Lack of Motivation at Work? Here’s How to Get it Back

Even if you love your job, there are days when you just don’t have the motivation to do anything.

You try your best in front of your laptop and get the minimum word count, but quickly erase them again. Nothing feels right. One day you zone out in a meeting, forget what you have to say, completely lack focus, and so on. Needless to say, you lost your motivation to work.

Overcoming that emotional barrier to get the work done when you would rather go into the YouTube video hole isn’t always easy. Take some moment to pull back from your laptop and breathe. Let’s asses the situation why you are not motivated, and let’s go from there. Here are some good advice that we gather for you to get your motivation back and get back on track again:

• Self Evaluation
  If the lack of motivation happens everyday and consistently reoccur, take some time to think and evaluate what brings this in the first place. Subconsciously, the stresses from private life can follow you into your work life. Find some time to  explore the why, then assess whether it affects you physically or emotionally. If you think it’s more complex than that, there’s no shame in consulting a professional.

• Start slow and small
  Having a massive goal in your career is a must. In reality, it’s your day to day activities that count and will slowly, but surely, get you there. Ever wonder why people are so attracted to mini cookies? It’s easier to digest and less intimidating to finish. Before you know it, you finish a whole bag! Same goes for your job. Of course, have a big goal to reach to keep the motivation up, but you can also break it down into small, achievable goals that will help you make progress. It will give you a sense of accomplishment.

• Setting boundaries
  For entrepreneurs and freelancers, this may be the most difficult thing to do. There’s a need to be productive all the time. Access to emails is in the palm of your hand and you have that itch to just finish your task before you get some rest. Getting a rest is not a reward, it’s a necessity, it’s part of life. Know when enough is enough and get a realistic time to rest. When your body and mind get enough time to rest at night, you will feel refreshed in the morning and ready to have a productive day.

• Focus and stop worrying over small things
  Sometimes, it is the small inconsequential things that demotivate us to do our job. Someone once said that if you worry, you suffer twice. Have a look at your to-do list and prioritize tasks that are meaningful to you or part of your larger project. Do one thing at a time then continue to the next after you’ve finished the first task. Scratch things that are unnecessary or/and you can do tomorrow. Don’t waste your precious mental energy over unnecessary things.

Read also: Time Blocking: Next Level Daily Planning for Personal Productivity

• Reimagine your workspace
  Try to move around your furniture, if you work from home, rearrange your work desk, get some natural light, add some greeneries around your space, it may lift your mood and inspire motivations to do your work. Better yet, a change of scenery is probably what you need. Visit a coworking space that’s accessible to your commute and get yourself motivated to be productive.

• Get moving
  It’s widely known that exercise benefits not just your body but also your mental health. Also, it’s not good for your posture in to sit all day. Find what exercise best suits you and is realistic for you to do. There are a lot of free and accessible exercise classes these days. A good 20-45 mins exercise a day will benefit you a lot in the long run. If that sounds too much at the moment, try taking a stroll outside the house to wind down after a long day. It can be a good way to decompress, and who knows, maybe you will find inspiration for that poster design you’ve been working on, and the motivation to work on it.

• Treat yourself
  … but don’t go overboard! Sometimes a nice gift for yourself can be a good source of motivation. Find out what you are like to do right now outside work and go from there. That noise canceling headphone you’ve been eyeing on, it might help you focus more on your task. Maybe a staycation in that new boutique hotel? It’s good to have a change of scenery, it may lead to a change of perspective, thus new ideas. Get yourself a personalized gift card for coworking space that you may use in the future, or you can give as a gift to your friends (that may or may not experience the same thing as you). Treat yourself to inspire productivity

• Just do it!
  It’s easier said than done, but sometimes all you have to do is just to do the task. Instead of waiting around for inspiration and willing yourself to get motivation, what if you just go ahead and do the work? Dive right into it and the focus will come along the way.