I’m reading “Tiny Habits” by B. J. Fogg.
It’s a classic on behavior design, and I. can’t believe it took me this long to get to it.
I love it so far. Lots of frameworks.
Anyway, “motivation” is a big part of his framework.
When I raised this, I raised an eyebrow. I thought we (collectively) had thrown out the idea of motivation in favor of discipline.
As Jocko has been telling us for a decade:
- “Discipline Equals Freedom”
Don’t we district motivation?
It’s based on emotion and can rise and fall based on all kinds of things. It’s unpredictable and short lived.
Discipline is a commitment. A habit. A thing we do.
Here’s a table, after talking to gpt4o:
| Aspect | Motivation | Discipline |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The emotional drive or enthusiasm to do something. | The commitment to follow through regardless of how one feels. |
| Source | Comes from inspiration, excitement, or external factors (e.g., rewards, praise). | Comes from habit, structure, and a strong sense of responsibility. |
| Reliability | Unpredictable—depends on mood, circumstances, or energy levels. | Consistent—works even when motivation is absent. |
| Sustainability | Short-lived—fades when excitement wears off. | Long-lasting—built through habits and routine. |
| How it Works | “I feel like doing this, so I will.” | “I will do this, no matter how I feel.” |
| Trigger for Action | Emotional state, inspiration, or a new goal. | Routine, self-discipline, and personal values. |
| Common Challenges | Hard to sustain—if motivation disappears, action stops. | Requires effort to develop but becomes automatic over time. |
| Example (Exercise) | Works out when feeling excited or inspired to get fit. | Sticks to a workout routine even when feeling tired or unmotivated. |
| Example (Work/Study) | Studies when feeling inspired or interested in the subject. | Studies every day at the same time, no matter the mood. |
| Example (Diet) | Eats healthy when motivated by a new fitness goal. | Maintains a healthy diet as a long-term habit, even on tough days. |
Yep, as I thought.
Anyway, Chapter 2 of “Tiny Habits” is on Motivation.
Yep, Fogg agrees that motivation (alone) is not enough:
Motivation is often unreliable when it comes to home improvement. And it’s also unreliable with diets, exercise routines, creative projects, filing taxes, opening businesses, searching for jobs, planning conferences—self-improvement of all types.
What was eye-opening is that Fogg shows a way of working with motivation, rather than discarding it entirely.
First, I like the breakdown of the sources of motivation:
- Motivation from yourself (wants)
- Motivation from others (rewards and punishments)
- Motivation from the environment/context (fitting in)
In my own work, I focus on three sources of motivation: yourself (what you already want), a benefit or punishment you would receive by doing the action (the carrot and stick), and your context (e.g., all your friends are doing it).
Okay.
The next piece I like is the “action line”.
The threshold that motivation must clear in order for an action to be performed toward the desired behavior.
To clear the line, we increase the motivation (from one of the three sources), hard, or we make the action easier to do (this).
Nice.
It’s a kinder way of making progress. Or perhaps of starting the habit. Once we have the habit, we can “discipline” our way forward.
With this grounding, he “hacks” flaky motivation via:
- Highly-specific aspiration (goal, outcome, transformation).
- Menu of candidate behaviors directionally aligned with goal.
- Filter behaviors for those that are high-impact and easy-for-you.
- Do the minimal version of behavior and progressively expand (in the next chapter…)
From the end of the motivation chapter:
To review: Clarify your aspiration or outcome, generate a big set of behavior options, and match yourself with specific Golden Behaviors. That’s how you put Behavior Design into practice in your own life. And it’s also how you match yourself with the best habits for doing Tiny Habits.
Great framework!