Taking the First Step Doesn’t Require Desire
Wanting to do something means being motivated, cherishing a vital objective, a goal. When we feel desire we move toward what we wish to obtain or achieve.
Certainly desire is a force that moves us, pushes us to live with hope and anticipation, and it is much easier to undertake projects or plans with these than in their absence. However, that does not mean that it is absolutely impossible to move if we lack desire.
When desire is clouded over
Sometimes, our feelings of sadness or depression are so intense that we just cannot see a reason or a goal, a meaning to life. The fact of the matter is that all of us, in whatever situation, can find that way. On the other hand, emotions often obscure our vision and obligate us to see the world with a black tint, when the truth is that there are all kinds of colors in this world.
We are bombarded by negative thoughts. We believe them as though they were the actual truth, when in reality, they are enemies created by our irrational mind, which is not thinking realistically at that point in time.
We tend to overgeneralize, to take things too personally, blow things out of proportion, dramatize, or think that we will never be happy and that hope is totally lost.
By filtering information this way, we feel very distressed. We suffer from a sense of inertia, like a marionette or a prisoner of our emotions. There’s no desire to go out or to do the things that we used to like doing. We attribute this to “not feeling like it” and it is true, there is a distinct lack of desire. However, luckily for us, we have something very valuable, which is called willpower.
Say “NO” to your emotions
When that lack of motivation is winning the battle, slam your fist on the table and say “that’s it!” It seems really simple, but it is easier said than done. However, nobody said that it would be easy. But it is worth trying and persevering. In the long-term, you will start to see the rest of the colors that life has to share.
The key is maintaining your action, your hobbies, your projects, despite finding yourself devoid of all energy. For this, you must prepare yourself mentally and understand that your sadness is only an emotion. We cannot deny that it is very unpleasant. However, despite this, and on top of it, we must continue with our plans, without hesitation.
Normally we think that after motivation comes action, but that is not the reality of the situation. For desire to appear, you have to wake up one day and force yourself to put one foot in front of the other.
Being hedonistic in the long term
What is does that mean, being hedonistic in the long term? It means that we are aware that we often have to make sacrifices in the short term to achieve much greater pleasure in a while. We have to exert the force required to get dressed with no desire, to go shopping with no energy, or to study with absolutely no motivation.
Although we may feel “relief” when we reject plans, delegate things, or simply do not do anything, that relief is momentary, very short-term, and does not solve our problem.
Furthermore, our negative thoughts about ourselves, the world, and the future are confirmed. By not giving ourselves a chance to act, we find ourselves isolated in our own inner world. We see ourselves as incapable, the world as a hostile place, and the future as a state of total despair.
We need to put our willpower on the table, to walk even though our feet weigh a ton, and to make a path, little by little, until we start to see things differently. Until we discover all the good things that are and always have been there outside, just waiting for us.