For the last few months, I've been feeling incredibly unmotivated. Work-related tasks, self-care, and even socializing have all suddenly become difficult to muster up the energy for. I don't think it's due to any mental health issue, but I worry that this lack of energy is hurting my confidence and future. What can I do to feel more motivated in my week?
Firstly, I'm sorry you're going through this and I hope you also know how common your challenge is. Motivation is a constant struggle for so many adults - especially today in our digital environment. When it comes to getting motivated, the most important place to start is with expectations. Realistically, motivation is a finite resource and most of us can't wake up feeling driven every single day. Instead of relying on a fleeting, internal spark to make us productive, we should be finding ways to make our days more exciting and engaging in the first place. First, take a moment to consider the following questions:
1. What's most important to you?
If you could have the most productive day imaginable, what would it consist of? Take a moment to really consider that question. Would you go for a run? Clean your entire room? Take care of that project for work you've been putting off? Whatever comes to mind, write it down. Think of it as the wishlist for your dream day and add anything that might be missing. We'll revisit this later.
2. What part of the day is giving you energy (even if it's just a little...)?
We all have those days where the routines get stale and even getting out of bed becomes an arduous task. However, we also must have something that we look forward to and gets us excited. It could be playing a video game, talking to a friend, or doing something outside. Whatever it is, your day deserves to have space for it. Consider the most exciting day you could realistically have. What would it look like? What would you do? Write those things down, too. If you're worried that your activity has some downsides, consider the following question...
3. What part of the day is making you feel sluggish or guilty?
Just like we have parts of our day that we feel good about, there are often things we do that make us feel kinda crappy. Think about a particularly unproductive, procrastination-filled day you had at work or at home, as well as your more typical one and its imperfections. What components made you feel unproductive, sluggish, or guilty? We all have bad habits, so be honest with yourself. Once again, whatever comes to mind, write it down.
4. What part of your day is urgent and important?
Unfortunately, we all have bills to pay, work deadlines to complete, and laundry that needs to get done -(after all, that week-old heap of workout gear isn't washing itself...) Think about your week and write down what those things are. You'll have to do them eventually so might as well put them on paper.
So you've considered those questions... now what?
Congratulations! if you made it this far, you've officially been duped into doing something productive. Not just that, but you've also made a list of what's important to you, what's serving you, what's holding you back, and what needs to get done. There's a lot of wisdom in that alone, but we can take things a step further.
These are precisely the kinds of questions we all need to consider to have a truly productive day that we're excited about. Your answers provide insights that allow you to use time more effectively and in a way that takes into account your aspirations, roadblocks, and priorities. Based on what you've gathered from the above, you now have everything you need to start making small changes with quick, realistic experiments. So what might that look like?
If someone noted that their ideal day would include going for a bike ride and that skipping breakfast makes them feel sluggish and lazy, then they could experiment with scheduling time on their calendar to go for a bike ride during the week, as well as setting reminders to eat breakfast a few days to see if it helps their energy. For those urgent, non-negotiable tasks (like a job interview that this hypothetical human has coming up), then they can try scheduling anything that needs to get done beforehand on their calendar and plan the week around making sure it goes as smoothly as possible.
The Takeaway
Whatever your answers may have been, there are bound to be similar, small changes waiting to be tried out in your week and a solid plan to go along with it. When you decide to take that leap, also take some notes each day on how you're feeling, either in a notebook or on your phone. Over time, this reflection will give you the insights needed to determine which experiments work for you, and which are better left untouched. Don't be hard on yourself if you slip up one day and fail to follow through on the change. Simply note why and commit to trying something that seems more realistic.
Not so scary, right? Just like we can't build a city overnight, we can't make massive changes all at once. However, with a few small changes over weeks and months, that effort can snowball into big transformations. Hopefully, with this approach, you'll start seeing incremental bits of progress in your week, giving you renewed confidence and returning some of that motivation you've been missing.
Last but certainly not least, remember to be gentle with yourself. Commit to experiments that you can actually do and if you can't follow through, don't give up - just try out easier experiments. With a little bit of persistence, I'm confident you'll be making massive strides in no time - and what a beautiful sight that will be!
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels