Overcoming Lack of Motivation

Motivation is one of the key drivers in our everyday life. However, it doesn’t matter who you are or what you do, you will experience a lack of it at times. It’s normal to feel like you don’t want to do anything, but it’s important to recognize this as a symptom. And it’s something you can overcome!

A lack of motivation expresses itself in a tendency to procrastinate our tasks. We put things off all the time and we do this continuously, so eventually we give up everything and we do nothing. This means our projects and our goals are compromised; we don’t achieve them and we feel even more demotivated because of it.

If you’re here reading this, it’s because you’ve hit the demotivation wall and you wish to understand what took you there. So, without further ado, let’s discuss some of the reasons why this happens and what you can do to avoid it in the future!

One of the main reasons we might feel demotivated is because we haven’t set up goals for ourselves. If you’re not aiming for something, then you won’t know what to do. If you don’t know where you want to go and how far, you won’t have direction and you won’t be able to move. To find motivation, you need to figure out what you want to do and what you want to achieve.

Your goals should be determined by your desires and fuelled by your passions. They should also be achievable, otherwise you’ll get discouraged very quickly. Set your goals realistically and do it in stages. For example, if your goals is to lose weight, begin by working out every day for half an hour, and gradually increase your workout time. You can do the same with other goals; just think of the finish line and break it off into small achievements you can handle over time. Practice healthy self talkas this may assist you in your goal.

Having clear goals will allow you to live your life with purpose and determination. If you find that your goals don’t motivate or drive you, then you’ve set the wrong goals for yourself. It takes introspection to know what you want to do in life, but it also takes trial and error. If something’s not working, don’t get stuck. Move on and try something new.

Most people don’t realise that their surroundings hugely affect their mood and the way they function. This means that you must create a supportive environment for yourself if you want to achieve your goals and stay motivated. If you hang out with successful people, people who are living their best life and who love to learn and try new things, then you’ll want to be a part of that.

Your environment can work as an energy booster, so you need to make sure you choose your inner circle carefully and you surround yourself with people who inspire you. It’s not about competing with anyone, it’s about being with like-minded people who are supportive and positive.

If you’re surrounded by negative or toxic people who are always putting others down and don’t do anything of value, you’ll be influenced by that. If your inner circle destroys your spirit and are overly critical of everything you do, you won’t flourish. You will be dragged down.

One of the many symptoms of demotivation is feeling like you never do enough. Funnily enough, this feeling is what drives you to do nothing. If you feel like nothing you ever do is enough, then you’ll just want to throw in the towel. By pushing yourself to doing the opposite, you’ll feel a thousand times better.

A common example is deciding to stay home instead of getting there to do the things you had planned. Sometimes we need to take a mental health day and just stare at the TV or relax in other ways, but this can be a slippery slope if it’s happening more often.

Maybe you binge-watched your favourite show all day again and you didn’t do anything to further any of your goals, no matter how small. How do you usually feel after that? You usually feel tired instead of relaxed. That’s because you did it for the wrong reasons. The moment you decide to do something relaxing just to escape your responsibilities with yourself and others, you’re doing yourself a disservice.

Try doing the opposite! If you feel demotivated, don’t stay home doing nothing. Try getting started on something and you’ll find you actually enjoy it. This will motivate you to continue with another task, and once you start, you’ll notice it’s easy to keep going until you’ve had a productive, fun day.

Depressionis infamous for causing a severe lack of motivation and energy to do anything, even get out of bed in the morning in the case of severe depression. But even mild depression can cause a person to struggle with anything that requires them to move. Normal everyday tasks become a burden and more important tasks may become close to impossible.

If you’re dealing with depression, the best thing you can do for yourself is to seek professional help. That should always be the first step. The next step is to try to prioritise the things you need to get done. If you have a limited amount of energy, then you must learn how to apply it to the things that truly matter. Most importantly try to keep yourself motivated by celebrating all your successes, no matter how small.

The main thing you need to remember is that success is a marathon, not a sprint. If you put way too much on your plate and you don’t take care of yourself, you may set yourself up to fail. It’s awesome to be ambitious. In fact, that’s a great motivator. However, remember that your goals must be realistic and achievable or you may allow yourself to give up too easily.

If you do too much at once, you may become be easily overwhelmed and burn out can be dangerous for your health. If you put too much on your plate and over-saturate yourself, you may not be able to work to the best of your ability, which can be counterproductive. Take your time and think of the bigger picture!