OK, from the title of the post, you may get a feeling that I am going to boast about my own principles or values. Nope! Well may be yes. The fact is, I am not writing this post to get my values out there and become an icon (that is a disclaimer).
Last week I asked people on LinkedIn about what keeps them motivated when they are totally down. And there had been awesome responses to it. So this is my turn.
As you know, one of the goals of this blog is to help you find your answers on self improvement needs. And one of the most important self improvement need is “motivation”. To keep it “up” always is really a big challenge.
I know it is really hard and most of the times almost impossible to hold on to your motivation. This may happen if you are doing certain routine tasks leading to boredom, if you are having depression or a downtime in your personal or business life, if you are not getting the expected results in expected time and so on.
The causes for lack of motivation cannot be avoided because they are literally everywhere and simply part of our lifestyle. But we can surely do something about keeping ourselves from getting demotivated.
And so I thought that I will share with you the simple stuff I do to keep myself motivated. You are most welcome to use these tips.
I craft my surroundings
This is one of the biggest helpers for me. My workplace or home – whatever it can be, I just craft it so that it keeps me bright all day. I make it a point to clear away the clutter, since that can make me demotivated for sure.
When I see a lot of paper notes, edible stuff, tissues, scattered pens etc. that seriously drives me crazy. Even worse, when I work on such a surrounding I can easily get “down” on little things.
I learned it the hard way. So I am more careful with my surroundings and I actually craft it the way I want. It depends on you actually. Just customize your surrounding in such a way that you can work easily, with a free mind and with a feeling that you don’t have too much to take care around you.
I set goals and work towards them
Yes, I start my day knowing what to do. This might sound like a trivial thing for many, but believe me, most people fail to accomplish tasks effectively on any given day just because they don’t know what to work on.
I usually start my day with a to-do list prepared on the previous night. I don’t spend half an hour to draft a professional to-do list. I just spend up to 5 mins to list the tasks I need to attend and of course, I make my list effective.
When you start your day and believe that you can complete tasks as they come in, you will never be able to achieve anything and even worse, this will be a great de-motivation. Don’t waste your time and energy on hopping between tasks without goals.
I shut my eyes and ears for negative talking
I bet you get a lot of negative stuff as input. You have people who talk nothing but demotivating stuff to others. Sometimes it feels as if they are all around us.
Listening to or participating in such kind of tasks will get you nowhere, and even worse, will simply bury your spirit in a deep pit. Simply ignore such talks and do not take part in such conversations hoping to brighten someone else’s day. Yours will be in jeopardy.
I don’t lose hope
I know this one’s hard. I simply believe in Jesus (I am spiritual, by the way) and have faith in him. Even in the worst situations I don’t think that this is the end.
I always know that there will be a better future and that I will get over with it. So, I am not asking all of you to believe in Jesus (if you do, that is not a bad thing 
); just have some faith on something that is more of value, strength and hope to you. Don’t lose hope!
I know the importance of motivation
OK here comes the tricky bit. If you know the importance of money, you won’t lose it carelessly. If you know the importance of a particular friend you won’t do things that will hurt him. Similarly, if you know the importance of motivation you won’t easily lose it.
Just realize how important is it for you to be motivated. Ask yourself how important is it for you to be motivated for your business and/or personal life.
I bet everyone needs motivation. Without that everyone will lose a significant “something”. Just hold on to this thought and never let go.
It is your turn to tell me how you keep yourself motivated.
About Jane
Good post on how to stay motivated. Forwarded to my twitter followers. I loved the last point, know the importance of being motivated, it’s great!
Thanks John. Sure the last point helps a lot!
Hi, Jane!
I really keep my self on these principles but still hopelessness is always looking towards us, and many times i do get motivated by hopelessness, one of the best way is to do more and expect less.
keep this and go ahead.!
Yes, when we keep our expectations high, there is a high chance that we’re gonna get disappointed and this leads to us losing hope.
Sometimes staying motivated is very difficult. But I have a list of long-termed goals to be achieved and I constantly add new goals to this list
I want so many things to achieve that it’s impossible for me not to be motivated.
Of course, sometimes I feel depressed and am ready to give up but then I look at the list and start again.
Anna, having clearly defined goals is one of the easiest ways to stay motivated!
When I was a solo blogger on my site it was harder to keep motivated. I work better when brainstorming and with a team. So when I brought in a staff and we have our private networking group on Facebook I get motivated almost each and every time we have topic discussions or idea’s to share about where to take the blog. Communication and conversing with fellow bloggers and peers are one of my biggest sources of motivation.
