We’ve all been in a funk from time to time where we just can’t seem to get motivated. Binge watching Netflix seems far more appealing and we tell ourselves we will work on our goals tomorrow. Tomorrow becomes a week and a week becomes a month and the following year we are no more closer to reaching our goals. Can you relate?
So what’s the deal? If we know what we need to do, why can’t we just do it?
Lack of willpower, decision fatigue and distractions are a few of the reasons why, and I am going to share some useful tips on overcoming all of these energy suckers, so you can get motivated!
Preserve Your Willpower
You only have so much willpower available in a day. Think of it as a battery. Just like the battery on your phone, it will start to deplete as you use it during the day. At night, you can plug it in and charge it back up for the following day.
We wake up fully charged with willpower, but as the day goes on and we put our willpower hard to work at avoiding unhealthy foods for example, that willpower starts to deplete. As the day goes on, it becomes harder and harder to resist urges.
This is why we find ourselves eating junk food at night or binge watching tv. Our willpower tank is depleted for the day. But when we get a good nights sleep, we will awake in the morning with a fully charged willpower battery.
The Power of Mornings
Since your willpower is fully charged after sleeping, you can tackle the things that require willpower first thing in the morning whether that’s tackling a project you’re dreading, eating a healthy meal or working out. It will be easier to overcome these things in the morning than later in the day or evening.
Plan your most difficult tasks first thing in the morning. Don’t waste those precious high willpower hours checking email or doing mundane, mindless work. Use this time to get the difficult tasks done or the tasks that require engagement and creativity. You will feel accomplished and everything will seem like a breeze the rest of the day.
Plan for the Day
Get motivated by planning for the day in the morning or the night before. Think of possible obstacles you may encounter that will test your willpower and plan accordingly. Pack a lunch and healthy snacks. Schedule out your weekly goals and tasks to accommodate the high willpower action steps in the morning and the other tasks that don’t require a high level of thinking or creativity like checking email for the end of the day.
Decision Fatigue
There is such a thing as decision overload. It’s proven that we only have a certain level of decision making power in a day. Just like willpower, decisions become harder to make as the day goes on.
Eliminate Decisions
It’s hard to get motivated when we are bombarded with decision overload first thing in the morning with everything from what to wear, what to eat for breakfast and what to post on social media.
Barack Obama and Mark Zuckerberg are both known for wearing the same shirts or suits everyday. They have a closet full of the same thing. This eliminates having to decide on what to wear each day, so they can save that decision making power for more important things in the day to come.
You don’t have to wear the same thing every day, but maybe you can plan your outfits for the week or the night before. You can meal prep for the week or make a weekly menu each weekend to avoid the decision of what to eat. Eliminating these unimportant decisions, you can dedicate your decision making to more important things.
Eliminate Distractions
There are distractions everywhere. Our phones and social media can distract us for hours if we let it. Co-workers and family can be a huge distraction when trying to work from home. Get motivated by blocking out time to focus on your biggest tasks. I suggest setting a timer for 45 minutes and doing nothing but that particular task for the full 45 minutes. Turn your phone off, go in a room where you will not have anyone distracting you and get the task done.
Multi-tasking may seem like a great idea, but it will end up being the biggest distraction ever. Don’t try to multitask. Focus on one task at a time. Don’t move onto the next until you’ve completed the first task.
Reward Yourself
Set milestones and reward yourself for accomplishing them. Before instantly moving on to the next big thing, take time to recognize your accomplishments. Treat yourself to a reward that ties into your goal. For example, if you’ve hit a weight goal or workout goal, but yourself new yoga pants. If you achieved a business goal, buy yourself a book or course you’ve been wanting to take. Having your eye on the prize will give you something other than just a deadline to work towards.
Motivating Mindset
If your mindset isn’t in check, you will not succeed. There will be times you feel dread or stress around your goals. Keep affirmations in sight to keep you on track. Post an affirmation on your bathroom mirror or set it as your screen saver to keep your mindset on point. You can download my top 100 favorite affirmations here.
Done is Better Than Perfect
Perfection is the killer of dreams. If you’re waiting for all the stars to align and for everything to be “perfect” you’ll be waiting your whole life. There is no such thing as perfect. Your first time doing something will probably leave a lot to be desired or may downright suck, but if you continue taking action you will continue improving.
You can’t get to your 50th podcast episode without recording the first 49. You can’t win the medal without falling on your face a bunch of times first. Don’t hold yourself to an unrealistic ideal. Be ok with imperfection. Know you will fail and know that when you do, you just need to dust yourself off and try again.
To sum it all up, you need to have a plan to get motivated towards your goals. Preserve your willpower, eliminate distractions, plan ahead and keep your mindset in check and you will be accomplishing huge milestones in no time.
Happy Manifesting!
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