As we head into a New Year it’s traditional to make New Year Resolutions. It’s time to look at what worked, what didn’t work and what you want to achieve this coming year – the goals for the year. Once you’ve worked out your goals for the year they need motivation to make them happen!
What Is Motivation?
Motivation is a state of mind. It can be there one minute and gone the next. All of us have a degree of motivation within us and we can use a number of techniques to increase it and make it last longer.
When an individual taps into their motivation they can drive themselves forward with renewed energy. The best way to define motivation is that it is a source of internal energy that provides a person with the drive to achieve specific goals. It influences the behaviour of a person.
Whilst it generally comes from within there can also be an exterior motivation. Something you see happening in the world, for example, can align with your inner motivation and drive you to do something about it.
Why Motivation Is So Important
Most people tend to take motivation for granted. They don’t even think about it as they get on with their daily lives. But the reality is that we need different types of motivation to really get the most out of life and be happy and content.
Motivation is all about purpose and desire. Without it we would never do anything and the world would be vastly different to what it is today. If Steve Jobs didn’t have the motivation to create the iPhone would smartphones exist today? Maybe if someone else had the motivation to design and create them.
Results Inspire us
Our motivation levels usually rise when we get specific results or we see others achieving results. It can be very exciting to see a plan come together and this will provide you with the motivation to move on to a new plan.
People tend to associate results with business but there are many areas of life where results can give us a real motivational boost. For example, if you want to lose weight then what can be better than standing on the scales and seeing that you have lost the weight that you wanted to? Or maybe you’ve lost 5 pounds but at least you know you’re on the right track and that motivates you to continue and do more.
If you’re a manager in a company then your purpose is to motivate the team that reports to you. You agree on personal objectives and targets with them and when they achieve these not only will they get a motivational boost but you will too.
Life Motivation
People face different challenges in their lives every single day and they need motivation to overcome the challenges and move forward. Challenges can literally come out of nowhere such as a natural disaster that devastates a community.
To succeed in life you need to be hungry. We are not talking about a craving for food here but a hunger to achieve. Take a look around you and notice all of the buildings nearby. They are only there because people were motivated to build them. The same goes for cars, roads, shops and so on.
There are so many things that you can do with your life these days that people often say that “there are not enough hours in the day”. When you’re motivated you can manage your time effectively so that you have the right balance in your life.
For example, you’re motivated to earn money so you’ll spend a certain amount of your time doing this. You’re also motivated to be with the people that you love so you need a chunk of time for that too. And of course, you need to look after yourself with regular exercise which requires other time. Motivation helps us to manage all of this.
Motivation can go beyond the drive to earn money. It could be a higher goal such as having a happy and healthy family – of course you need money for that but in this case money is just a means to an end. Or maybe you want so much money you can afford to donate to various causes that are helping people.
4 Great Ways To Strengthen Your Motivation
What separates successful people from the rest of society? The answer is that successful people all had goals and developed the necessary motivation to achieve them.
So how do you make your motivation strong so that you can achieve your goals? Like anything else you will need to give these techniques a little time to work and be persistent with them. The rewards will certainly be worth it.
Motivation is a state of mind. So you need to use techniques that will get you into a motivated state when you really don’t feel motivated. Don’t just read this article and do nothing – take action and reap the rewards!
- Find your Purpose
What is the main reason behind your goal? If your goal is to become financially free then why do you really want this? What will you do with the money and the free time that you have when you have achieved your goal?
If you want to create a successful business then your purpose could be something like “I want to provide value to the world”. Create a “why” statement and add your reason or reasons to it. Refer to this every day and whenever you need to give your motivation a much-needed boost.
- Don’t let Mental Blocks deter you
We all have mental blocks from time to time. It’s very important that we complete a particular task in the pursuit of our goal but we just can’t get started. Has this ever happened to you?
When you experience a mental block like this it is usually related to negative thinking. You do not ask yourself the right questions or say the right things to yourself. Instead of saying “I don’t know how to do this” ask yourself “how can I get this done in the fastest possible time?” Reframe the negative into a positive.
- Don’t Think too much
A lot of people have a tendency to overthink things. When this happens they create more pressure on themselves and this leads to stress which will have a negative impact on motivation. It also takes up valuable time which could be better spent on doing something.
So if you overthink everything then stop right now. Look at your goals and simplify them as much as you can. Break them down into simple daily steps that you can take without thinking too much about them. Each time you achieve a small step you will add fuel to your motivation.
- Change your Perception to Positive
When you’re about to start working on any task notice how you feel about it. Are you feeling positive and ready to go or do you have concerns or even thoughts of dread? If you have any negative perceptions about a task then this is going to drive down your motivation and you will make everything a lot more difficult for yourself.
With a bit of effort and practice, you can change your negative perceptions towards any task. Think about how you will feel when the task is complete. Will you have a great sense of satisfaction? Or will you be really relieved? Use these positive feelings to change how you approach the task.
5 Ways To Motivate Yourself Every Day
Motivation is something that you need to constantly work at. With so many distractions around today it’s all too easy to fall into the procrastination trap which will scupper your plans and could lead to you failing with your goals. If you lose your focus then you will lose your motivation.
If you really want to grow and achieve challenging goals then you will need every drop of motivation that you can muster. You may be tired and need that extra motivation to complete an important task. Motivation is a state of mind and if you are not careful your state of mind can change and it will make you feel like giving up.
So what do you do? Well, I recommend that you have a daily routine to help boost your motivation levels. This routine will encourage you to get out of bed early and tackle the challenges that lie ahead for the day. So here are 5 ways that you can motivate yourself each day:
- Set Inspiring Goals
If you don’t have goals then you will find it very hard to motivate yourself. When you do set your goals they need to inspire you. Write your goals down and carry them around with you at all times. Read them first thing every day to energize you and drive up your motivation levels.
Add emotion to your goals. Write down why you want to achieve them and how you will feel when they are accomplished. These feelings need to be strong so that they will motivate you to get started right away and not stop until you have finished your daily activities.
- Plan the Day Before
Here is a simple but effective tip to boost your motivation. At the end of each day create a plan for the next day. This can be in the form of a simple to-do list. You will gain clarity from this which is always good for staying motivated. If you start your day off without a plan then your lack of organization will frustrate you and your motivation levels will drop. It’s also good to do it at the end of the day so you can hit the ground running straight away!
- Get a good night’s rest
Getting the right amount of sleep is very important for your motivation and in fact, is one of the key factors that can lower your motivation. If you’re tired when you get up it’s going to be a lot harder to find the motivation that you need for the day. So determine how much sleep you need to awaken refreshed and energized and do everything that you can to get this amount of sleep.
- Avoid Distractions
Distractions are all around us from social media to TV to others who will happily waste your time talking about unimportant things. The first step here is to accept that certain things distract you and then you need to figure out how to eliminate them.
So for example, if you like spending time on social media sites allocate a time during the day to do this. Don’t jump on your phone as soon as you get a notification. Chances are it will be something unimportant and could lead you to spending more time reading and responding to messages. Distractions are motivation killers so take this seriously.
- Utilize your “Best” Time
We all have different times of the day when we are the most creative, most effective and so on. For some people, this is in the morning and for others, it is late at night. So find out when your best times are to do certain things and utilize this properly.
New Year, New Resolutions, More Motivation
If last year was bad for you it’s time to close the door on it and look to the future. Make some plans, set some goals for the year and turn up your motivation!
To help you with that here is a free guide on New Year Resolutions to Change Your Life THIS year.
