There are people who are naturally more motivated than others. Everyone—even the greatest procrastinators among us—possesses the motivation to accomplish what needs to be done. However, just as everyone can become motivated, almost everyone will also experience a lack of motivation. Some people experience them for longer periods than others. There is, however, good news. Motivation can be regained by determining the cause and identifying a solution.
What is Making You feel Unmotivated?
If you notice a loss in your motivation, always remember to try and stay positive. During periods of feeling unmotivated, it can be easy to get caught in feelings of remorse. However, you have to remember that everyone experiences a lack of motivation every now and then. In fact, a lack of motivation can be a great way to determine if there is something in your life that is not going in the right direction. Being able to categorize what is making you feel unmotivated you will help you understand the causes so you can work on regaining your motivation. Here are some of the most common reasons we experience lack of motivation:
Fear
You’re afraid of what lies between you and your goals. Fear is an evolutionary mechanism that makes us hesitant to face the unknown or situations that may seem harmful. Our fears are meant to protect us; however, they can be so strong that they hold us back from working towards the goals, projects or activities that are coming up in our lives.
Our fears can be dealt with, however. First, identify the cause(s) of your fears and then determine why you have them. Most of our fears are purely psychological. Therefore, asking yourself the question “what’s the worse that could actually happen?” will help you identify which fears are rational or irrational. Second, if you find that you still possess any rational fears, identify the steps you need to take to proceed past these fears. Nothing is too intimidating to keep you from accomplishing your dreams.
You’re Close to a Burn Out
It may seem contradictory that being too busy may be zapping our motivation. However, over-exceeding the limit of what we can manage in our day-to-day lives might be leaving us physically and emotionally drained. If you are finishing each day completely exhausted or if you’re feeling like your to-do list is overbearing, perhaps it’s time for you to slow down.
Reducing our daily workload may be what we need to regain focus on the activities that are most important to us. Create a daily to-do list and start off by only listing the activities that you must accomplish. Then, add any other to-do’s that are not necessary or as important to you. This will allow your schedule to be more manageable and will let you focus on the goals that you feel are most important to you.
You are Setting the Wrong Goals
It is so easy to become absorbed by the activities that are “expected” of us that we often lose track of what is important to us. We often set goals based on what we believe we are “supposed to do” and not what we want to do. The problem is, if we are pursuing a path that does not interest us, we are not going to be motivated to follow it.
The next time you write out your short-term or long-term goals, think about the emotional reaction you have to those goals. If you cringe or feel uneasy when you write down your goals, that is a good indication that they are not the ones you should be pursuing. Motivation stems from the reward and achievement we receive from activities accomplished. Follow the goals that excite you.
You Lack Clarity or Don’t Know Next Steps
One of the most significant contributors of feeling unmotivated is not knowing what your goals are. When we don’t know which steps we should take, we fall into a pattern where we only participate in the activities that are familiar to us. When this happens, we may find ourselves in motivational stagnation.
Instead of focusing on the unclear long-term goals, do some research and establish short-term goals that will give you direction towards the accomplishments you want to achieve. A lack of clarity can be very detrimental to our motivation. It is difficult to know where to start when we don’t know exactly what we want. Focusing on short-term goals can relieve some of the stress and will give you the grounds to figuring out the “big picture.”
A lack of motivation can be very stressful and may leave us feeling negative. However, even the best of us experience waves of feeling unmotivated and career stagnation. Periods of feeling unmotivated are not entirely negative, though. In fact, your lack of motivation may be a great way to determine if the goals or projects you are currently working on are beneficial to your life. If you are presently feeling unmotivated, identify the cause and consider the steps you need to take to either overcome your limitations or determine if your current projects are working in your favor.
