How to build you self-motivation
Like self-awareness, self-motivation is a critical life skill. Strong self-awareness certainly is a solid driver to improve ones self-motivation. Being motivated helps drive us forward, achieve our goals, allowing us to feel more fulfilled and improving our overall quality of life.
However, it is not always easy to feel motivated or to find the energy to drive yourself forward, especially when life is busy and there are a lot of “tasks” to be completed. There are four key steps to help create a clear pathway before you focus on improving your self-motivation.
1. Try and stay positive and keep your negativity in check. Don’t despair or avoid the issue but try keep calm and move forward.
2. Focus on you. You are what matters. Do not compare yourself to others or their situation. It is wasted energy and a distraction from what matters – you.
3. Include motivating moments to every day – always. Include something you love doing and that you can look forward to each day. Meeting a friend, going to gym, or seeing family.
4. Place yourself in a motivating environment. This relates to both people and places. You will naturally feel better and more motivated in a sunny, light location with a great view or buzz. As you will when you are around upbeat motivated people.
Self-motivation is not only a critical life skill and a key pillar of emotional intelligence; but will help you take control and master many of your life journeys.
Here are 10 tips to help you improve your self-motivation skill.
1. Build your self-awareness so that you are better able to understand and manage your emotions, thoughts and actions and make suitable adjustments to achieve your goals.
2. Start planning for both your personal and professional lives. Our personal and study/work life segments are intertwined and therefore you need to plan for both collectively. It is critical to keep a sensible balance else one ends up feeling frustrated. Invest in a planner or app to help you.
3. Set realistic and measurable goals. Goal setting is vital to success and helps to train your brain to focus on key deliverables and achieving these tasks. Goals need to be clear and broken down so that you can track your progress and keep motivated.
4. Simplify your tasks. When you feel overwhelmed by the task ahead start by breaking it down into bite sized pieces and manage one at a time. Also consciously remove unnecessary tasks from your immediate schedule.
5. Stay focused. Nothing that is truly worth it comes easily and there will always be difficult moments. Do not let these obstacles unhinge you or throw you from your pathway. The key is to keep focused on the end goal and steps to getting there.
6. Celebrate your successes. Look back to where you started and where you are now, celebrate the conclusion of each step and not just the completed task.
7. Activity and the great outdoors. Doing exercise and being outdoors in wonderful green and blue spaces is uplifting end energising. Even a walk in the park, or 15-minute break overlooking the sea or garden is a great way to recharge your batteries and increase your productivity.
8. Proper downtime. Rest is important and is too often underestimated, so consciously make sure you get enough sleep. Also build in time to socialise, do exercise, see family to “boost” your batteries.
9. Change is part of moving forward. Change offers a different pathway and opportunities and may well lead to wonderful outcomes. New experiences also lead to new developments and growth. Don’t be afraid of change as it is part of moving forward.
10. People motivators are an important support system as they help you achieve your goals and overcome hurdles. Working and engaging with people can make a huge difference to your motivation and enjoyment of the journey.
Good luck on setting and working towards your goals! Use the motivational tips above to keep you focused and moving forward.