A lack of motivation can plague us in many forms, and we might feel de-motivated for a variety of reasons. The fast-paced, constantly changing, ever-evolving state of our culture is, in part, responsible for distracting us from our true dreams and goals. While there are a number of psychological conditions such as depression, which would cause an individual to experience a serious lack of motivation, most of the time our lack of motivation is simply a result of poor planning and strategy. This article will offer a few tips and tricks to help you acquire a strong sense of daily motivation, and even long-term motivation.
To structure your plan to achieving greater daily and long-term motivation, you must ask yourself a few questions:
1) What is my goal and why do I want to accomplish it?
The answer to this question might not be as straightforward as it seems upon first consideration. Figuring out what you want in life is a huge task that will require many years of planning, revising, and revisiting. Actually figuring out what you want might need to take place in steps, accomplishing one goal at a time with the bigger picture in mind. The tricky part about this prompt is why do I want to achieve these goals? In order to truly develop a genuine sense of motivation and desire to accomplish any goal, we must understand why this goal is valuable at a fundamental level. What does the goal mean to us? How does it fit into our system of beliefs and values? If you cannot answer these questions you might not be aiming for the right goal. The most crucial aspect of getting motivated to accomplish something is to value what you are seeking.
2) How will I accomplish my goal?
You will never feel motivated to accomplish a goal if you do not have parameters set for how to accomplish it. This step may require some trial and error – you need to figure out what works and what does not. Part of figuring out how to accomplish your goal might involve some serious life changes, such as switching jobs or majors in college. If your ultimate career goal is to care for and help other people, but you are working for a web design company, you might need to consider a career change if you want to reach that goal. In many cases planning your strategy for success can be simple, for example you might need to plan a weekly workout and diet routine if your goal is to lose weight before a special vacation. Though these two goals may vary in significance, the motivation to successfully achieve them must start at the same place – articulation.
Now that you have determined what exactly you want to be motivated to do and strategized about how you are going to do it, success will be simple, right? Unfortunately, the most difficult part of the journey to success is beginning it. Once you are actually in the process of working to achieve your new goal, roadblocks and hurdles are inevitable. The following tips will help you avoid slip-ups, remain positive, and stay motivated
Stop comparing yourself to others – The only thing we promote by comparing ourselves to others is mental defeat. Examine your successes and failures by measuring them against your own standards.
Do not let one failure de-rail your plan – Tomorrow is a new day. Simply return to the goal and steps to achieve the goal that you formulated in the beginning of your journey.
Listen to yourself – Unfortunately the people in our lives, even the ones who love us, may not always support the goal you want to achieve. Do not let their objections sway you from success if you are working towards something that is valuable to you for the right reasons.
Find distractions – If you feel that daunting lack of motivation begin to creep into your mind, find a way to distract yourself for a finite period of time. Go do something else productive and positive like exercise.
Engage in positive self-talk – Always remember to give yourself a pat on the back. It might even be helpful to adopt a mantra and incorporate it into part of your routine.
