Finding Motivation
Living your life to the fullest means something different to all of us. Our life goals are intimately unique to us and we will all reach them when we are ready to reach them. There are a few common aspects of a life well lived and one of them is motivation. Motivation to get out of bed in the morning, to get stuff done, and just to out do yourself.
Have you ever felt like some people just seem to do everything? One day they are in one country climbing a mountain peak, the other they are receiving awards for their professional achievements, and on the other spectrum, you can’t seem to be able to go through your day’s to-do list.
I wanted to write this post because sometimes I also feel like that sometimes. I intended to have a productive day after an amazing morning, but when I sat down to work, I somehow ended up playing chess (poorly) for an hour and napping for thirty minutes. Needless to say I had zero motivation to work. And the worst part is that I actually had stuff to do but just couldn't bring myself to do it. Thankfully, motivation is a feeling that you can switch on with a few tricks.
The following methods have been developed over time by a combination of reading various books, experimenting what worked for me and also listening how my clients found motivation.
1. Set your motivated hours
We all have certain time of the days where we feel unstoppable. Understand when those are and commit to be as productive as possible during those times. This means that outside these hours, you have to relax! Knowing when to switch on your productivity mood and switching your fun time will help you stay consistent and not burn out.
2. Remember tomorrow
What you do today will impact tomorrow. Have you done everything you could today to make tomorrow easier? Or are you putting off things you could do today?
Another way of thinking about this one is asking yourself “Did I do everything I could today to reach my goals”.
One thing that all of my super motivated clients have in common is that they never postpone things they can do during their prime motivated hours. Most of them don’t think about postponing in the first place. They just do the things they have to do.
3. Ask yourself “how would the person I want to be handle this”
This is the one that got me out of my funk today. The person I aspire to be does not sleep during his best waking hours and does not game after games of chess. It’s easy to lose ourselves in our comfort zones but realistically we don’t achieve much in them.
4. Get the ball rolling early
Generating positive momentum during the day is just as easy as generating sluggish momentum. The best trick I have for that happens as soon as you wake up. Simple ditch the snooze button and wake up after your first alarm. Then as soon as you get up, make your bed. BAM, just like that, within the first 30 seconds of you day you have achieved two things: getting out of bed and making your bed. This may not seem like much but trust me, it will set the tone for the rest of your day.
5. Sleep
You are probably fed up with people telling you to get enough sleep. The hard truth is that it is very hard to feel consistently motivated if you are always sleepy. To read more about this subject check this post out.
Being motivated and productive is not something you are born with. Being high energy all the time is not something you are born with. These feelings are developed by implementing certain habits that make it easier for you to feel that way. Start with one of these tricks and once you have made it a habit, implement another one. As you do this, you will find some tricks that are unique to you!
Cheers,
Clem