subject: Maintaining And Developing Motivation [print this page] Being motivated is not always easyBeing motivated is not always easy. It can be difficult at times, but there are steps we can take to help increase our motivation.
Here are a few suggestions to help you develop and maintain your motivation.
First, you can attend a personal development workshop. This can help you see areas where you need to improve and help you commit to improving.
At a personal development workshop they will help you identify an area in your business or personal life that you would like to improve. At the beginning of each year, you can decide which types of programs will best suit your personal needs and motivate you the most.
These workshops allow you a short break from the daily grind and can help you see things from a different perspective. Training programs, night courses, or weekend seminars that focus on a specific topic can give you a much needed boost in your energy and motivation.
Meeting with other like-minded people can help you see your business from a different perspective. An effective group will have between six and eight members from a variety of industries and will usually meet several times a year.
Second, be health conscious. It is important to work on eating right, getting enough sleep, and exercising.
Exercise always makes you feel better. Regular exercise helps your body work more effectively and keeps you going when you normally would stop.
Your motivation will be high if you get sufficient sleep. This means getting enough sleep to rejuvenate your body. This can change for everyone but on average is around eight hours a night.
Eating right is important so that you make sure you are getting all the necessary vitamins and minerals you need to keep your body working correctly.
It is easier to perform your tasks if you are feeling vibrant and healthy. Taking care of your body will help sustain your motivation.
Third, read or listen to motivational material. Instead of reading the daily newspaper with breakfast or coffee in the morning, try reading inspirational material instead.
A well-written book that offers sound advice is often more motivating than reading about the latest market declines.
Listening to motivational tapes can help you increase your motivation. Listening to motivational tapes or CD's in your car for one hour everyday can actually give you the equivalent of a university degree in a few years time.
There are also many motivational movies that can help move you to motivation.
Fourth, take time off to relax and have fun. In today's fast-paced world, it is critical to take time off for vacation and get some rest and relaxation.
Even a short weekend away from the normal routine can be restful. A true vacation also means completely avoiding email and voicemail. Yes, you may have many messages to deal with when you return, but you will have a renewed focus and energy to do this.
Fifth, associate with positive people. I have made it a point in the latter part of my career to distance myself from negative individuals.
It is important because negativity can quickly drain your energy, not support your goals and desires, and do little to motivate you. On the other hand, positive and optimistic people will uplift your spirits and help you through challenging times.
Sixth, make a plan of action. This will help you decide what you want to accomplish before you get started.
When you have goals or a list of things to do it will help keep you more focused and on track than if you just have an idea of what you want to accomplish.
Seventh, practice the 15-minute time rule. This will help you get started on a project that you don't want to do, but in many cases will help you accomplish it.
The idea is to have a fifteen-minute time limit with a timer to work on a project. You have the option to stop when the timer sets off.
With this method you may realize that you are beginning to develop an interest in the task when time expires. Remember, that even if you don't develop an interest in the task then at least you have completed fifteen minutes of the project.
Eighth, discover your peak hours, or the hours you tend to work the best in. If you have more energy in the morning, then it is the best time for you to take jobs that require more energy in the morning.
Late afternoon hours should be reserved for jobs that require less thinking. If you have more energy in the evening, you can seek profitable work that will match your evening energy levels.
When you take the time to increase your personal motivation you will be able to accomplish your goals and keep motivated to continue moving forward.
