Some days I admit that I am just NOT feeling it. And by ‘it’, I mean adulting. I don’t want to do much more than lay on the couch with my son, watching Netflix and playing video games. Maybe taking a nap. Actually, that’s pretty much what we did all day today. Sorry, not sorry.
However, I can’t do that every day. I have to take care of my son and make sure the bills get paid. That kinda requires that I suck it up and get ish done – even when I am feeling completely and utterly unmotivated.
So what do I do when I need to get stuff done but don’t feel like it? Keep reading to find out.
Announce My Intentions
There is something about letting people in on your plans that can make you feel more motivated to actually get things done. I don’t know if this is a good or bad thing, but it works. I don’t always announce things publicly, but I do often tell a select group of people about things I am working on so that they can hold me accountable. In fact, if you can find an accountability partner, that is even better. However, it has to be someone who will actually call you out when they notice you slacking. It doesn’t really do much good otherwise.
Friendly Competition
If you know someone who is also working towards similar goals, why not have a bit of friendly competition? That is what my friend Michelle and I are doing. We have two things going on right now. The first is a Harry Potter-esque House Cup challenge. We are both writers and are really trying to improve our financial and creative lives. So we both created a list of over 20 tasks that we can do every day. For example: writing, blogging, creating videos, creating courses, promoting our projects/services, etc. Each task is assigned a certain number of House points. Whoever has the most points at the end of the month wins. The other thing we are doing is a 30 Day blogging challenge. We are on Day 11. She has posted every day. I missed yesterday because of a fiasco with my internet provider, but have posted every other day. Both of these challenges are motivating us to get stuff done even on days when we don’t want to. I’ve also seen some progress with my business, my blog, and my life since we started – which is awesome.
Look at My Bank Account
Am I the only one who does this? Lol! I know that I work from home and I think that, for some reason, people assume that means I am wealthy or well-off.
Ummm….no.
Working from home is a struggle. Especially when you are a freelancer. And I don’t receive child support or anything, so that makes it even more difficult. Needless to say, I am not “balling”. In fact, my budget is usually tight (plus, I’m cheap and hate spending money). Some months are tighter than others, so looking at my bank account sometimes draws out that oh-so-special “Oh shit, I need to get it together” response. I tell you, magic happens during those moments, lol.
Look at My Vision Board
Another thing that can help motivate me at times is reminding myself of all of the things that I want to do with my life. They don’t even have to be huge things. Just things that are still a bit outside of my reach. Seeing how close I am to achieving a goal or (conversely) how far I am from achieving an important one can be motivating.
Set a Timer
Sometimes I feel a bit overwhelmed by all of the things I need to do on a daily basis. Especially the things that take up a lot of time. However, one thing I have learned is that breaking things up into little chunks works wonders. So I will randomly set a timer for 10, 20, or 30 minutes and commit to getting as much as I can done before the timer goes off. You’d be surprised by how much you can get done when you are trying to race the clock. Then, once you are done, you can take a break before repeating it as often as you need to in order to get everything on your to-do list taken care of.
Just Do It
When all else fails: suck it up, buttercup. That’s pretty much a mantra around here. I don’t have a husband to depend on. My family isn’t going to step in to run my life for me. So, when you get right down to it, I don’t have any choice but to get stuff done. I may drag my feet or procrastinate a bit, but I ALWAYS get the important things done. I don’t have a choice. I find that the knowledge that “if I don’t do it, it won’t get done” can be a motivator in and of itself.
Give Myself Grace
Honestly, there are days when I just need a break. So I take it. We all need some time to just relax and not do anything. So that is exactly what I do. If it’s not a life or death situation, it can wait until tomorrow. The world isn’t going to end just because you take a day off. Unless you’re The Doctor. Then…maybe. Lol.
Topic for Discussion: What are some things you do to get motivated?
