Willingly or not, whatever the self-serving goal might be, when a shark is about to sink its teeth into you, your compassion in that moment is not going to help.

Too much compassion towards wrong-doers enables wrong-doing and erodes justice. Without justice, motivation to do right/good will never hold as much sway as motivation to do wrong/evil.

Definitely.
That's when I lean on discipline.
Motivation feels way better than discipline, and discipline takes the wheel when motivation takes the day (or week, or month) off.
Feeling both motivated & disciplined is such a magical & powerful combo, like being "in the zone," and I wish that feeling came around more. Ride the heck out of that wave when it hits!

This is what I sometimes try to remind myself...

The law of conservation of energy states:
energy can neither be created nor destroyed,
it can only be transformed or transferred.

The energy that gave us life was transferred to us from the many generations before us and the ways they channeled their energies into shaping the world around them during their lifetimes.

The energy we radiate into this universe echoes through eternity, from our interactions with others, from our creations, from our efforts, from our struggles, from our triumphs, & from our love.

We have limited lifespans, but we are part of an infinite flow of energy.
What we do with the energy available to us in our lives affects the well of energy around us & after us.
That's why what we do matters.