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[ENTP] ENTPs Finding Motivation and Staying Motivated

Evil Otter

New member
Joined
Jun 14, 2011
Messages
164
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ISTx
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Looking for advice,

I recently re-started college after a two year mission trip in Argentina. I'm now in my junior year as a Poli Sci major but I'm finding it extremely difficult to find motivation, stay motivated and not procrastinate ("justify lacking motivation"). Especially in the core classes that are irrelevant to my major and I have no interest in... electrical engineering, physics, aero, and chemistry for example (all part of my school's core generals).

So what do (have you done) to be and stay motivated? Why are you in college? or Why did you go to college? What is/was your drive?

At my school everyone's driving force seems to be what they want for a career (most wanting to be pilots). I'm still not sure which career field I really want to go into nor do feel I have the experience with them to know which field would fit me. I've speculated about being a helicopter pilot or perhaps special investigator but neither gets my heart pounding so much that I just have to do everything possible to get there.

Any help appreciated
 

funkadelik

good hair
Joined
Jan 10, 2011
Messages
1,614
MBTI Type
lmao
I don't know if this will be of much help to you, but sometimes it helps me a little in my quest to make decisions. I'm reminded of this story told by Richard Feynman (famous physicist and speculated ENTP). And I happened to find it here on the interwebs...what fortune!

"When you're young, you have all these things to worry about--should you go there, what about your mother. And you worry, and try to decide, but then something else comes up. It's much easier to just plain decide. Never mind--nothing is going to change your mind. I did that once when I was a student at MIT. I got sick and tired of having to decide what kind of dessert I was going to have at the restaurant, so I decided it would always be chocolate ice cream, and never worried about it again--I had the solution to that problem. Anyway, I decided it would always be Caltech."

I think it's such a genius approach, actually. There is SO much option in day-to-day life and it seems there's even more option nowadays in modern times (thanks to Sir Internet the Endless). I guess what I'm saying is, for "TP" types anyway, it may just be in our best interest to make a decision and not think so much about it. I spent about an hour a while back trying to decide which gym I should join. I wrote down all the pros and cons and rated each pro and con based on how important they were in the grande scheme of things and then I added everything up and the score came out even. :laugh:

So I just said "I'm wasting so much time on this shit" and I just made a decision. Would the other gym have been better? I don't know. But the point is, I'm getting what I need from this gym and there's no point in speculating about the other one.

I know choosing a gym or a dessert is hardly as important a decision as, say, a career, but I think the same tactics could apply. And besides, careers don't mean much in this day and age anyway. Go with one, try to make it work and if it doesn't, do something else. And if you find your "dream" career (whatever the hell that is) is being a skilled tradesman or a white-collar office boy or a bartender or a garbageman then awesome! But just make a decision and go with it for now. Or else you're just gonna waste so much time trying to decide that you won't get anywhere and (probably) be miserable for it.
 

redcheerio

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Joined
Jun 8, 2011
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I always had trouble getting motivated in school. Instead, I was motivated by deadlines and exam time, and perfected my cramming skills. I know that's not very helpful, sorry.

Although I did discover that I found it easier to get down to work the semester I took a sketching course. So maybe it would help you get down to work if you found a way to also indulge your creative side, I dunno.
 

mrcockburn

Aquaria
Joined
Jan 3, 2010
Messages
1,896
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Think of it as a battle to win - your classmates are your competitors, who you've got to prove your better/smarter than. They're your school competition now, they're your professional competition later. Step on/over them while you can!

:duel:
 
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