Want to know how to build self-motivation? Are you currently setting goals and struggling to take the necessary actions? Are you fed up of setting New Year’s Resolutions and never seeing them through?
You are not alone. Self-motivation doesn’t come naturally to everyone, but the good news is that it can be built. Keep on reading to find out how to build self-motivation
8 WAYS TO BUILD SELF-MOTIVATION
1. Focus on less
If you are currently struggling with self-motivation the first thing you should do is take an honest look at all of the things you are currently trying to do and see what can be removed. Having fewer things to focus on will enable you to channel your current motivation and then build more self-motivation.
2. Get really clear on your why
If you have set yourself a goal and are struggling to be motivated enough to take the necessary actions, then the likelihood is that you aren’t clear enough on your why. Spend some time writing down why your goal is so important. You want to get the point where when you think to yourself ‘I can’t be bothered’ you remember all the reasons why achieving this goal is important to you and that spurs you on to action.
3. Create a pain/pleasure list
If you want to go even the why behind a goal you can create a pain/pleasure list. According to Sigmund Freud, humans are programmed to take actions to experience pleasure or to avoid pain. Therefore, if you want to build self-motivation it can help to identify how taking your desired actions or achieving your goal is going to create pleasure in your life or will help you to avoid pain. Take the time to write down how you will be avoiding pain and how you will be experience pleasure, and ensure it is somewhere you can re-read if necessary.
4. Listen to motivating music
Music is extremely powerful and a great way to be able to quickly change your level of motivation. Music can increase your energy and therefore help with your motivation. However, you may also be able to find songs that have lyrics that actually motivate you to take action. Spend some time working out what music motivates you best and have a playlist that you can turn on whenever necessary.
5. Track your progress
Tracking your progress is a great way to increase self-motivation, especially when you are working towards goals that take months or years. When you have a goal that takes a long time to achieve it will require more self-motivation. You aren’t going to get the instance gratification and as time goes by you might feel your motivation waning. A great way to try and stay motivation on longer goals is tracking your progress. This means that even though you haven’t achieved your goals you are able to see that the actions you are taking are having results and are moving you in the right direction. Being able to see your progress, via your tracker, should help ensure that you stay motivated.
6. Maximise your energy
If your energy levels are low, then you are really going to be putting your motivation to the test. Therefore, make your life easier and maximise your energy. This means you need to look after yourself. This is a combination of eating the right foods, drinking enough water, exercising and getting enough sleep. Looking after your body will help ensure from a physical perspective you have more energy. However, your energy levels are also influenced by your mind and there are a number of ways you can improve your energy from a mental perspective too. Find out more in 7 ways to bring positive energy into your life.
7. Aim to achieve something in the morning
Who doesn’t love starting the day on a high? In the book Eat That Frog Brian Tracy recommends doing the most important task of the day first thing in the morning. By doing this you have started your day off strong. You’ll be pleased about what you have achieved and be more inclined to continue to work through your tasks.
8. Celebrate
I don’t know about you, but I love to celebrate. However, for years I didn’t celebrate enough. I would achieve a goal and straight away be thinking “What next?”. This is no way to live and it definitely doesn’t help you to build self-motivation. Instead, you want to celebrate all of the goals you achieve and be really present when you are celebrating. You want your mind to start to put together the following chain of events: set a goal; take action to achieve the goals; achieve the goal; celebrate achieving the goal. Celebrating your achievements means that really for each goal you set there are now two rewards. Firstly, there is the reward of achieving the goal and then there is the celebration.
There you have it! You now know 8 ways to build self-motivation.
I hope you have found this useful.
In the comments below please let me know what way you are going to try and if you have another way to build self-motivation that I haven’t mentioned feel free to share that too.
