When you first start your job, staying motivated can be easy, but after you’ve been doing the same job for six months or a year, staying motivated can become difficult. If you find yourself struggling to stay motivated at work, here are some tips to help keep you enthusiastic and excited about your job day in and day out.
1) Have a To-Do List
To-do lists are used by nearly every successful person. They help keep you on track, knowing what is still left for you to do and how much time you have left in a day. It is important to focus on tasks that need immediate attention, as well as those that need specific action taken later in order for them to be completed successfully. Additionally, it’s important to prioritize your list daily because no matter how many tasks are in front of you; there will never be enough time in a day for all of them. Therefore, it is vital that you rank each item based on how necessary it is and determine how long it will take you to finish it before getting started.
2) Do Something Fun
One of my favorite productivity hacks is doing something fun. When you’re working on a task that requires a lot of focus, it can be easy to fall into a rut. If you feel yourself getting stuck, go do something fun for 5 minutes. Go chat with a coworker or make some coffee. Break up your day with small breaks—it helps keep your mind fresh and can even help you make better decisions when it comes time to resume working on whatever project you were focused on before. After all, research shows that when we don’t take regular breaks, our work quality actually decreases over time! And if you get stuck one more time after taking a break? Take another 5-minute break!
3) Find Your Zen Space
Find a place where you can go to be by yourself. Some call it their Zen space, but that doesn’t have to be a literal space. It could be just turning off your phone or being in another room. The point is to get away from everything and take some time for yourself. Find ways that help you focus on nothing but your own thoughts. Meditation is a proven way of getting into your Zen state, which will help you with all aspects of life—not just work motivation.
4) Get Up and Move
When we sit in front of a computer all day, it’s easy to forget how simple it is to be physically active. But regular movement—particularly when done regularly—can help boost mood and productivity, and ward off unwanted pounds. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends adults get 150 minutes of moderate physical activity (or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise) each week—that’s just 20 minutes a day, five days a week. If that seems hard to do, start small: take a walk every morning before you get your coffee or pop out for lunch with a friend instead of sitting through another cafeteria meal on-site.
5) Take Breaks
In order to focus on tasks and goals, you first need a fresh set of eyes—and your brain certainly needs some time off. The human brain can only concentrate for about 40 minutes before it needs a break. Every two hours, take 10-15 minutes for yourself: stand up, walk around, or even take a quick power nap if that’s what helps recharge your energy levels more effectively. If you’re lucky enough to have an office with windows (or even just a view), spend that time looking out at something other than your computer screen.
6) Set Goals
Research shows that people who set goals are typically more productive. Studies also show that, when we fail to reach our goals, it’s because we didn’t set them properly in the first place. Make sure you set realistic and relevant goals for yourself—and then make sure you review your goals on a regular basis. Be honest with yourself about what needs improvement, or where your lack of progress is stemming from. In short: be open to failure and use it as an opportunity for growth instead of allowing it to get you down.
7) Be Positive
One of the biggest reasons people lose motivation is because they believe their efforts won’t pay off. To be successful, you have to believe in yourself and your goals; without that confidence, you’ll never be able to move forward. However, positive thinking can sometimes seem like a constant battle. If you find yourself slipping into negative thoughts, don’t stress—there are some easy ways to find motivation again. First, practice gratitude: each day, write down three things you’re grateful for and remind yourself how lucky you are that these things exist in your life.
8) Mindful Eating
One of many ways people lose motivation is because they feel as though their work doesn’t matter. When people lack a sense of purpose, it’s easy for them to put off tasks and drift through their day. The best way to combat that urge is by surrounding yourself with reminders of why you’re working in the first place—stick post-it notes with personal mantras or favorite quotes on your monitor, use images or words as desktop backgrounds, listen to upbeat music while you work, and so on. The more often you can focus on your goals when you’re in work mode, the easier it will be for you to stay focused. Spend five minutes before work brainstorming about what makes you want to get up and come into the office each morning. Once you've done this exercise, take a moment before starting your daily tasks to review your thoughts and let this remind you of what motivates you in life outside of work. Then, spend five minutes at the end of each day thinking about how you accomplished these goals today (or didn't), what challenges arose (and how you overcame them), and what new ideas came up along the way. If possible, make time for any activity that provides physical stimulation such as going for a walk during lunch or listening to upbeat music before bedtime; this helps promote deep sleep which leads to higher levels of energy when we wake up in the morning. If you are feeling particularly unmotivated, talk to your manager or someone else who has a say in your performance. Take an honest look at how you're feeling and try to pinpoint where the problem may lie - is it too much stress? Not enough support? Being given an unclear workload? These are just some potential causes, but there may be others. Talking openly about these things can help relieve pressure and lead to solutions that better suit your needs. Remember, if nobody was motivated all the time, then no one would ever have anything completed! So find ways to motivate yourself every day, even if only for 5 minutes, and write down everything that comes to mind, don't worry about whether or not it's important. Focus on setting small achievable goals for yourself and always remember that progress is progress no matter how small it may seem.
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