TL;DR It’s normal to feel unmotivated, especially if you’re tired or overwhelmed. The good news is motivation can always be fueled. Take care of yourself first and the motivation will follow.

Not everything goes according to plan, and sometimes we suffer disappointment. But that doesn’t mean we will stop what we are doing, especially when working on our dream. It is not easy to get motivated when nothing goes your way, but during these moments, we are tested on how much we want to succeed in what we are doing and in life.

Finding motivation is sometimes hard; not every day do we wake up and be on our way with a positive attitude. We are inspired by different things; after all, we are individuals with different goals in life. But no matter what we want in life, we need to work for it, and having the drive to pursue our goals requires a lot of effort. And sometimes we lack the motivation to do the hard things. In this article, I will give tips to keep you motivated as you work on your goals.

Look At Your Progress

Nothing motivates us more than imagining the perfect life that we want for ourselves. That is why you are putting all your effort and time into working towards your goal. Regularly reviewing your progress toward your goal is a good motivator; this lets you see how far you have come since you started working on it, and it also improves your self-esteem.

We have tendencies to have a burst of motivation and progress when we start and suffer a lump in the middle of the journey. It is advisable to break down your goals into more specific, small, and achievable goals; this way, you can see your progress easily and will not be overwhelmed by the bigger picture. No matter how small your progress is, always keep track of it. This will show you how much you have improved since you started your journey.

Surround Yourself with the Right People

People who mentor and help you grow are the ones that you need to move closer to your goal. They could be a relative, one of your closest friends, or even a colleague. Being surrounded by the right people who complement your positive self-talk will not only motivate you but also help you manage your anxiety and negative emotions.

Having people with the same mindset and goal as you are a big factor in achieving your goal. They help boost your confidence, give you advice, and open you to new perspectives. These are the people who will help you grow and offer wisdom as you go along the way. On your down days, when you second-guess yourself, it is important to be surrounded by people who influence you positively; this will help you get through it better.

Set Small Goals

To motivate ourselves, we usually visualize being successful and living the life we want. But what we commonly disregard are the steps that we need to take to achieve that goal. And when we think about it, we usually get overwhelmed by how hard it is. That is why a better approach is to break our main goal into smaller ones.

In this approach, you can see your progress, and you will not be overwhelmed by the steps you will be taking to achieve your goal. For example, you want to be able to read ten books in a year, but thinking about it makes you procrastinate because of how many hours you will be spending reading every page. Start small; read five pages a day until you gain the momentum to read more pages than you expected. This gives you the confidence and motivation to pursue your dream of reading ten books a year.

Setting smaller goals will not only give you the drive and motivation to keep pushing toward your dream, but it will also give you confidence and boost your self-esteem since you can see how you have progressed since you started.

Be Creative How you Approach a Task

It is hard to be motivated when you are doing the same task in the same manner for a while; you get burned out. One of the best ways to fight being burned out and unmotivated is to be creative.

Being creative lets you approach a task differently and opens a new perspective on how you look at things. Being in a constant routine dulls our senses and how we think, but being creative with your approach will ignite your curiosity and motivate you to do something new.

Even when we are working towards our goal, being stuck in the same routine can drag on. Sometimes a fresh perspective is all we need to give us motivation.

Reward Yourself

Nothing is more motivating than seeing the fruition of your hard work. That is why rewarding yourself after a job well done is one of the key factors in keeping us motivated. After a long project, it is nice to reward yourself with a new pair of shoes, isn’t it?

But be careful about setting rewards for all your hard work. Rewards are external motivators for you after performing a task, but that doesn’t mean you will compromise the quality of your work. Setting a reward system for yourself must include the requirement that you finish the task with high quality; this will help you maintain a standard for yourself and your work.

When we aim for something—a fitness goal, a promotion at work, or just being able to do better than yesterday—we are motivated. And when we are motivated, we go the extra mile to do things. But it is not always the case; not every day are we ready to go that extra mile. Motivation is not as elusive as we think it is; we just need to broaden our view of it. Sometimes it may be hard to find, and sometimes it comes knocking on our door. But remember, as we keep working on our goals and move forward, motivation will always find us.

I am as motivated as you are to reach my goals, and I am also happy to help you with other things. I am Dr. Krysti (Lan Chi) Vo, MD, a psychiatrist, speaker, and advisor. And together, let us help each other become a better version of ourselves. For more articles like this, please visit my website.