Unique Ways to Motivate Yourself

[Alpacalia]

I am starting another school semester and I feel nervous about getting back into the routine of things after a long and enjoyable break. 

I know that I will be fine once I get back into it, as I have become fairly adept at maintaining a good work-life balance for myself. 

Does anyone have some creative ways to motivate themselves, whether it is a project, a task, or anything at all, that has worked for you? 

I am open to all suggestions!

Edited January 19, 2021 by Alpaca

[ClearEyes-FullHeart]

I am not sure how creative this is but when it comes to work related things and I start to feel overwhelmed due to too many deliverables, clients, shifting deadlines, etc., I have found that starting the bigger more challenging things helps. Get the framework of the plan/document (or whatever it is) together and suddenly it doesn’t seem so insurmountable.

Often the lack of motivation for me is what I feel stressed about how “hard” I think something will be, when in reality it just requires some focused time.

I run my own small company with tech clients as customers, and there are always too many things to do and priorities can shift like the wind. I have to juggle a lot of writing, which can time consuming and hard to get into with disruptions and meeting. I block time on my calendar and turn off all the slack/app alerts to really focus. Once I start and sort of scope the task out, things start to snowball and I gain velocity and productivity.

Good luck!

[Alpacalia]

All input is appreciated.

Sounds like you have a lot on your plate and it's nice to see a wide variety of techniques that people use.

Some people have little rituals like listening to daily affirmations, others stand in the mirror and talk to themselves to build confidence, some listen to upbeat music while they carve out their to-do list. Makes it a little less mundane.

[Wiseman2]

I use a "business before pleasure" approach.

Once I get whatever necessary work/task out of the way, I reward myself later with something I want to do.

This way, everything's done and I enjoy leisure time that much more.

[littleblackheart]

Not sure if it's that creative, but whenever I look at my calendar and start feeling overwhelmed, I put everything and put some chilled music on for 10 minutes (with a timer or I'll get side-tracked!), then start to work. I find it easier to work when I feel completely relaxed. Music seems to be the antidote to most of my ills.

 

[Alpacalia]

20 hours ago, Wiseman2 said:

I use a "business before pleasure" approach.

Once I get whatever necessary work/task out of the way, I reward myself later with something I want to do.

This way, everything's done and I enjoy leisure time that much more.

But all work and no play makes a dull Bae. 🤓 

🤭

Edited January 20, 2021 by Alpaca

[Alpacalia]

7 hours ago, littleblackheart said:

Not sure if it's that creative, but whenever I look at my calendar and start feeling overwhelmed, I put everything and put some chilled music on for 10 minutes (with a timer or I'll get side-tracked!), then start to work. I find it easier to work when I feel completely relaxed. Music seems to be the antidote to most of my ills.

 

I didn't mean to limit it to just creative responses when I made the thread, but I agree, music definitely gets the creative juices flowing and can be highly motivating.

[Wiseman2]

5 hours ago, Alpaca said:

But all work and no play makes a dull Bae. 🤓 

🤭

😂I said before pleasure