AVOID THESE MOTIVATION KILLERS
Are you feeling unmotivated, dealing with a lack of motivation, or experiencing low energy? Our choices every day can impact our internal drive in ways we may not even notice. Here are some motivation killers you should avoid to improve your productivity and wellbeing.
STRESS AND ANXIETY
Stress and anxiety tend to slow us down, especially over long periods of time. Interestingly enough, stress is a strong motivator1 when it occurs in short bursts, as it forces us to reprioritize. But, prolonged stress can impact your health—including decision making and maintaining focus.
Recent research shows over 40 million adults face anxiety in the US each year and 70% of American adults are highly stressed.
To combat the long-term impact of stress, remove as many unnecessary stressors from your life as you can. And try not to extend your stress and anxiety by focusing only on what goes wrong. Talk to a professional if your stress and anxiety become unmanageable.
BURNOUT
Too much work without reward will lead to burnout. Once you’ve hit the point of burnout, it’s hard to find motivation without a solid period of rest to rekindle it. Suddenly, you might hit a point where you feel like everything about your normal routine seems like a waste of energy. You might feel like responsibilities are too much to handle or incredibly dull.
Burnout2 occurs with too much stress, but isn’t the same as stress. While stress occurs when you are trying to do too much, burnout occurs when you aren’t getting enough back for your efforts. You may not feel anxious with burnout—you will more likely feel detached, hopeless and unmotivated.
To reverse burnout, you will need to manage stress, practice self-care and find outlets that are rewarding. You will likely regain motivation when you focus on the people and activities that fulfill you.
NEGATIVE ENVIRONMENTS AND THINKING
Negative people, negative news cycles, negative work environments—all of these will increase your stress and lead to burnout. Allowing yourself to get caught in negative mantras will also kill your motivation.
“The man who thinks he can and the man who thinks he can’t are both right.” – Confucius
Don’t dwell on negative news or situations more than you absolutely have to. Reduce the impact of negative people on your life. Replace these things with positive activities and positive mantras in your mind to improve motivation.
NO DIRECTION OR CLEAR PROGRESS
It’s hard to be motivated if you don’t have an endpoint to aim for. Establishing goals will really boost your sense of purpose and direction. If you can’t feel yourself moving forward, you will lose motivation. So, set short-term and long-term goals that are measurable and attainable to help you stay motivated.
Outline the steps it will take to reach those short-term and long-term goals. Set up a daily game plan. Give yourself enough time to reasonably accomplish your goals, requiring focused effort without too much stress.
FEAR OF FAILURE
There is a very real kind of internal trauma that can occur when we are afraid of failing or being rejected. The fear of failure can be debilitating. You might lose all motivation to try if you are nervous about the outcome. To combat this, take small steps and focus on your successes.
There is an old phrase, “get back in the saddle.” When you ride horses, you are bound to get thrown off at some point. All seasoned horse riders know that when you fall, you have to get back onto the horse immediately. If you let the fall be the only result of the ride, the debilitating fear is much more likely to set in—making it hard to want to mount again. So, if you do hit failure, get back in that saddle as quickly as possible and move on toward your next success.
FEELING PHYSICALLY WEAK
When you are physically not feeling up to the task, it’s hard to be motivated. Take care of your body by exercising, eating well and sleeping. You will have higher energy levels and more motivation when your body is fueled by proper care. You might notice that some foods make you feel sluggish or a lack of sleep makes it hard to focus. Boost your motivation by focusing on the foods and activities that boost your energy.
