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Raise your hand if this has happened to you before 🙋🏽
Imagine it’s December and the New Year is approaching. You start thinking about all the things you want to accomplish in the New Year so you start making a list of resolutions. You think of all the things you are going to do- lose 50 lbs, start a successful online business, and start making time for yourself outside of your family.
You fantasize about what your life will look like once you accomplish all of your goals.
You can see yourself in that two-piece bathing suit you saw on Fashion Nova’s website.
You see yourself running your successful online business and now you generate enough income to take your kids where ever they want to go (Disney here we come!).
You also make enough that you can afford to go to the spa once a month and your skin is glowing because of all the facials you can finally afford.
You start the New Year working out and eating healthy. You start researching for the resources you need to get your online business going. You start making time for yourself even if right now going to the spa isn’t possible.
You feel excited about the future and are super motivated to make all your goals happen.
You execute your plan….for a few weeks. Then the sun comes up, and all that certainty and motivation starts to waver.
Life happens. You start to work out less and go back to eating whatever you want. You no longer work towards that online business because there is so much that goes into starting a business and you don’t know if you’ll have time for it. Oh and forget about self-care. You definitely don’t have time for that!
Sound familiar??
I can tell you that it has happened to me….multiple times.
It makes you wonder, what happened to your motivation?
It didn’t just disappear.
The thing is getting motivated is easy, but maintaining it after the initial excitement wears off is not.
Here’s why:
Planning is Fun.
I don’t know about you, but I love to plan things out. I’ve said this before, but I have tunnel vision and love to envision what life will be like after I accomplish my goals. It is so easy to fantasize about what you want in life. The path is as clear as the nose on your face. How can you not be motivated to accomplish these goals?
When ideas are in your head and are just thoughts it’s easy. It’s no longer fun when you can no longer eat your favorite sugary snack or it takes you hours trying to figure out how to set up your blog’s website (I’ve been there!). The hard part is doing the actual work.
Distractions.
Good ole’ distractions. They are everywhere! That binge-worthy show on Netflix, your phone pinging with notifications for text messages, emails, social media notifications – “so and so just commented on your status.” We all have them and executing your plans becomes more difficult each day while your distractions start to look more appealing.
Distractions can kill dreams if you let them.
Tip: a great book to read to help track what distracts you and helps you learn to control your attention is a book called Indistractable by Nir Eyal. I’m telling you it’s worth your time if you struggle with staying focused.
Too Focused On Results Rather Than Processes.
Personally, I feel like this is a societal problem. We always look at the results such as a successful business but don’t pay attention to the process to get it there. We live in an instant gratification society with social media and other technological advances we’ve made over the years that now we have a hard time focusing on what it takes to get there.
We need to understand that results come slowly, especially at the beginning.
It can be discouraging when you dedicate time to working out and eating healthily to weigh yourself after a week and see that you only lost 2 pounds.
If results are the only thing that receives your attention, you’ll have a hard time staying the course.
Too Concerned With What Others Think.
One thing my mom always told me growing up was to “worry about yourself.” We get so caught up in what others think of us.
“What will so and so think when they find out I am starting an online business?!”
Not to be mean, but who cares?!
If you are not motivated internally why are you working to accomplish your goals? If you are starting a business, working multiple jobs to make more money, wanting to lose weight to impress others, you are doing it for all the wrong reasons.
YOUR MOTIVATION WON’T LAST!
â—Ź Reach inside and find a personal reason for chasing your goal. Why are you trying to accomplish this goal? How does it improve your life? Do it for you and you only.
Too Focused On The Short-Term.
There are many moments that I wake up and don’t feel like writing a blog post or trying to figure out how to format it in WordPress. It is so easy to lose motivation when you dread doing whatever task is on your list for the day.
Instead of focusing on how you feel at that moment, think about the reward once you accomplish your goal. Remind yourself of how great you’ll feel when you’re successful. Visualize what that success looks like each morning and evening. Write down how it feels when you do visualize. Sit with that feeling and use it to get up every day to work towards your goal.
You Are Naturally Driven To Seek Comfort.
Something I am currently learning is that you have to get comfortable being uncomfortable.
As human beings, we naturally gravitate towards what makes us comfortable. It’s what helped us survive as a species. This is why when it’s time to do something uncomfortable we retreat.
Our minds and bodies don’t like discomfort.
Your mind is going to fight you on some level once you decide to do something that brings discomfort. Instead of focusing on the discomfort of it, find something you like about your new routine, and focus on that.
Now that you know why you lose your motivation, I have a few tips to help boost your motivation right away:
1.) Make a Public Commitment
Above I mentioned that being too concerned with what others think about you actually helps you to lose motivation. But sharing it with people you trust can actually keep you motivated to achieve your goals.
Involving other people keeps you accountable. You will find that people will frequently ask you about your progress, which will provide you with consistent motivation to make your goals happen.
Action Item: Let people know what you’re working towards. You might be able to find an accountability buddy, someone who will keep you accountable. If they are working on a similar goal, even better! You can motivate each other.
2.) Remember the Purpose Behind the Motivation
When you are right in the moment, wanting to make a change, it is easy to have an endless amount of motivation. However, as time goes by, itĂs easy to lose sight of why you started in the first place. So, the key is to remember why you’re working towards your goals.
Action Item: Think about the goal you are trying to achieve. What can you utilize to help motivate you when the going gets tough?
Say you want to lose weight, for example. You can either hang up a piece of clothing you’re desperate to get back into, within eyesight. Or, you could pin up a picture that motivates you to carry on with your weight loss goals.
3.) Break Your Goals Down For Small Wins
One common mistake we all make when goal setting is that we create goals that are too broad. The longer it takes to reach a goal, the more chance there is of losing motivation along the way.
Action Item: Start setting smaller goals that are easily achievable. Work to accomplish something every day that allows you to progress towards your goals. As you gain small wins, you will be motivated to reach the next goal. Trust me, nothing feels better than ticking off little goals that you’ve set yourself. You will get addicted to how it makes you feel. And make sure you actually celebrate!
I want you to remember that maintaining motivation takes work. It’s not something that’s magically going to come to you. The more you work at it, the more it will pay off.
4.) Learn To Celebrate Your Daily Wins.
Internal motivation will always beat external motivation over longer periods of time.
No matter how small the win may seem, celebrate that ish! Because you accomplished something on your list.
Action Item:
Make a list of all the ways you would like to celebrate your wins and actually do it! It doesn’t have to be a huge, extravagant celebration either. It could be as small as buying yourself your favorite chocolate bar when you accomplish something something on your list.
So, what are your plans for the future? How are you going to maintain your motivation?
If you are struggling with your answers you can download my Self-Motivation Workbook.
Let me know in the comments how you maintain your motivation. I would love to know the results of your self-assessment.
Okay love, see you in the next post
Peace,
