Why You Need to Get Excited About What You Are Doing

I have to say I really get excited to write these blog posts!!! I hope you get excited to read them.

Speaking of excited, the inspiration for this post comes from a quote I read by Elon Musk, founder of Tesla and SpaceX with respect to colonizing on Mars:  “It would be an incredible adventure. And life needs to be more than just solving everyday problems. You need to wake up and be excited about the future”.

I have read his biography and it’s a good read if you are into biographies.  One of the things I took away is that Musk always seems to get excited when he talks about what he is doing.

I believe that is one of the reasons he is successful.

And that ladies and gentlemen is the subject of today’s blog post – why you need to get excited about things you are doing in your life to make your life better.

First Let’s Start with a Definition…

When I typed ‘exciting definition’ into Google, this is what came up:

(1) cause strong feelings of enthusiasm and eagerness in (someone).

“flying still excites me”

arouse (someone) sexually.

“his kiss thrilled and excited her”

(2)  bring out or give rise to (a feeling or reaction).

“the ability to excite interest in others”

(3)  produce a state of increased energy or activity in (a physical or biological system).

“the energy of an electron is sufficient to excite the atom”

If you look at some of the words used in the definition and examples you will see words like ‘strong feelings’, ‘enthusiasm’, ‘eagerness’, ‘thrilled’, ‘interest’, ‘increased energy’ – all positive words associated with being in a really good state.  Excitement clearly is a good thing!

Now That We Have the Definition Out of the Way…

Think about a time when you were extremely excited, I mean EXTREMELY excited.

Let’s leave sex out of it.

How does it make you feel?  Pretty amazing right? What if you could get excited and feel that way all the time and about almost everything you do?

You may not be able to have that feeling 100% of that time, BUT shouldn’t that be your goal?

Here’s how I try to incorporate excitement into my life…

There is a simple technique (or litmus test) that I use for myself. 

It comes down to a simple and powerful question I ask myself.

The question is: “Do I get excited?”

Ways to Use It…

There are various ways you can use excitement in your life, such as helping you:

Figure out if you are doing the right things:

Does your current career excite you? Does your new business venture excite you? If not, consider something different.

Pursue the right goals:

Do you get excited about climbing the corporate ladder? How about your goal of working out so you have more energy? If not, maybe find another goal, OR figure out how to make your current goal exciting.

Understand if you are in the right relationships:

Do you get excited when you see your partner smile? Do your friends excite you? If not, maybe those relationships aren’t ones you want to be part of.

Decide whether to say ‘yes’ to something:

You have been invited to dinner with your neighbors, do you get excited? If the answer is no, you may want to decline or figure out a way to make it exciting.

To decide between multiple options:

You have two choices, movie A or movie B – picking the one that excites you may be the way to go – the trick is making sure you find a movie that whoever you are going with is excited about as well, always think “win-win”. There are 2 guys you are currently dating and it’s time to pick one, why not pick the dude that excites you more?

Prioritize things in your life:

Sometimes prioritizing things is hard, and we end up procrastinating.  Some tasks we have to do whether we want to or not. If you do things that excite you, odds are you are going to get them done, and, you probably won’t procrastinate.  Another way to think about it is that maybe procrastination is due to doing something you aren’t excited about.

Once I Have Asked Myself the Question…

If I get excited, great – I am probably doing the right thing, pursuing the right goals and engaged in the right relationships, saying yes to the right thing, choosing the best option and prioritizing things in a way that ensures I complete them.

On the other hand, if I do not get excited – perhaps I am not doing the right thing, pursuing the wrong goals, not engaged in the right relationship, saying yes to the wrong thing, not choosing the best option, and not prioritizing things so I complete them.

OR

Maybe I need to look deeper and try to find something in the thing/goal/relationship/opportunity/choice/prioritization that does excite me and gets me fired up! If there is something you absolutely must do, is there a way you can make it exciting? Find stuff that excites you. Find stuff in what you do that excites you.  Make it exciting.

Some Other Random Thoughts on Excitement…

  Life is too short to do stuff you don’t get excited about. Yes, I get it, sometimes you have to do stuff you don’t want to do; paying the bills, clipping your toenails, etc. But if more times than not, you are doing stuff that excites you, your life will be better.

  Find something to get excited about every day.

  What excites you now may not be what excites you at some other point in your life, and that’s ok. As you grow and change, so will your interests and what gets you excited.

Things That Excite Me…

There are a lot of things in life that get me excited, some of them being:

  Waking up and seeing what the day will bring –Having the opportunity to see what today will bring is literally the result of us winning the lottery of life and being alive. Check this out if you want your head to spin a little!  So next time you get annoyed by something trivial, be grateful and happy for what today brings.

  Challenges – I love challenges and really get excited about them.

  Meeting new people – Everyone has a story, and everyone has different experiences to share and to me, that is super exciting.

  Learning and Improving – Learning and improving is something that really excites me on an intrinsic level.

Here’s A Little Trick I Use for Bonding with People…

Instead of asking the usual boring questions that many people ask, try this…Ask them what excites them and watch how their facial expression, body language, and energy level changes!  Then be prepared to listen and take mental notes, for they are giving you some good clues on how to build rapport with them.

On That Note…

What excites you? Please share in the comments below because I am VERY EXCITED to hear!

Until next time, get excited, and as always…PYMFP!
–Rick

Use It or Lose It – ‘Do I Get Excited?’:

To use this concept in your life:

  When you are making decisions as noted above, simply ask yourself this question – ‘do I get excited?’

  If it/he/she does make you excited, great!

  If not, consider something/someone else, with the exception of the boring stuff you have to do in life. As they say, there are 3 parts to life: birth, death, and maintenance. The maintenance stuff is likely not exciting.

  If it is something you absolutely have to do or someone you need to be around, figure out how to make it exciting.

When to Use It:

  To figure out if you are doing the right thing(s).

  To help you decide if you are pursuing the right goal(s).

  To determine if you are in the right relationships.

  Saying yes to something.

  When choosing between 2 options.

  Prioritizing aspects of your life.

What Do You Think?

  What are you excited about? Are there situations in your life where you can use this concept?

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