Even the most motivated us can lose our motivation. There are times we don't feel like doing anything or even not thinking of anything. We get into slump that making positive changes seems to be difficult.
But hey...it's not a hopeless thing! A small step can lead to giant step. You can get started down the road to positive change.
Yes, I know it seems impossible at times. You don't feel like doing anything. I've been there, in fact I still feel the same time after time. So you're not alone.
When I fall out of exercise due to illness, busy with work or simply just being lazy. It's hard to get started again. But, I've always found way to break out of the slump and here are the things that I've learned :
1. One Goal. Whenever I’ve been in a slump, I’ve
discovered that it’s often because I have too much going on in my life.
I’m trying to do too much. And it saps my energy and motivation. It’s
probably the most common mistake that people make: they try to take on
too much, try to accomplish too many goals at once. You cannot maintain
energy and focus (the two most important things in accomplishing a goal)
if you are trying to do two or more goals at once. It’s not possible —
I’ve tried it many times. You have to choose one goal, for now, and
focus on it completely. I know, that’s hard. Still, I speak from
experience. You can always do your other goals when you’ve accomplished
your One Goal.
2.Find inspiration. Inspiration, for me, comes from
others who have achieved what I want to achieve, or who are currently
doing it. I read other blogs, books, magazines. I Google my goal, and
read success stories.
3.Get excited. This sounds obvious, but most people
don’t think about it much: if you want to break out of a slump, get
yourself excited about a goal. But how can you do that when you don’t
feel motivated? Well, it starts with inspiration from others (see
above), but you have to take that excitement and build on it. Once I’ve done that, it’s just a matter of
carrying that energy forward and keeping it going.
4.Post your goal. Print out your goal in big words. Make
your goal just a few words long, like a mantra (“Exercise 15 mins.
Daily”), and post it up on your wall or refrigerator. Post it at home
and work. Put it on your computer desktop. You want to have big
reminders about your goal, to keep your focus and keep your excitement
going. A picture of your goal (like a model with sexy abs, for example)
also helps.
5. Think about it daily. If you think about your goal
every day, it is much more likely to become true. To this end, posting
the goal on your wall or computer desktop (as mentioned above) helps a
lot. Sending yourself daily reminders also helps. And if you can commit
to doing one small thing to further your goal (even just 5 minutes)
every single day, your goal will almost certainly come true.
6.Realize that there’s an ebb and flow. Motivation is not
a constant thing that is always there for you. It comes and goes, and
comes and goes again, like the tide. But realize that while it may go
away, it doesn’t do so permanently. It will come back. Just stick it out
and wait for that motivation to come back.
7.Start small. Really small. If you are having a hard
time getting started, it may be because you’re thinking too big. If you
want to exercise, for example, you may be thinking that you have to do
these intense workouts 5 days a week. No — instead, do small, tiny, baby
steps. Just do 2 minutes of exercise. I know, that sounds wimpy. But it
works. Commit to 2 minutes of exercise for one week. You may want to do
more, but just stick to 2 minutes. It’s so easy, you can’t fail. Do it
at the same time, every day.
8.Think about the benefits, not the difficulties. One
common problem is that we think about how hard something is. Exercise
sounds so hard! Just thinking about it makes you tired. But instead of
thinking about how hard something is, think about what you will get out
of it. For example, instead of thinking about how tiring exercise can
be, focus on how good you’ll feel when you’re done, and how you’ll be
healthier and slimmer over the long run. The benefits of something will
help energize you.
9.Squash negative thoughts; replace them with positive ones.
Along those lines, it’s important to start monitoring your thoughts.
Recognize negative self-talk, which is really what’s causing your slump.
Just spend a few days becoming aware of every negative thought. Then,
after a few days, try squashing those negative thoughts like a bug, and
then replacing them with a corresponding positive thought. Squash, “This
is too hard!” and replace it with, “I can do this! If that wimp Leo can
do it, so can I!” It sounds corny, but it works. Really. Seriously