Justin, yes keeping people around boosts and brightens things. We just have to make sure that they’re the right kind lol. I’m sure it is so in your case
Last night I had a meeting with an old friend of mine and internet marketer. He told me how he made a 5 figures income a year with one of his websites and also shared some of his new ways of making money online. You see, I like competitions, and when someone is saying to me, “hey I reached this level” I want to do better than that.
I guess this is one of the things that keeps me motivated, the competition.
Sure, little successes always are a great motivation.
I’m a perfectionist in general so staying motivated is my way of life. I can’t imagine myself without any ways out or possible solutions to the problem. The desire to solve the problem, to overcome it makes me be motivated all the time and never give up,
Hi Jane.
Thanks for sharing this. It’s nice to know how to keep ourselves motivated all the time. Because once you lost your motivation, it will be a hard live for you I guess.
Hi Jane,
It was meant for me to read this post. I have been putting off a home improvement project for sometime now, and I am always saying-I am going to get it done, but something else catches my attention from doing it. I know I will feel more productive if I just get my home improvement project done. I will feel so much more livelier after I see how beautiful it turned out to be. Thanks for this reminder.
Tisha
Great article Jane – and sounds like you and I have very simily ideas about what to do to keep ourselves motivated. At the moment I’m so motivated I’m feeling a bit hyper – but last week was another story. When all of the little, unavoidable junk begins to pile up I know the best thing I can do is give myself a ‘time out’ and that’s what I did. For 2 days I regrouped – walked myself step by step where I want to be in 3, 5 and 10 years. And, I even took a hard look at my niche to make sure I’m still on target … it was time well spent and I came out on the other of this exercise feeling SO much better and focused. Thanks for the tips and inspiration!
The way you craft your surroundings is similar to what I do. A cluttered workspace or living area just clutters the mind. It’s frustrating. So I keep my areas tidy, I’ve let go of the people who drain me and are negative about my pursuits, and I set goals.
When things get overwhelming I reach out to other positive people. I lose myself in questions and conversation with them. I fill my mind with what’s happening in their world and that helps. Sometimes I’ll just go to the gym to keep me positive and pumped up about being productive. If I do neither of those I’ll simply take a deep breath and walk away from the source of frustration and gather my thoughts.
It’s good to have a few tactics you can rely on to recharge your motivation.
Hey Jane,
Those are great points!
I really like the tip about planning your work the day before. I don’t do it consistently, but whenever I do, it seems to help the day flow smoother, and helps me stay motivated.
Nice blog you have here by the way,
Martin Dale-your friend in business
Hi Jane,
awesome topic. Motivation and will power are closely. I just learned recently that will power is located in the conscious part of the brain – the mind – and therefore not permanent. It will fade off und we have to respect that to a certain extent otherwise we’ll burn out. I respect that by being lazy, meditating, mowing the lawn, going swimming with my wife and my kids and running outside. Chances are I wake up in the morning, could get up, but don’t because I do a breath meditation for let’s say 30-60 minutes. When I finally get up then, I am fully recharged and motivated.
Thanks for sharing your insights.
Take care
HI Jane, what a wonderfully motivational post! I like you try to stay focused. It’s not easy, but with will power I make it happen and tend to get far more accomplished by not hopping between tasks, although still, self discipline comes into play.
I just took time out too, to start with a clean slate as you will read on my last post.
I too, share your faith, and frankly don’t know what I would do without my anchor. Its the best free help available to anyone!
Not losing hope is a biggy too. Actually it becomes more than that. with hope we are pushed to keep on trucking!
Lovely to get an insight on ‘Jane’ … I really enjoyed this post.
Thanks so much for sharing.
Jayne
you’re very welcome Jayne! We all try to stay focused and its not that easy!
Tough one. It helps if there is little or no distractions. I get distracted easily by things going on around me. The phone, tv, people, you name it. I need quiet, well at least it helps. I like to do most of my important work late night while most people are sleeping. I find it easier to concentrate and less distractions.
Well said Jane. And to be honest I really don’t see anything moving forward without proper motivation. I have to admit that everything I do or want to do has to be propelled by “motivation”. Without it, there seems to be always something missing. If I m not motivated, things will go wrong, period. It really does not have to be a big thing, sometimes all you need is that little extra push to get things going. When I feel less motivated about something, I either shift my gears towards something else or find ways to pump up my motivation… Obviously this is easier said than done…
Hi Jane,
Having some structure in your life can help you, but that faith in Jesus is what makes you able to be motivated. If you realize that you ARE a success before you start because of Him, then everthing else is as easy as falling off a log. Thanks for a nice post, Jane.
