How the Grinch Stole Your Motivation (and How to Get It Back Without Force)
Let’s be honest: We all have an inner Grinch.
Not the one on the mountain.
The one who appears when:
- you suddenly can’t make yourself start
• everything feels too heavy
• your “get up and go” packed its bags
• you’re irritated by holiday cheer
• motivation vanishes without warning
One minute you’re ready to conquer the world…
And the next, you’re staring at the wall from under a blanket, wondering why everyone else is thriving.
This isn’t laziness.
It isn’t a lack of discipline.
It isn’t you “not wanting it enough.”
It’s your inner Grinch — the part of you that steals motivation to protect you.
Why the Grinch Shows Up (It’s Not What You Think)
The Grinch doesn’t appear because you’re broken.
He appears because:
You’ve been overwhelmed
You’ve been carrying emotional labor
You’ve been overgiving
You’ve been pretending you’re fine
You’ve been performing instead of pausing
Motivation doesn’t disappear randomly —
it disappears when your system detects:
“If we keep going like this, something will give.”
So your motivation gets stolen before your wellbeing does.
This is self-protection disguised as procrastination.
Motivation Doesn’t Leave — It Retreats to Higher Ground
Just like the Grinch hides up on the mountain,
your motivation retreats when:
- your emotional bandwidth is thin
• your nervous system is overloaded
• you’re overstimulated
• your energy is scattered
• you’re running on obligation instead of alignment
Motivation doesn’t vanish.
It withdraws.
It waits.
It observes.
It protects you.
And yet… it always leaves clues that it wants to return.
The Cindy Lou Who Principle: Softness Reopens Motivation
Cindy Lou Who didn’t force the Grinch to change.
She didn’t push.
She didn’t demand.
She didn’t yell “just do it already.”
She approached with:
curiosity
compassion
connection
That’s the thing about motivation:
It doesn’t respond to force.
It responds to safety.
When you soften, motivation steps out from behind the emotional clutter.
Signs Your Motivation Is Trying to Come Back
✔ A small spark of interest
✔ A desire to clean one corner of the room
✔ A thought like “Maybe I could do this.”
✔ A tiny window of clarity
✔ A moment of energy followed by guilt
Don’t dismiss these.
They are micro-momentum signals.
The heart growing three sizes?
Same concept.
Motivation returns when resistance feels safe enough to release.
A Simple Practice to Get Your Motivation Back (Gently)
Try this:
The “Smallest Possible Yes” Reset
Instead of forcing yourself to take massive action, ask:
“What is the smallest ‘yes’ I can give myself right now?”
Maybe it’s:
- putting your shoes on
• opening your laptop
• answering one message
• writing one sentence
• drinking water
• clearing one corner
Small yeses add up.
They create safety.
They restore motion.
They bring your motivation down from the mountain.
Slowly.
Confidently.
Predictably.
Holiday Reflection
Where has my motivation actually been protecting me — not abandoning me?
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For over 30 years, I’ve helped high-achieving women, entrepreneurs, and neurodivergent brains finally move out of overwhelm and into aligned action.
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