How do you stay motivated to play the game?

I can honestly say I have never gotten bored with any of the sims games. I may go for a while, anywhere from a week to a month, without playing but only because I do have other interests. My playing style is goal based and although the sims is sandbox I play to win. And for me that means an objective driven gameplay style where my objective is to do it all. I play one family, aging off, and usually focus on the matriarch. She does all the careers, collecting, aspirations, skills, owns businesses, etc. I change her traits to correspond with whatever career or aspiration she's working on. That way I get to experience all the different traits. Right now she's working in the critic career as a food critic and on her way to becoming a vampire. I do wish there was some way to get around having to choose only one branch in some careers. In between focusing on my main sim I do manage regular family play that centers around the other members of the household.

If you took a look at my family tree you'd see some of the kids have aged up to catch up with their mother and there are children who are cousins and some children who are aunts/uncles to other children and teens. :p

Just wanted to add this is my only save and the one I started in 2014.