I want to continue this idea of why not just stay in bed all day. Even those people with enough money I would argue do not stay in bed all day every day. Why? Because it could be argued that unless you inherited a big fortune one way or another, it was earned. Think of any big athlete, entertainer, even someone in technology. They were smart and went after what they wanted. They did not stay in bed all day. I am kind of getting off topic here, and I want to explore this idea later.
For now, why don’t we stay in bed all day? Because it is human instinct to want to take care of yourself. Toddlers can be observed wanting to do things for themselves, even if it is small. Think about your own children, or google it if you are not aware, there are milestones across the lifespan, especially for children as they grow up. There are many milestones, infants should be able to eventually crawl, hold things by themselves, and sometimes you cannot take your eyes off of them for a second.
Toddlers eventually begin to walk by themselves, eventually begin to feed themselves. They do not usually want to rely on their parents for these things. Children as they continue to grow begin to ask more and more complex questions because they are trying to figure out the world for themselves. Eventually children can think more abstractly. For an example, look up Piaget’s Theory of Conservation, it is interesting to watch.
Slowly but surely children become independent, and it is not uncommon for teenagers to desire independence and go off on themselves. They begin to manage their own schedule especially if they go away to college as they become young adults. They eventually learn to go grocery shopping, learn meal planning (or not), they will have to get their own job and learn to budget (if they have not already), and many other things to become independent.
There are many feelings of independence, it has also been compared to being free. Being free from your parents, free from being dependent on anyone else. There is a lot that can be said for someone who can maintain their own freedom and continue to take care of themselves. Sure, we all need help from time to time, that is just a part of life. Asking for help does not mean you failed, it means something even potentially within your control did not go the way you thought, so just reach out and ask those you know for help. Anyway…
Independence, autonomy, freedom, it seems to be a step of human development. While officially psychology does not list “moving out of the parents’ house” a step in human development, it is usually inevitable; even at one point or another. People usually fall in love and start families. They want to be mostly independent of their parents. It is not uncommon for parents to have to go through a period of “letting go”, or letting their children out into the world not being able to fix every mistake.
So, what does this have to do with getting up in the morning? I would argue that people get up in the morning for the same reason they want to be independent, they are motivated to do so. What does this mean then for our question of why are we motivated to get up in the morning? Because motivated to do so. Why are we motivated? Because we want to remain independent. What does independence have to do with motivation? It seems to me that motivation and independence are so interlinked, you cannot have one without the other.
I know for sure we will talk about this subject again… stay tuned!
Why do you like being independent?
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