Lately, I’ve been feeling unmotivated. It comes in annoyingly consistent waves. I can be on task and focused for three days and then drag my feet the next three. I’m definitely the type of person that throws themselves into projects they are excited about and then procrastinate to no end the tasks I’m not motivated to do. I always joke with my husband that my motivation changes with the weather – here one minute and gone the next. 

Unfortunately, that’s the thing about motivation. Motivation comes in spurts and is inconsistent.  

Think about it. Motivation is what gets you to start, but it usually doesn’t last longer than a couple weeks – if that. Every project starts perfect in its potential, but when we lose motivation, chances are pretty high we’ll quit. 

Many times, we look to other sources to build our motivation. We listen to podcasts, read motivation books, and hype ourselves up with shiny, new projects. But motivation only lasts so long. 

As I talk about in my book, The Art of Finishing, motivation alone cannot make you finish your goals. With its inconsistent nature, you would spend more energy searching for motivation than working on projects. 

So, what do we do when it disappears? How do I stay productive when my motivation is gone?  

Well, let me first tell you, nothing’s going to happen until you make it happen. You can read posts like this all day, but nothing will get done until you act. While I can’t make you magically start taking action, I can give you a few tools to get the ball rolling. You choose to act on my advice. 

1. Take the first step

To be productive when you have no motivation, you have to act. 

Obviously. But stay with me here. 

We’ve all heard the adage, “An object in motion stays in motion.” This isn’t just true in physics. The snowball effect is a phenomenon where we start a small task that gradually builds upon itself until we accomplish larger tasks we never could have at first.  

Ironically, people generally wait for motivation before taking the first step, but it isn’t until you take the first step that you actually get the motivation you needed. Taking a small step empowers us with a rush of chemicals in the brain saying “Hey, that feels good to finish something. We are awesome. Let’s do more!” We can then tackle a bit of a bigger task. With the bigger task accomplished, we get a bigger rush of chemical rewards to the brain.  

Because more often than not, starting is the hardest part, take advantage of the snowball effect to get stuff done. Pick a small, 5-minute task and do it. Even if you have practically no motivation, we know you at least have the motivation to read this blog post. You want to become better.  Use that.

You can do anything for 5 minutes. Just focus on taking the first step. 

2. Make a checklist

Okay, we’ve got the first step taken care of. Once you’ve finished one step, let’s get that snowball effect going. Write down the things you need to do. If you have a task that takes longer than 10 minutes, break it down until it is 10 minutes or less, even if that means creating 10 tasks from the original one. When motivation is at zero, you’re not going to get a lengthy task done. Focus on building upon small tasks first. 

Another helpful tip with checklists is to write down five tasks in your planner at a time, and no more. Forget about the other tasks for right now. You’ve written them down, so you won’t forget them. The reason we should write only five tasks or less in our planner is that we’re already pretty susceptible to quitting. Seeing a mountain of tasks in our planner could easily push us over the edge so we give up. But five tasks? We can do that, especially if they are small. 

Once you’ve checked off your first five tasks, write a few more in your planner. Seeing all you’ve completed, you’ll have built enough motivation to do even more.

3. Accomplish an unrelated task

If you are procrastinating a specific task, do something else productive (or semi-productive) for the next 30 minutes. Clean out a cupboard, sweep the floor, or complete a project you’re excited about. Accomplishing these tasks will still build up your motivation which you can then use to push through a few 5-minute tasks with your procrastinated project.

You can also use this time to clean up your work environment. If your desk is cluttered, throw some stuff out. Turn on an aromatherapy diffuser. Start your Spotify playlist. If all else fails, walk to a new location where you can focus like a library or Starbucks. You’d be surprised to see what a difference a good environment makes.

4. Take a break

If none of these tips are working, you’re probably burned out. Take an hour or two to do something you love. If this seems like a ridiculous amount of time to “waste” while you have a million other things to do, know that taking this time now to relax will double your effectiveness later. With your motivation levels where they are right now, you would probably have wasted that time anyways worrying or reading more articles like this. Use it to recharge instead. 

Now, when I say take a break, I don’t mean lounge on your couch and scroll through Facebook. Do activities that take you away from social media and comparing yourself to others.  Get outside. Paint a picture. Write a short story. Color in a coloring book. Chat with a friend. Crochet a scarf. Basically, do something you love.

An hour or so of self-care could be just what you need to get going again.

 

If you liked this post, check out last week’s post on How to get out of a rut.

You’ve got this! Seriously, you’re stronger than you know. Everyone has days where they don’t feel like doing anything, and that’s perfectly okay. Take a deep breath and let out all of your worries. Remember, you don’t have to be your best self every day. Just focus on being a little better each week, and accept that you may slide backward occasionally. That’s just life. Deep breaths and move forward.

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