Motivating Yourself

It happens to us all. I felt flat, totally unmotivated.

I was having a hard time starting on a list of things that I wasn’t enthused about.

So, I did what we all do – checked my email.

I got one from a coach who was correlating the motivation it took to lose weight with motivating yourself at work.

He talked about tracking his progress toward his target weight, on an app that showed him the dire results of eating a donut.

The idea he encouraged, was to set your business targets, celebrate your accomplishments and recognize what happens if you go off course. That would get you motivated.

It was all well written and logical. His idea matches the premise behind KPIs, annual appraisals and company goals.

But it wasn’t inspiring. So, back to my emails.

Another approach
Next in the inbox was a link to a Ted Talk by Sarah Kay. I clicked on it because they only take 15 minutes and I didn’t mind stalling for a bit longer.

She spoke with a beauty we rarely hear today. She spoke of disappointment and hope, vulnerability and courage.

In the first five minutes she spoke of us all, of herself and of what she would like to teach her daughter.

There were no facts, no objectives and no way to track success.

And I felt inspired.

She touched my emotion, opened my mind and made me want to try. Try to live a bigger life, be more open minded, connected and encouraging.

Things that excite you
I was coaching a client last week that had a vague hope that her boss could get her motivated, reignited with her job and the daily tasks.

As we talked about her team, both how much they’d learned and their desire to take over the best bits of her job, she had a realization that motivation wouldn’t come from her boss.

It was time for her to reinvent what she was doing.

Time to define her own role differently and hand over the work that would excite and challenge her staff.

Realizing that, meant she could look forward, past the day to day tasks and think about what her job could be.

She considered what she would like to be known for, what level of support her team needed and what would move her forward toward the next job in her career.

As she painted the picture of what her job could be, her enthusiasm was clear. The question of being motivated had gone, she couldn’t wait to do that role, it was exciting and a little scary.

I ask what involvement she wanted from her boss and she looked at me blankly, then laughed and said “None, I want to do this.”

She’d motivated herself.

If you’re struggling, maybe it’s time to find something that inspires you. Look for the things that ignite your emotions, find a way to build them in so that you can feel your job is exciting (and a little scary.)