EP 17 - You Don’t Need Motivation, You Need Standards

🔥 Motivation won’t build your business , standards will. In this episode, you’ll discover why motivation keeps failing you, how low standards silently sabotage your success, and the simple shifts that make winning automatic. If you’re done settling for average and ready to operate at a higher level, this is your wake-up call.

Transcript

🎙️ Episode Title: You Don’t Need Motivation, You Need Standards
📘 Podcast: Living Fiercely with Tiana De Rey

🎧 Welcome Back
Hi, and welcome back to another episode of Living Fiercely — the podcast that helps ambitious entrepreneurs build fierce energy, mental sharpness, and unstoppable momentum.
I’m your host, Tiana De Rey, and today I want to hit you with a wake-up call: you don’t need more motivation. You need standards that are higher than your excuses.

If that just punched you in the gut — good. Because motivation is overrated, unstable, and flat-out unreliable. The people at the top aren’t motivated every day — they’re running on unbreakable standards. And that’s what we’re breaking down today.

💥 Motivation Is a Trap
Here’s the ugly truth: motivation is a scam.
It’s not a strategy — it’s a mood. And moods are unstable.

I see entrepreneurs all the time waiting:

• Waiting for Monday.
• Waiting for January.
• Waiting to “feel ready.”

Meanwhile, their competition is passing them by.
Because motivation doesn’t show up before action — it shows up after.
You feel motivated once you’ve already been consistent, once you’ve already put in the work.

That’s why if you let motivation run your business, it’s like running a company based on the weather. Chaos. And slim chances of success.
Winners don’t rely on moods — they build their lives on standards.

🧱 What Standards Really Mean
A mentor once told me: “You don’t always hit your goals, but you’ll always hit your standards.”
And it’s true.

Your goals are what you hope for. Your standards are what you refuse to go below.
They’re non-negotiable agreements you set with yourself — the invisible line you don’t cross.

For example:

• A goal says: “I want to close more deals.”
• A standard says: “I make sales calls every single day — no excuses.”

Goals are destinations. Standards are behaviors. And behaviors create results.

People with weak standards ask, “Do I feel like it today?”
People with strong standards ask, “What needs to get done right now?”

And when your standards shift — your entire life shifts.

⚡ Why Your Current Standards Are Killing Your Success
Your results right now are just a mirror of your standards.

If you’re not where you want to be, it’s because you’ve been tolerating behavior beneath your ambition:

• Saying you want financial freedom, but only saving what’s left over.
• Saying you want respect as an expert, but showing up inconsistently.
• Saying you want growth, but working on your business only “when you have time.”

That’s not a business. That’s a hobby.
And the truth is — the world treats you according to your standards. If your standards are average, average is all you’ll ever get.

🔥 The Real Reason You’re Inconsistent
Your problem isn’t willpower. It’s not time management. It’s not laziness.

Your real problem is that you’ve never defined what success looks like on your worst days.

Anyone can show up when they’re energized, rested, and motivated.
But standards are built for those Tuesdays at 2 PM when everything is going wrong and quitting feels easier than pushing forward.

Winners don’t wonder if they’ll show up. Their standards already made the decision.

🛠️ How to Build Unbreakable Standards
So how do you actually do this? Three steps:

1. Brutal Honesty — Write down where you’re settling or making excuses. You can’t change what you won’t admit.
2. Identity Standards — Forget outcomes, anchor to identity:
   • “I’m the kind of person who delivers value every day.”
   • “I’m the kind of person who follows through on commitments.”
   • “I’m the kind of person who drives results no matter how I feel.”
3. One Standard, 30 Days — Pick one non-negotiable and stick to it for a month. That’s how you build trust with yourself.

📈 The Compound Effect of Standards
Here’s the magic: standards compound.

Every time you keep one, you stack evidence that you can be trusted. That changes how you see yourself and how others see you.

Soon you’re not hoping life works out — you’re making it work out. And that’s when opportunities start chasing you.

🚀 Standards vs. Excuses
Life is chaotic for everyone. Inflation, tech overload, endless pressure. But excuses are junk food for your ego:

• “I don’t have time.”
• “I’m too tired.”
• “I don’t know how.”

Those aren’t facts. They’re standards you’ve chosen to accept.
Raise the standard, and the excuses lose their power.

🎯 Final Thoughts & Challenge
Every time you honor a standard, you deposit into your self-trust account. Every time you break one, you withdraw.

You can’t build an extraordinary life on broken promises to yourself.

So here’s my challenge: pick one standard today. Commit to it for 30 days. Honor it like your future depends on it — because it does.

Motivation won’t save you. Standards will.

🎧 Wrap-Up
This is Living Fiercely, I’m Tiana De Rey.

If this episode fired you up:

• Follow the podcast
• Leave a review and tell me the standard you’re committing to
• Share this with a friend who’s stuck in “almost”
• And tag me on Instagram @TianaDeRey
  with the standard you’re raising

Your motivation is in the movement. And movements require action.