Motivation is fundamental to pursuing both short-term and long-term goals, and willpower can be understood as the ability to resist short-term temptations and persist in challenges. Dopamine is central to both mental states — contrary to popular belief, dopamine is not primarily about pleasure and reward but about motivation, craving and action-oriented pursuit.

The anterior mid-cingulate cortex acts as a willpower “hub” in the brain, consolidating signals from other areas of the brain to either encourage one to take action (which is motivation) or resist urges and impulses (willpower). The same neural circuitry for motivation, willpower and tenacity (i.e. perseverance) is activated similarly in demanding physical tasks — like a particularly difficult workout — as well as cognitive tasks involving mental effort, such as studying or resisting the urge to scroll social media.

Dopamine serves several vital roles in the brain, primarily acting as a neuromodulator — a chemical that alters the activity of neurons. Dopamine is essential for motivation and the pursuit of goals, driving both physical and mental effort towards a desired outcome. Although it's often associated with pleasure and reward, dopamine is the primary driver in goal-seeking behavior, even if the actions and behavior required to achieve those rewards are unpleasant.

The connection between dopamine and motivation goes both ways: just as dopamine increases subjective feelings of motivation and willpower, actively pursuing a goal in turn increases dopamine levels. It may appear that highly successful people must be naturally highly motivated and tenacious, but many of them — including retired United States Navy SEAL and ultramarathon runner David Goggins — speak to the evidence that motivation comes after and as a result of you taking action. If you struggle with motivation and willpower, learning more about the neuroscience of dopamine can provide both insight and actionable tools.

If you feel like you have no motivation or willpower, it can feel extremely challenging — if not impossible — to start building forward momentum. Limbic friction is a term coined by Dr. Huberman to both describe the internal resistance and measure the activation energy (i.e. effort) when attempting to initiate or stop an action or behavior. If you are struggling with motivation, you are likely experiencing high limbic friction – meaning it requires a lot more mental effort to initiate or maintain consistency with healthy or productive behaviors than if you have already made it a habit. 

One of the simplest tools to build motivation and willpower is to engage in “micro sucks” — small, slightly uncomfortable challenges, such as waiting an extra 15 minutes before eating or taking several flights of stairs instead of the elevator. These small challenges help activate the anterior mid-cingulate cortex, a region of the prefrontal cortex that is key in building willpower.

Even if you have already built momentum towards a goal, it will take intentional effort to sustain your levels of motivation and willpower. Introducing additional discomfort or challenge (such as deliberate cold exposure or short bursts of exercise) or incorporating new skills can help replenish dopamine levels and help compensate for natural dips in motivation. Dr. Maya Shankar, cognitive scientist and former White House senior advisor, refers to these natural dips in motivation as the “middle problem.”

Gradually increase the difficulty of the tasks to continue building motivation — you can do this by increasing the time spent on the task (e.g. studying), the intensity (e.g. physical exercise), or by adding another layer of difficulty, such as assigning tighter deadlines. 

If you have successfully achieved your goal or crossed any type of literal or metaphorical finish line, be mindful of how you reward yourself. Celebrating every small win on the path to a larger goal or over-rewarding after achieving your overall goal can diminish future dopamine responses, leading to a drop in motivation.