The Motivation Manifesto: 9 Declarations to Claim Your Personal Power

by Brendon Burchard

THERE COMES A TIME IN THE LIVES OF THOSE DESTINED for greatness when we must stand before the mirror of meaning and ask: Why, having been endowed with the courageous heart of a lion, do we live as mice?

We must look squarely into our own tired eyes and examine why we waste so much time sniffing at every distraction, why we cower at the thought of revealing our true selves to the world, why we scurry so quickly from conflict, and why we consent to play small. We must ask why we participate so humbly in society’s frantic race, allowing ourselves into its mazes of mediocrity and settling for scraps of reward when nature has offered unlimited freedom, power, and abundance to the bold, the determined, the creative, the independent—to each of us. We must ask if our desires to feel safe and accepted are in fact enslaving us to popular opinion—and to boredom. We must ask: When will we be ready to ascend to another level of existence?

It is the main motivation of humankind to be free, to express our true selves and pursue our dreams without restriction—to experience what may be called Personal Freedom.

We are too often detached from what is most worth fighting for; our busywork consumes our day but it is not our life’s work. Most do not feel a stark, stirring life purpose—they don’t hunger for it in the morning or orient their day to its pursuit. A life of greater joy, power, and satisfaction awaits those who consciously design

Something inside is sabotaging our natural drive toward freedom. It whines and roars for us to stop whenever we push beyond our comforts; whenever we choose to be authentic and loving in a scary world; whenever we seek to make a difference at the cost of our own position; whenever we desire something magnificent that, to obtain, would require hardship and work. Our internal demons poison us with worry and fear whenever we might be vulnerable, stunting our growth and vitality.

always requires a touch of insanity. If taking action before the perfect conditions arise, or before we receive permission, is unreasonable or reckless, then we must be unreasonable and reckless. We must remember we are not the sum of our intentions but of our actions.

Hurry has become the master. We have stopped sensing the stillness, the stunning fullness and beauty and divine perfection of the moment. Most barrel through life, unaware of their senses and surroundings, deaf and blind to the magical qualities of…this…very…moment.

Let us believe faithfully that our dreams are worth any struggle and that it is our time to free ourselves and rise to glory.

Choosing our own aims and seeking to bring them to fruition creates a sense of vitality and motivation in life.

All things that make life worthwhile to great men and women—the pursuit of happiness, challenge, progress, creative expression, contribution, hard-won wisdom, and enlightenment—derive from our wanting to ascend to higher levels of being and giving.

A difficult choice must therefore be made between the comforts of fitting in and pleasing others and our higher motive for Personal Freedom.

We learn that the more we are true to ourselves, the more we can connect with and contribute to the world. We find that the more free and spontaneous and authentic we become, the more our motivation and aliveness returns and the more others are attracted to us and want to be around us.

Let us be clear once more that if we are not free, if we are not genuinely expressing our full personality and pursuing our true desires, it is because we are choosing to act from aversion rather than ascension. Thus our grand battles in life are between our desire for freedom and the fearful impulses that destroy desire. The juxtaposition could be no less stark—at any moment, we are acting from a state of mind driven by fear or freedom.

Either fear will win or freedom will win. Let that phrase ring true in our minds as we carry out our ideal lives: Fear wins or Freedom wins. And so let us ask ourselves, “Will my life be about aversion or ascension?”

We are not slave to our history; we can be freed by our conscious thoughts and disciplined habits.

It’s an awkward social reality: We must protect ourselves from being limited by those who care for us as much as by those who blatantly oppose us.

How many souls have failed to soar because they were suffocated in a loved one’s worry?

We must harbor no ill feelings toward these worriers; they deserve patience and understanding because they may be trapped in a mindset that favors aversion over ascension. Let them be governed by fear if they must, but do not join them.

We must not worry what could go wrong but rather wonder what magnificence could enter our lives when we are consistently expressing our genuine selves and pursuing our true passions.

When our dreams become vivid and enliven us, we must venture forth, with or without worried family and friends, even if it brings some sorrow and sacrifice. To allow other people’s anxieties to defeat our drive is to succumb to oppression.

They are worshippers of ease who rarely feel the satisfaction of a hard day’s work. They are the aimless souls who pursue no real path, no purpose, no higher desire that would demand the best of them. They may never have found the courage to abandon complacency. They are glib cynics who have added little real value to the world. They are the escapists, those who bolt away at the first inkling of a challenge.

They are the resigned, the miserable few who long ago gave up their power so that they might be absolved of the responsibility of living a remarkable life.

Beware those too apathetic to strive for important things as they ultimately instill indifference, swaying so many independent people from their path of greatness. And so let us stay on our path. Let us choose the strenuous life, taking pride and finding honor in our struggles and our contributions. We will not fear the exhaustion and anxieties that magnificent dreams and unceasing hard work can bring. We will keep a joyous heart even as we toil, for our toils bring us toward that which we find meaningful.

Let us learn now, once and for all, to anticipate how our minds cultivate fear. Just as we can expect the worriers, weaklings, and wicked to derail us if we are not cautious, we can prepare for how our minds will tear us from happiness and progress. Most of the fear we feel in life is simply anxiety arising from our anticipation of two kinds of pain that change might bring: the pain associated with loss or hardship.

