal or complete a task that is exactly right.

Follow the Goldilocks Principle and make your objectives or goals just right, no matter what they are. Make sure they’re neither too challenging nor too simple to complete.

This manner, you can increase your motivation because the activities are simple enough to motivate you to act, but not too tough to turn you off.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

When it comes to achieving our objectives, the Goldilocks Rule is a powerful idea that we should always keep in mind. This is because if you break this guideline, sticking to your strategy will be exceedingly tough.

If you aspire to be a writer, for example, you should be aware of the 1,000-word challenge. This is where you make a daily commitment to write 1,000 words.

Now, if you are someone who can write a lot, writing 500 words a day may be too easy for you. And if you are a beginner, writing 500 words a day can be a big challenge.

The key is that you have to adjust the level of difficulty according to your own ability.

You must make the task as enjoyable as possible in order to increase your motivation and motivate you to take action.

The same is true in every aspect of your life. Aiming for 5,000 steps is a wonderful goal, but make sure it meets the Goldilocks Test before you commit.

Final Thoughts

Making the decision to change an area of your life is simple; sticking to it is the harder part.

The road to success might be long at times.

You must do two things in order to stay motivated:

Select a goal or job that is neither too simple nor too tough (The Goldilocks Principle).
When possible, track your progress and get rapid feedback.

Check Out: Top 6 Bollywood Movies of Khan’s that has inspired us