The 2 Reasons Why We Do and Don't do things

[bigedshult]

The answer is simply Pain and Pleasure. We do things that we believe will give us Pleasure, as the opposite holds same, we don't do certain things because we associate them with Pain. The mere flip of the switch as to how we perceive an outcome to be (Painful or Pleasurable) will ultimately come to dictate the actions we take.

First Example: A person associates being healthy with pain because of not being able to eat the foods they love, and having to spend hours per week at the gym doing exercises that they also associate with pain.

Second Example: Another Person associates being healthy as Pleasure, hence associating eating healthy and exercising with being able to play with their kids, look good in certain clothes, perform better at their job and in everyday life with their family.