Permissive Influences on Motivation

Permissive influences are factors that allow or facilitate the action of something else, like how salt “brings out” other flavors in cooking. Our motivation is heavily influenced by our environment, and permissive influences can “bring out” motivation. There are four major dimensions of permissive influences on motivation: social, temporal, environmental, and cognitive.

“A permissive influence is something that allows or facilitates the action of something else. Like salt can “bring out” other flavors in cooking, the right permissive influence can “bring out” motivation.” (0:17)

Social Influences on Motivation, Temporal Influences on Motivation, Environmental Influences on Motivation, Cognitive Influences on Motivation

• What permissive influences in your life currently support or hinder your motivation?
• How can you craft your environment to include more permissive influences that cultivate motivation?

Our social circles, including friends, family, and romantic partners, can have a significant impact on our motivation. It’s important to critically evaluate whether the people we spend time with move us in the direction we want to go and support our growth. Surrounding ourselves with social influences that cultivate the right kind of ambition and help us move forward is crucial.

“When we think about our friend group, we can like them a lot. We can share a lot of interests. We can have a really good time with them. But think a little bit more critically about when you spend time with your friends. Do they move you in the direction that you want to go in?” (4:34)

Permissive Influences on Motivation, Evaluating Social Influences, Cultivating Supportive Relationships

• How do you feel after spending time with different people in your life?
• Are there any social influences you need to distance yourself from to better support your motivation and growth?

Certain times of the day, days of the week, or even seasons can cultivate the right attitude and help us move forward. Recognizing our individual circadian rhythms and identifying the times when we are most productive can help us optimize our motivation. Some people are night owls, while others are morning larks.

“So generally speaking, were the most active at dawn and dusk. And even in the mid day, when it’s very hot outside we sort of become a little bit sluggish. Now that kind of circadian rhythm is generally true of mammals, but there’s a lot of individual variability.” (9:18)

Permissive Influences on Motivation, Circadian Rhythms and Productivity, Identifying Peak Productivity Times

• When do you feel most energized and focused throughout the day?
• How can you structure your schedule to take advantage of your peak productivity times?

The environment in which we work can significantly impact our motivation. Creating a dedicated workspace that facilitates focus and minimizes distractions can help anchor our minds in a productive state. Famous authors, artists, and leaders often have carefully crafted workspaces that cultivate the right energy for their work.

“We sort of recognize that people who are able to accomplish very profound cognitive tasks, whether it’s the creation of art and it’s like a studio space, or it’s a study room, or it’s kind of the study where someone writes great speeches. We sort of recognize that environment is very, very influential and facilitating the right state of mind.” (11:48)

Permissive Influences on Motivation, Crafting a Productive Workspace, Minimizing Distractions, Famous Workspaces

• What elements of your current workspace support or hinder your motivation?
• How can you redesign your environment to better facilitate focus and productivity?

Certain cognitive activities can stimulate our minds in a way that facilitates motivation. For example, engaging in deep, meaningful work with others can energize us even when we are otherwise exhausted. Recognizing which activities stimulate our cognition in the right way can help us optimize our motivation.

“The interesting thing is after I sit with a human being and after I’m sort of after we’re doing some kind of deep work together some kind of psychotherapeutic work or working on trauma or working on, you know, things that they struggle with, afterward, whether it’s one appointment or four appointments, I’m equally exhausted. I’m sort of equally spent and I can’t start writing at like 6pm Every day.” (13:36)

Permissive Influences on Motivation, Deep Work and Motivation, Identifying Cognitive Stimulants

• What cognitive activities leave you feeling energized and motivated?
• How can you incorporate more of these activities into your routine to support your motivation?

Just as there are permissive influences that facilitate motivation, there are also influences that facilitate negative behaviors like procrastination. It’s important to identify the social, environmental, and cognitive factors that make it easier for us to procrastinate or be lazy, such as certain friends, substances, or activities like excessive gaming.

“So we also want to be a little bit careful about what are the permissive influences for something like procrastination, what are the things that I can do that will lead make it easier for me to procrastinate, because that’s what permissive influences I want you all to think about permissive it as something that makes it easier to do something else.” (15:37)

Permissive Influences on Motivation, Identifying Procrastination Triggers, Crafting an Environment for Success

• What permissive influences in your life currently facilitate procrastination or laziness?
• How can you minimize or eliminate these influences to better support your motivation and productivity?

## Permissive Influences Diagnostic - Social

Think about your social influences such as friends, family members, or online interactions.

### Questions

- How much time do you spend with them?
- How are your motivations affected by each of these social interactions?
- What kinds of motivation are cultivated in these relationships?

<Your answers here>

### Additional Questions

- Do you feel inspired or motivated after spending time with them?
- What is it like interacting with them?
- How do you feel after spending time with them?
- Are they supportive / not supportive of your goals?

<Your answers here>

## Permissive Influences Diagnostic - Temporal

Think about different times of your day (morning, noon, evening, etc), times during the week (weekdays, weekends), and seasons.

### Questions

- When has it been the easiest to work on your goals?
- When has motivation come easily for you?

<Your answers here>

### Questions

- When is it difficult to work on your goals?
- When is it hard to find motivation to do things?

<Your answers here>

### Questions

- Are there specific times of the day, days of the week, or months of the year that takes more/less effort to do things?

<Your answers here>

## Permissive Influences Diagnostic - Environmental

### Questions

- Where do you get the best work done?
- What details about the surrounding are influential in maintaining your focus?

<Your answers here>

### Questions

- Think about a time when you found it hard to focus. Where were you?
- What environmental factors distract your focus?

<Your answers here>

### Questions

- How can you shape your surroundings to help your motivation?

<Your answers here>

## Permissive Influences Diagnostic - Cognitive

### Questions

- What activities stimulate your cognition in a positive way?

<Your answers here>

### Questions

- What daily actions help activate your motivation?

<Your answers here>

### Questions

- What activities do you engage in that make it easy to procrastinate and lose your focus?

<Your answers here>

## Action Plan for Permissive Influences

For each goal that you have, write out one change in each category you can implement this upcoming week.

## Goals



### Social

-

### Temporal

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### Environmental

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### Cognitive

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