Ignore Motivation—Design Your Environment Instead
Waiting to "feel like it" is a trap.
I learned this the hard way.
I had work to do. Important work. But I relied on motivation to show up.
It didn't.
I worked late. Worked slowly. It wasn't fun.
Motivation felt uncontrollable. Unreliable.
I hated that feeling.
Here's what I discovered: motivation is the wrong tool for the job.
The Environment Truth
Your physical space controls your behavior more than your willpower ever will.
Think about it.
If the TV remote is on the couch, you watch TV.
If your running shoes are by the door, you're more likely to run.
If your phone is on your nightstand, you check it first thing in the morning.
Your environment creates automatic actions. No motivation required.
I like coffee. A lot.
So I keep it upstairs. Away from my desk.
Why? So I don't drink too much. So I don't interrupt my work constantly.
My environment controls my coffee intake. Not my willpower.
Same with recording.
I set up sound panels behind my desk. They stay there permanently.
Now my recording space is always half-ready. No setup required.
When I need to record audio files, there's no resistance to overcome.
The environment eliminates friction.
I just start recording.
The English Learning Application
Your students who improve? The amazing ones who just get better and better?
They're not more motivated than the others.
They have systems. They have environments.
Here's the simplest environmental change for English learners:
Put the English listening app as an icon on your smartphone home screen.
That's it.
Always easy to find. Always easy to open.
No searching through folders. No remembering where you saved it. No extra steps.
The environment makes practice automatic.
Compare that to the student who has to:
- Remember the website URL
- Type it in
- Navigate to the right page
- Find the lesson
Every extra step is friction. Every bit of friction requires motivation.
And motivation? Unreliable.
Remove the friction instead.
Make it easier, not harder.
The student who has the app on their home screen practices more. Not because they're more motivated. Because it's easier.
That's how environment beats motivation.
The Teacher's Version
I designed my teaching space the same way.
Flashcards I need? Immediately available. Behind me. To my left.
Computer? Always on. Ready to take notes for students. Ready to play listening practice audio quickly.
No setup time. No decisions. No hunting for materials.
The environment makes good teaching automatic.
Here's what most teachers do wrong:
They store materials in a cabinet. In another room. In a drawer somewhere.
Then they wonder why they don't use those great activities they planned.
The materials aren't immediately available.
So they skip them. Not because they're lazy. Because friction kills action.
The smallest change a teacher can make today?
Have necessary teaching materials immediately available and close at hand in the classroom.
Right there. Within reach. No getting up required.
This eliminates the daily decision: "Should I use this? Is it worth the effort to get it?"
When the materials are right there, you use them.
Automatically.
Make One Change Today
Don't try to increase your motivation.
Change your environment instead.
For learners: Put that app icon on your home screen right now. Before you forget. Before motivation fades.
For teachers: Move your most-used materials within arm's reach. Today. Not next week.
Small environmental changes compound over time.
The students who practice daily aren't heroes with superhuman motivation.
They just made it easier to practice than not to practice.
That's the secret.
Design your environment. Ignore motivation.
Get better automatically.