Feeling less than motivated all too often? I do. Well,
perhaps not too often. But sometimes I just feel really lazy and unmotivated.
Want some practical solutions to that universal
motivation-problem? Here are 25 of them. Try a handful.
Let me know which ones work well for you.
I’m sure you’ll find at least one or two that do just that
among these suggestions.
1. Make a deal with yourself. Good for overcoming
procrastination and getting things done. You can make the deal small or large.
You simple tell yourself something like: When I’m done with this chapter/these
reports I can take a walk in the park and enjoy an ice-cream.
2. Act like it. If you don’t feel motivated or enthusiastic
then act like it. The strange thing is that within a few minutes you actually
start to feel motivated or enthusiastic for real.
3. Ask uplifting questions in the morning. Here’s what you
do; every morning ask yourself five empowering three-part questions this way:
What am I ______ about in my life right now?
What about it makes me _______?
How does it make me feel?
Put in your own value in the blank space. For instance, a
couple of my questions are:
What am I happy about in my life right now?
What am I excited about in my life right now?
It’s important that you really feel how it makes you feel.
When I think about the last part about what makes me happy right now I really
feel it. These morning questions are great because the way they are set up
makes you recognize things you take for granted and then they really get you to
feel those positive feelings.
5. Do something small and create a flow. Just clean your
desk. Or pay your bills. Or wash the dishes. You just need to get started. When
you have finished that small task you’ll feel more alert and ready to go do the
next thing. You just to get started to get motivated. So if you really don’t
feel like doing anything, start with something small and work your way out up.
7. Start slow. Instead of jumping into something at full
speed start slow. When you do that your mind will not visualize the task as
something hard that you have to do fast, fast, fast. If your mind sees such
things guess what often happens? Yep, you don’t get started. Actually getting
started, even if it’s at a slow pace, is a whole lot better than not getting
started at all.
Reviewing your results is important so you see where you
have gone wrong in the past to avoid similar missteps further on. But it’s also
important because it’s a great motivator to see how much you have improved and
how far you have come. Often you can be pleasantly surprised when you do such a
review.
10. Act like your heroes. Read about them, watch them,
listen to them. Discover what they did that was special and what made them
tick. But remember that they are people just like us. So let them inspire you
instead of looking up at them admiringly.
11. Remember to have fun. Or create fun in a task. Then
you’ll stay motivated to do and finish it.
12. Get out of your comfort zone. Face your challenges to
get a real boost of motivation. If you are holding yourself back have a look at
5 Life-Changing Keys to Overcoming Your Fear and the methods in this article.
They can help you get started and take that first scary step outside your
comfort zone.
13. Don’t fear failure. Instead redefine it as feedback and
as a natural part of a successful life. As Michael Jordan said:
“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost
almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and
missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I
succeed.”
Also, try to find the valuable lesson(s) in each of your
failures. Ask yourself: What can I learn from this?
14. Do some research on what you are about to do. Then your
expectations will be more grounded in reality and you can also get good hints
on what difficulties that you might run into along the way. Managing your
expectations can lower the often almost explosive initial enthusiasm. But it
can also lessen the lack of motivation that usually follows when most of that
enthusiasm has dissipated.
When you know what has happened to others in similar
situations – what path they have walked – you can adapt and try their solutions
(and personal variations of those) and your own. This makes the worries and
challenges easier to handle. Both emotionally – since you know at least some of
the things that will happen and that others have lived through it before – and
practically.
15. Figure out why you are doing something. If you don’t
know or don’t have good enough reason to do something then it will be hard to
get it done. Do things that you have really strong reasons to do. If you want
to do something then figure out a good reason to do it. If you can’t find one
consider dropping it and doing something that you have a good reason to do
instead.
16. Write down your goals and reasons for working towards
them. Tape them on your wall, computer or bathroom mirror. Then you’ll be
reminded throughout the day and it becomes easier to stay on track and stay
focused.
17. Take The Positivity Challenge! Learn to think more
positively most of the time. Learn to let to go of negative threads of thought
before they have a chance to take hold of you. You might not be able to be
positive all the time no matter what happens. But I think most of us can
improve on our positive thinking and the results it can lead us to. Perhaps
more than you realize right now.
18. Cut down on TV. Do you watch it too much? Watch less of
what they are doing in TV-land and do more of what you want to do in life.
19. Break it down. Break down your task or project into
small steps. And just start with focusing on that first small step. When you
are done move on to the next and just focus on that one. The small successes
will keep your motivation up and keeping your focus away from the big picture
stops you from becoming overwhelmed and discouraged. It’s amazing how much you
can get done if you follow this simple method.
20. Reprogram your information intake. Program out negative
and cynical thoughts from the media and society. Reduce your information
intake. Then program in positive news and entertainment, more of your own
thoughts and useful information such as personal growth tapes and books. Be
selective and keep it positive.
21. Make use of your creativity. Take out a piece of paper.
Write at the top of the page what area in your life you would like to have more
ideas about. Perhaps you want ideas to earn more money or become a healthier
person. Then brainstorm until you have written down 20 ideas on that topic.
Then try for 10 more. Not all ideas will be good. But some will. And as you
make use of your creativity you not only discover useful ideas. You also
discover just how creative you can be if you try and how motivating and great
that feels. Have a look at 8 Ways to Spark Your Creativity for more ideas on
this topic.
22. Find out what makes you happy. Then do that. As much as
you want or can.
23. Listen while you’re on the move. Build your own small
library of motivational/personal development tapes. Listen to them while you
are driving, riding the bus or your bike, while you are out running or walking.
Take a peek at my recommended personal development products if you are looking
for a good place to start.
24. Think outside your box. Don’t imagine the future from
the box of what you have now. Just because your mind is in box of previous
experiences doesn’t mean that´s the limits of the world. Your possibilities
are much larger. Create the future from the now and from nothing rather than
your past to experience bigger changes with fewer limitations than you would if
you created it from what you can see from your box.
25. Make each day count. We don’t have all the time in the
world. So focus on today and do the things you really want to do.
http://www.positivityblog.com/index.php/2007/06/13/25-simple-ways-to-motivate-yourself/
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