5 ways to get “re-motivated”

I struggled with a lack of motivation last week. I think it struck around Tuesday and lingered until Thursday afternoon or so.

I’m not exactly sure why (although I’m of the opinion that a combination of diet, exercise, stress, sleep, and a bunch of other factors will all play a part in how you feel). So there I was on Thursday afternoon looking at a big pile of work and wondering how I would possibly get it all done by the weekend (and regretting that I hadn’t been motivated earlier to do it).

Sometimes that happens to all of us. We just get into a sort of mental funk that keeps us from moving forward and taking action on the stuff that is important in life.

So when that happens, here are 5 ways that I get re-motivated:

Exercise or go for a brisk walk

Be careful not to use this as a procrastinating or delaying tactic. However, you can instead use it as a way to get the blood pumping. And in my case, I can sit in front of my computer and be unmotivated but as soon as I get some new scenery, I feel a lot better and can’t wait to get back to my desk.

Revisit your purpose, vision, goals

We all exist for a reason and we all have dreams that excite us. And there’s a very good chance that you are working to fulfill those dreams. So sometimes what you need to do is take a step back from the mundane “grind” of the workload and remember why you’re doing it in the first place.

Drink a bunch of water

I keep a 1 liter (or 1 quart for my American friends) water bottle in the fridge and when I get unmotivated, I try to drink it all at once. Okay, I realize that probably sounds crazy but there’s a point at about 3/4 of the way through the bottle when I start to feel so much better.

Set a timer for 10 minutes and do something

After being unmotivated for a while, it’s hard to pop the cork and get to work. A lack of motivation tends to lead to procrastination and fear of starting something. So I set a timer and do SOMETHING for 10 minutes. Often, it’s enough to just get things moving again.

Announce your goal

One of the best motivators is the threat of public shame. So when I really want to get something done (ESPECIALLY if I’m reluctant to do it or I’ve been unmotivated for a while), is to announce that you’re about to do it. Find a network in which you’re really connected (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, your blog, or a forum that you’re an active participant in) and announce your plan. You don’t have to admit that you’ve been unmotivated, just write something like: “I’m about to start on a report for my client”. Then look forward to finishing it and posting your successful completion.

Not feeling well? Here’s the reason…

A few weeks ago, I was sick — throwing-up sick. Fortunately, it didn’t last long. But what really bugged me (after I got better and returned to my normal life) was that everyone wanted to diagnose the problem.

“There’s a flu going around” some said.

“Maybe it’s something you ate” someone else said.

You’ve probably heard these diagnoses from well-meaning (and non-medically trained!) friends and family. I don’t think they’re trying to cure you, I think they just want to share their thoughts about why it happened.

But I know why I was sick. I know why I get sick EVERY TIME I get sick (which isn’t that often). Guess what, I know why you get sick, too.

The reason is: There isn’t usually ONE reason we get sick. It’s usually a combination of factors.

• Maybe we caught a “bug” or ate something bad
• Maybe we’ve been cutting into our 7-hours-of-minimum-sleep or maybe we’ve been oversleeping
• Maybe we haven’t been eating balanced meals
• Maybe we haven’t had enough exercise
• Maybe we haven’t had enough water
• Maybe our stress level is high right now

I think that we can’t just blame our sickness all on one thing and exclude the possibility that there were contributing factors. If our stress level is up and we haven’t been eating or sleeping properly, our natural defenses are down and our immune system isn’t what it should be… and when we do come into contact with something or we eat something that isn’t quite right, we will get sick.

(Note: I don’t want to get all weird and mystical about the causes of sicknesses and I’m not suggesting that if you eat right and drink 8 glasses of water a day, you’ll avoid cancer. You realize what I’m saying, right? I’m saying that our bodies are a variety of systems that all exist in balance with each other and when we keep those things in balance, we’ll live healthier lives and avoid a lot of the really common colds and flus that can get us down.)

So the next time you find yourself feeling under the weather, take a look at your life: It’s possible (and entirely likely) that there’s a primary trigger, like maybe you ate some bad sushi at your cousin’s wedding yesterday. But it’s also likely that there are several underlying reasons as well — perhaps you’ve been slacking in the exercise department and indulging a little too much in treats from the candy cupboard.

The one habit that EVERY successful person knows (and every unsuccessful person ignores)

It doesn’t matter how you define success, what you are about to read is going to be true.

Think of every successful person you know about. What do they do that unsuccessful people do not do?

The answer is simple… perhaps more frustratingly simple than you would want to believe.

 

 

The most successful people in the world take action.

They act.

They move forward.

They do something.

They don’t sit still.

They don’t wait until everything is perfect.

They don’t wait until they know EXACTLY what they should be doing.

They have a plan but they don’t wait until all the pieces are in place.

They don’t wait until Monday to start.

They just take one step and move forward right now.

Unfortunately, many people don’t do these things… and that’s why many people aren’t successful. They don’t act and therefore, they wallow in mediocrity and don’t achieve the greatness that successful people achieve.

Here are some examples that are all-too-common in life:

• How often does someone decide to diet… but they’ll start tomorrow (instead of starting right now)?
• How often does someone decide to start exercising… but they’ll start on Monday (instead of starting right now)?
• How often does someone decide to quit smoking… but they”ll make it a New Year resolution (instead of starting right now)?
• How often has someone wanted to quit their job and start a business… but they don’t have the “cushion” money or the plan (instead of starting right now)?
• How often has someone created a list of dreams or ideas in life… but all the pieces weren’t in place to start (instead of starting right now)?

It happens so often. We know we need to act but we often delay that action until some other thing is true (like the day of the week to “make a fresh start” or some cushion money just in case our business fails). Successful people know that the best time to achieve success is right now.

And here’s the one reason why this works for them: It eliminates the possibility of other things getting in the way. (Let’s say someone wants to start a diet on Monday… they eat poorly for the days leading up to Monday as a pre-diet indulgence. And if they can’t start Monday for some reason, they decide to start NEXT Monday. Successful people, on the other hand, see every single day as a starting point, giving themselves seven times more starting opportunities!)

The best advice we can learn from the most successful people is:

Leap… then look

Start now and take action. Yes, it’s scary and you’ll make mistakes but successful people willingly accept these risks because they know that action breeds positive results and they learn from their mistakes anyway.

On the other hand, the people in life who are less successful — who don’t achieve their goals and dreams — are those who don’t take action. They have goals and dreams but they don’t move forward on them and they can find a million and one reasons not to.

If you have a goal that you haven’t started, I’d like you to stop reading this blog post and do one thing to move you toward that goal right now… even if you’re not sure what the step after will look like.

« Previous Page — Next Page »