We all experience periods of time when we feel less motivation. There are many reasons that can lead to a sense of lacking motivation. Unlike inspiration, motivation isn’t something we can wait for; it won’t just come to you, you have to create it. Motivation comes after getting started, so start small, create habits, and use techniques to get yourself moving. Below, I’ve addressed some basic tips for finding what motivates you, hints to help you get out of a rut, and ideas to improve your life to reach your dreams.
Step 1 – Know What Motivates You
First things first – you have to know what motivates you. Is it family? Friendships? Free time? Travel? Rewards in the form of items on your “wish list”? Money? Are you motivated by outer or inner forces? Ask yourself, “What do I want, and why do I want it?” You may have to think for a while and brainstorm. This is something you will need to do alone, so spend ten minutes with a pen and paper. It’s important to handwrite rather than type this, so put your phone and other distractions away. You need to do this by yourself. You are finding your “Why”, which is important to every other step.
Step 2 – Identify Your Goals
Next, outline your goals by putting them down on paper where you can see them clearly. Having goals will increase your energy, which in turn, develops excitement. Then, next to each goal write down the small goals, known as “action goals”, which will lead to achieving the larger goals.
For example:
Goal:
Create an online marketing business
Action Goals:
Learn about digital marketing
Find people who work in digital marketing and connect with them
Go to a networking event, or industry event about digital marketing
Compile ideas from what you have learned to create a plan for what your company provides and why people would want to do business with you
Start a website and social media accounts
Next, reach out to businesses with a short list of some services that would benefit them. Make sure to research the businesses so you know what would suit them best.
This is just a quick overview of what you need to do. You’ll need to flesh it out further by adding the rest of the steps later; you know there is a lot that has to be done. Once you know what you want to do and the actions to get you there, you should go back to your list of “whys” and remind yourself why you want to do it. Write your “why” down next to your goals. This will help you determine and strengthen your connection to your motivation.
Internal Motivation
What is internal motivation? This looks like security, stability, comfort…you aren’t seeking an external reward. You know what you want, and it’s really just for you. You have internal desire and a dream which is your own, not for anyone else.
External Motivation
What is external motivation? Oftentimes, this looks like taking care of family, receiving outside praise from friends and family, or fame or money. These represent just a few examples of the need to receive an external reward.
You could need a combination of both; most people do. You need to know what your motivation is because it’s so important for determining your why, which drives your how. If you’re motivated by money and you want to make a lot of it, then know why. Having a goal of a fancy car or big house will motivate you while you’re working toward those goals, but be careful to look beyond that because once you get those things, you may feel lost and not know how to get back on the motivation train to go for more. Alternatively, you could fail, and when you do, a superficial motivation might be harder to reignite than something that means a great deal to you.
Just keep in mind that whatever your “why” is needs to be real to you. This takes thinking, so please just think for a while. Take your time thinking about what you want and why before you start; it’s going to make everything easier later. It’s like a mission statement for your life.
Step 3
Our minds are designed to protect us from discomfort, so we won’t naturally feel like doing things that are hard. When we hesitate, which causes stress, it results in the “spotlight effect”. Hesitation causes our brain to think it’s going to be harder, or worse, or even scary, and that fear causes us not to do what we actually need to do to overcome obstacles and achieve our goals.
“Don’t wait till you feel like it,” says Mel Robbins in her book, The 5 Second Rule. Start with small steps, and continue steadily despite how you feel. When Mel wakes up not feeling like getting out of bed, she says, “5, 4, 3, 2, 1 – Get up”. When she doesn’t feel like doing a particular task, she says, “5, 4, 3, 2, 1,” and goes and does it. Just get moving, and do what needs to be done.
Reward Yourself
Give yourself some easy rewards that will encourage you to do what’s needed. I can watch my favorite show, go for a walk, play with my dog, etc. when I finish doing whatever it is that needs to be done. Make small actions that are easy to do for practice, then build up to the larger ones.
Future Happiness
Think of your future and think of how happy you will be when the things that need to be done now are completed.
Get Started
Make your favorite hot or cold beverage, open the laptop, and then take more baby steps to continue.
Reminders
Choose a period of time that works, set an alarm, or set a calendar meeting for that allotted amount of time.
Watch Someone Else Do It
YouTube has videos about cleaning, administrative work, or whatever else you’re needing to start; watch someone else do what you need to do, gain some new creative ideas or hacks to try, and you will feel motivated to do it too.
Give Yourself Options
If you feel procrastination setting in, then make yourself do something else instead. Tell yourself, “If you’re not going to review emails, then go do the dishes right now instead and come back to it”.
Turn Off Notifications and Put Your Phone Away
This one is self-explanatory. Eliminate your distractions and stop being your own worst time-efficiency enemy.
Replace “Can’t” with “Won’t”
Get out of that mindset of “can’t”, which is an excuse. The truth is you are choosing not to do the task. It’s helpful to level and be honest with yourself to change limiting beliefs and get out of your own way.
In short, create small habits that are doable for you, and just start with one. The motivation will follow. Start to organize your life with habits that will ultimately reduce the amount of thinking and planning you have to do. When it’s already sorted, you will find the day to day activities are a lot easier to handle.
Assess your motivation, how you’re developing, and what’s working or not working on a monthly basis. I don’t believe in doing daily or weekly progress checks, but monthly is helpful and doable for anyone, so add a little more thought to that period of time. It will all work out if you just begin and keep going, so I’d love to encourage you to just stay on track and have fun with the times you spend with yourself learning about your process. And even have fun with the tasks as you overcome your blocks to achieve your goals. Subscribe for more business, sales, and investing posts. Have a lovely day!
