Getting Motivated and Staying Motivated

Motivation is a topic that people always question, how do I stay motivated? How do I reach my daily goals? What's the easiest way to get my motivation up? All are very good questions, with very different answers. The truth is that it's not the same for everyone. It's not really a matter of what is the best of easiest way, but rather what is the best way for you? Motivation comes in many different forms and is sometimes just as spontaneous as inspiration. The trick is to keep it once you have it.

Getting motivated is something that really needs to be tailored to the specific individual, you can't use someone else's motivational techniques and expect them to work for you. It can take practice and patience to really get the techniques perfect, but until then, experimenting is important. You can't always expect to be motivated straight away, but once you get there, it's much simpler to keep yourself there. The first and possibly hardest step to motivation is to get yourself into a positive mindset, it's hard to be motivated if you think badly of yourself. This is difficult for many reasons, but most commonly it's hard to be in a positive mindset when you've spent the majority of your life with a cloud over you. Letting others dictate your life is possibly the worst thing you can do and whilst this might be something you already know, a lot of people still find it hard to understand the concept of taking their own lives into their own hands. I can't tell you how many time I've gotten myself motivated for something only to have someone come alone and tell me that I'm doing something wrong. I've let this get to me and then completely ruined any chance I had of doing the task I was supposed to. Whether in my personal or professional life, motivation is something I value greatly, it's hard to get things done well if you don't enjoy it. Productivity is greatly affected, in a bad or good way, by the motivation of the people completing the task, and your mood often shows through your work.

Something I have learned over the years is this; It's never too late to start again. Yes, I know you're confused about this, but trust me, starting over is not as scary as it sounds. Whether you move away from your comfort zone, get a new job or do something completely different to what you've been doing, starting over is a great influencer for motivation. One of the hardest things people have ever done in their lives is face the uncertainty and start again, but once over this hurdle, it's hard to imagine why you ever thought it was such a crazy idea in the first place. Many experts have said that starting over can give you the fresh perspective you need to complete a particularly difficult task. Changing your perspective is a massive boost in confidence and often allows you to see what others don't, especially if those others were simply doing the same thing you were.

Personally I believe that creativity is a big influencer in work, life and social interactions - when meeting new people, you can't follow a script. You have to be an attentive listener, gauge their reactions to certain topics and learn what is and isn't a safe topic of discussion. Regardless of the reason for interaction, this is always the same formula and though you might be able to formulate your way into making a friend, it's hard to keep one if you aren't genuinely interested. This is the same for motivation - what works for one person doesn't necessarily work for the other.