Feeling Unmotivated? Try These Strategies to Get in Gear

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The sense of being able to start something new at the beginning of the year is like “I’ll start on Monday” on steroids. Highly motivated and completely determined to change, goals are set and things are done a little differently. Run a mile each day? Meal prep each week? Workout five days? It’s all possible. Inevitably, excitement over our new goal fades, life gets overwhelming, and before too long we find ourselves saying, “I’m just not motivated.”

It’s amazing how a single thought has the power to derail so many people from their goals. We’ve been conditioned to allow our actions to be determined by something that’s completely unreliable. Depending on motivation to guide us is like depending on toilet paper being available during a pandemic; if you need it and it’s not there you’re up 💩 creek without a paddle.

Change is hard, as is sticking to something long enough for it to become a habit. Once a new habit is formed, the behavior happens without much thought, making it less likely your mind is going to screw you with the thoughts of not being motivated.

In the meantime, here’s some strategies to help you stay on track when you don’t feel like doing the stuff necessary to become the person you want to be.

Get to the Heart of Why You Want to Change

Being able to stick with your goals when that voice in your head is convincing you that you don’t feel like doing what needs to be done often comes down to knowing why you started the journey in the first place. Why is changing important to you?

Unfortunately, this critical step is often either completely bypassed or given little thought when goals are created. Take the time to think deeply and figure out what’s truly behind wanting to change things in your life. The reason for wanting to lose weight, get back in shape, or start eating better can easily be stated as wanting to fit back into your favorite jeans, being tired of feeling like crap, or wanting better results from your bloodwork. The reasons that are going to matter most go deeper than the surface. Reasons like the fact that you don’t have any energy means not being able to play with your kids when they ask, or that you’re afraid you may not be there to see important life moments of those you love if you continue down your current path. Reasons that matter most are going to spark emotion. When you come up with your first reason, keep asking yourself “why” until you have an answer that you have no doubt will be powerful enough to keep you on track regardless of the distractions that come your way.

Once you know the deeper reason why changing is important to you, find some way to keep it in the forefront of your mind. Maybe place a sticker on your bathroom mirror, a note to yourself on your computer, or create a custom screensaver for your phone. Figure out something that works for you because consistently reminding yourself why you’re making the effort to change makes the day to day tasks of doing so a bit easier.

Be Accountable

Accountability can be a powerful force when it comes to staying on track with your goals. Promising someone you’ll meet them at the gym or at a fitness class is more likely to get you there. We don’t want to let other people down. Sometimes keeping a commitment to someone else is easier than keeping the commitment we’ve made to ourselves.

Another option for added accountability is to find an accountability partner. Put some thought into who to ask to fill this role. Make sure it’s someone who will indeed hold you accountable and challenge you to stay on the right track. Tell them your goals and check-in regularly regarding what’s been going well, what hasn’t (if anything), and why. Be honest, vulnerable, and allow someone to help you make the changes you desire in your life.

Take Action

Change comes from action, not from just thinking about things. Start by making time for the actions you need to take to create change in your life. If you’re going to exercise, schedule it on your calendar and treat it with as much importance as you would a doctor’s appointment. If you want to prep meals for the week, determine when you’re going to plan the meals, go to the grocery store, and do the actual prep. Be intentional. Thinking “I’ll do it when I have time” is likely to result in allowing the importance of what you want being overshadowed and pushed aside by other demands on your time.

Next, when not feeling motivated, when that sabotaging voice in your head says, “I just don’t feel like it,” recognize that your mind isn’t looking out for your best interest and tell that voice to shut up. Don’t try to negotiate with yourself. Know that choosing to feel better in the moment is going to later turn into feelings of regret. Remember why doing what you need to do is important to you and take action regardless of how you feel or of what thoughts are convincing you to do otherwise. Take action whether you feel like it or not. Sometimes the biggest struggle is getting started. Tell yourself that you’ll do the task for just a couple of minutes if necessary. Chances are once you’ve gotten started, you’ll feel good about what you’re doing and the voice in your head will be silenced. If necessary though, tell yourself “just a couple more minutes” until you’ve followed through with the commitment you made to yourself.

Change is hard, especially when motivation is considered the driving force behind whether or not to take action towards a goal. Recognizing that motivation isn’t reliable and taking action to get you where you want to be, regardless of how you feel, will serve you well when wanting to accomplish your goals. Hopefully, the strategies I’ve mentioned will help you along your way!

Reach out to me here if you have questions or would like some help achieving your goals.