3 activities to boost your motivation

Maybe you’re anxious or are having a hard time focusing on work right now. The trick is to do something - anything - big or small - that feels productive to you. Then another and another, until you’ve eventually regained some confidence and control over your head. This advice comes from someone we highly respect. We turn to these three tactics regularly to prevent demotivation. They ALWAYS work!

1. Clean something.

If you ever feel anxious and fearful that you don’t have control over what’s happening in your life or career, organize something, whether it’s a room or your digital files. Tidying up is a simple visual reminder that you do have control over some things and that control is earned / regained through a little effort. It’s a way to distract your thinking, move your body, and find some relief from toxic inner dialogue. Even a little bit of work does a lot of good.

2. Throw something out.

Reducing the amount of things that you own just works! Material things can sometimes cause us subconscious harm that we didn’t know was there until it finally wasn’t. Marie Kondo, author of “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up,” says we shouldn’t keep any items that aren’t bringing us joy. She suggests that you take every item you own, one-by-one, into your hands and examine how you feel.

You know the saying “when in doubt, throw it out” for groceries? What if we made a new one that goes “when you’re full of doubt, throw some things out” ...?

3. Help someone.

Helping others calms the nerves, lowers anxiety, energizes our spirit, and even improves our health and longevity! It triggers the reward center in our brains that is responsible for dopamine-mediated euphoria. This is what they call the “helper’s high.” You don’t have to change lives, just help out in some way. Plant a seed. Could a friend benefit from an introduction that you can arrange? Could someone use a compliment and some encouragement? We all need each other more than we’re willing to admit. Open up your awareness and seek out opportunities to give.