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.

How to be mentored without the mentor even knowing it

In the past couple of blog posts, I talked about the importance of a mentor in a successful life and I talked about why you might need more than one mentor for your life.

Well, I guess it’s unofficially “mentor week” here at TheHappySelf because I’ve found myself writing about them again. Only this time, I’m taking a slightly different spin.

Not all mentors need to be face-to-face

Mentors are good to have and I firmly believe you need to meet with your mentors face-to-face (or at least over the phone) regularly. But I also recognize that we don’t all have the time or network to meet with mentors in all of the areas in our life that we want to grow.

So instead of finding a “face-to-face” mentor for every single area of your life, find a couple of mentors and work with them in some key areas…

BUT also…

… find a few people who you aspire to be like and learn as much as you can from them. You can do this for any public figure.

An example of an at-a-distance mentor

I’m going to use the example of stock market investing because it’s an area in life where I’ve actually used this method: I wanted to become successful in the stock market but I didn’t know anyone personally who was, plus I was already busy with another mentor and some other commitments in my life. So I went out and looked for an “at-a-distance” mentor who could give me some insight into investing even though we never met face to face. Warren Buffett turned out to have the kinds of ideas and skills and success that I aspired to have. So I constructed a mentorship program with his advice even though I never actually met him.

• I read everything I could get my hands on that was written about him
• I read everything I could get my hands on that was written by him
• I studied his successes (and failures)
• I learned that he followed a certain expert (Benjamin Graham) so I read THAT expert’s work, too.

After immersing myself in the mind and actions of Warren Buffett, I found it much easier to think and invest like him. Obviously I have not achieve the same level of success as he has (he’s about a thousand years older than I am!) but I am far more confident and successful in the stock market than I was… thanks to my at-a-distance mentoring relationship with Warren Buffett.

They’re more than just role models

I’ve heard some people call these mentors “role models” but for me, a role model doesn’t have the same impact on your life. I like to think of them as mentors… but just mentors I don’t get to meet in person.

Don’t think of this as an excuse to NOT have face-to-face mentors. However, adopt a multiple-mentor approach and get some face-to-face mentors and some at-a-distance mentors to improve your life!

Why I’ve failed at finding mentors… and the advice that changed it all for me

The idea of improving your life through mentors is one of those things that has popped up in my life from time to time.

When I was in college, the students were encouraged to find mentor but I struggled with finding one and when I finally did, the relationship fell flat.

Mentorship reappeared on my radar in my first out-of-college job when we were assigned mentors. Frankly, I hated my mentor — he was not the person I aspired to be! The same thing happened in my second job as well.

Later, I joined a charitable organization that encouraged its members to find mentors and even then I couldn’t find someone who I wanted to aspire to be like.

I believe that being mentored is a huge opportunity and a “must-do” activity for anyone who wants to be successful in life. But I could not find a mentor to help me. Over coffee, I shared my frustration with a trusted friend. He pointed out the following piece of advice that changed my approach to mentorship. He said..

“You don’t have to find ONE mentor. Instead, pick several spheres of your life where you want to grow and find a mentor for each sphere.”

My friend pointed out that I could never aspire to be 100% like someone else. Instead, I had to choose what aspects of several peoples’ lives did I aspire to be like.

This was a transformational thought for me. It completely fixed what I felt was broken in the mentorship process. For example, there was one person I wanted to mentor me in the area of business but he lacked the relationship-building skills that I also wanted to be mentored in. So I found two mentors — a business mentor and a relationship-building mentor. Yes, it doubles the amount of time that I am being mentored but the results are well worth the investment.

Now it’s your turn

If there is one person you aspire to be like, great. Make them your mentor. But chances are, there’s no one who you aspire to be completely like. (We’re all unique!)

So instead of trying to find one mentor who you aspire to, identify several areas of your life where you’d like to grow. Then pick two or three of those areas and find mentors in them.

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