“Are you not more than your tiny worries about inconvenience? Isn’t a better life worth some struggle?”

We can choose the courage to put ourselves in the vicinity of the things we fear over and over again until we grow more comfortable and then confident.

“I won’t let others stoke fear in my heart. I choose to remain true to who I am and where my dreams direct me no matter the hardship I might incur. I remember it always: Fear wins or Freedom wins, and I choose Freedom.”

but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.

But if we have a strong list of reasons to move forward and we’ve conditioned our impulses to support freedom, we are more likely to consistently advance our lives.

well. Enlightenment comes when we realize happiness is a choice, sadness is a choice, anger is a choice, love is a choice. Every state, emotion, and mood available to Man can be generated at will in our mind. This realization is one of the most obvious guideposts on the path from adolescence to adulthood, from immaturity to maturity,

Most people have simply not yet chosen to prize self-mastery or to work toward it. They do not need drugs; they need desire and discipline. They do not need a prescription; they need a new life philosophy. Even in those cases where a person needs medication and therapy over the long term, their treatment will also almost always include efforts to help them choose thoughts

People who are motivated are not lucky. They are conscientious. They choose to use their minds in a more purposeful way in order to energize and lift their lives. And for that they tend to achieve more and gain more respect. The

When we understand that thoughts and emotions can be chosen, then we finally realize that we err in saying, “I don’t feel happy” or “I feel sad and there is nothing I can do about it.” Since we have some choice in how we feel at any given moment, the more accurate statements would be “I am not using my mind right now to generate a feeling of happiness” or “I have been choosing to focus on sad things for a while and that has created this feeling of sadness” or “I am allowing my unconscious impulses to direct me now rather than using my consciousness to feel positive and design my ideal reality.”

By deeply contemplating higher aims, we energize ourselves to pursue them.

So, to those who say, “I wish I were more motivated,” we reply, “Do not hope for motivation; choose an ambition to become motivated for. Fix on a dream and believe that it will see daylight and soon a great swell of enthusiasm will enliven you.”

We should not fear an obsession for building a great and free life. Without such willed attention, our motivation would descend into halfhearted hopes, flirty arousals of the heart that have no staying power.

Greatness belongs to those who have mastered the ability to focus relentlessly on their ambitions and act decisively toward them.

Attitude matters. Free and motivated people are positive and enthusiastic about their goals and their lives. Yet look at the millions of people drowning in the quicksand of pessimism, gritting their teeth in contempt at their everyday experiences. Anger, hatred, and all the trappings of fear fuel the minds of the masses. There is a dispirited gloom hanging over so many. But why? Is there a sudden reason to feel profoundly more negative about life? No. The issue at hand is a failure to choose one’s attitude.

Outside of our direct will, one way to keep ourselves sane and positive is to surround ourselves with people who are sane and positive.

Few things amplify our long-term motivation more than a positive social environment.

For motivation’s sake, we must be vigilant and surround ourselves with genuine and positive people

If we lack a supportive place to live and work, or a positive peer group, let it be our mission to manifest those things in our lives. Our environment matters and so we shall shape it to lift us into the next realm of motivation and joy.

Choose an ambition and, with full force, expect that it is possible and that you can make it happen. Give constant attention and committed effort to your dreams, and your motivation will perpetuate itself. Demonstrate a positive attitude as you strive for great things and take care to create a supportive environment around you that amplifies your motivation.

We say: If you have not chosen to be motivated before, that is why you do not have more pay, autonomy, and responsibility. Effort gives you motivation, and motivation gives you reward.

We are not intended to be inattentive to our loved ones and the duties of life or the dreams in our hearts.

Locked indoors and hidden behind machines, we missed the entire season—the winter passed and we didn’t play in the snow, the spring bloomed and we overlooked the flowers, the summer and the fall passed so quickly and we don’t even remember the trees changing or feel satisfied with the time we spent outside. Each day there are a million divine wonders, acts of human kindness, and beautiful sights. Yet we are too checked out or busy thinking about yesterday or tomorrow to even sense the magic.

With enlightenment comes the realization that the natural foe to life is not a distant death, but a detachment from living.

We can give others the full beam of our focus and affection. We can open our hearts, minds, and spirits to what the universe whispers to us.

Others are concerned that tomorrow won’t be worse but rather no different at all. They think, “Why can’t my life be more exciting? Tomorrow is just going to be another day, another dollar. Just another replay of the same old routine.” The sad reality is that, unless they learn to grip their present experience with a renewed fervor, they are correct.

The first role we can play in our lives is observer, or the conscious viewer. This is the role and responsibility we are charged with through the gift of self-awareness. As observer, we can float above our reality and view the totality of who we are in life and the minutia of how we are acting and reacting in the very moment. It is not a detachment from ourselves or the moment, but rather a careful observance of it. Those who have mastered this role can make a decision and almost simultaneously evaluate whether or not it is the right decision. They can sense themselves doing, feeling, and thinking things, and know if those things are authentic. They notice when they are making poor decisions, being rude to others, forgetting something important. They are vitally aware of themselves. They can sense a conflict brewing and feel their anger lifting yet choose not to act on that anger. It is as though they have an internal dialogue: “Oh, I see that I am becoming upset about this situation. Why am I reacting this way right now? Will anger serve me in this moment? If I were responding as my highest self, what would I say and do right now?”