Lou
Yes, one should always be positive and block out any negativity. That negativity can be your downfall when you are reaching the top. One simple – negative – thought can make you lose a whole lot of progress.Gabi
Thanks for sharing this wonderful insight of yours Jane. To keep oneself motivated is always a challenge. I so agree with you on setting your goals and work towards them. This will keep you focused and help you keep motivated. Great post!
Hi,Jane,
it is good to realize the importance of motivation,because once you do it,you will set your goals forward and won’t get easily demotivated. It sure works for me, and I noticed you named the importance and value of motivation, as well.
Dedication is the key to success.
Hi Jane
What you said is of great help. I think of the needs of my family to get motivated.
However, when i see the fruits of my labor, i become even more motivated
i think passion create the paths, what one need to be succeeded is to be more passionate about it.
Hey Jane,This is awesome and I\’m very happy I dropped on this! ( :I think the hardest thing for many is not losing hope when things aren\’t going the way you\’d like. Atleast that\’s the hardest for me. I have my ups and downs, but in the end I CAN\’T be a quiter. I could never look at myself the same if I put as much work as I have into my dream to give up. No matter the results I\’m determind to keep persisting by all means until I reach my destination. For me, this goes with the people I hang around. I have learned that association breeds assimilation, and this is why I associate with positive people. People that have the same drive and are determined to prevail by any means.Your motivation is always under attack, but you have to stay laser point focused.Just my 2 cents.God bless,William Veasley
i have same experience to and sometimes i almost give up, but from you post here i sure this the way i must do, i will print this post and add to my wall to reminder and as motivation for me, thank you for such motivation post
Thanks for giving us some insights how you keep motivated. Yes, motivation is a funny thing – we all need it which is true. The other thing which I’ve come to realize is that we need motivation on a regular basis, much like vitamins. Therefore, it is essential that we keep a steady supply of it. A couple of ways I do this is have constant reminders around me like art, posters and other items at home that are motivational. I also keep on top of blogs like this one on my Google Reader.
I also attend live events and seminars since I find them quite motivating as well. Motivational resources are everywhere but we just have to keep tabs on what works for us so we can go to them as needed.
Loosing hope is a sin. Always be hopeful about your goal and try to work consistently. Learn from all those people who have achieved goals in life. Positive motivation is cause of learning.
Can I change your question. How do I stay motivated in blogging? Actually I stay motivated everytime I see my blog traffic grows monthly.
Jane -
Thanks so much for this article. Finding motivation is not always easy for me, and I appreciate seeing what works for others as a way to add to the things I do myself. The only thing I would add to this list is that I try not to give myself too many things to do because then I get daunted and know that I won’t finish, whereas if I set reasonable expectations and finish them I feel motivated to do even more!
Rosie
What you said is of great help. I think of the needs of my family to get motivated.
However, when i see the fruits of my labor, i become even more motiva
Hello Jane,
This post couldn’t have come at a better time for me. As a new blogger, sometimes its hard to see the forest for the trees. There is so much to learn when first starting out, that at times it can become difficult to remain focused on important tasks. Not to mention the fact that it may take several months or even years before a blogger begins to see the results he or she desires. Sometimes lack of results can be a de-motivator, therefore I try to remain patient and remind myself that building a blog takes time. Each day I invest in the future of my blog by adding content that’s both relatable and usable.
What you said is of great help. I think of the needs of my family to get motivated.
However, when i see the fruits of my labor, i become even more motivated
hope is the best way along with struggle towards a focused goal and optimism is one of the way to be motivated
Keeping oneself motivated is not an easy thing. I generally prefer to meditate to release all the negative out of mind. Not losing hope is definitely the key to achieve anything. Thanks for this useful post.
Hi Jane, thanks for this topic about motivation. I stay motivated by doing what my inclination wants me to do. I listen to my spirit man and will accomplish whatever I know is important.
That’s amazing Deline – listening to your inner voice is very important; especially in this busy world, no one tends to listen to their mind. Hence they end up doing what they are not supposed to do
Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Jane,
Thanks for motivating us 
Nice Info and tips that you shared with all of us which will surely going to motivate us