Different people have different ways of working. Some of us go to an office and work surrounded by other people. Others work at home. Some work better in the mornings, others in the evenings. Some like a little caffeine buzz while they’re working. Others find that doing yoga in the morning gets them into the zone and keeps them going throughout the day.
So each person has a different way of motivating themselves. Some might have their system worked out while others might still be struggling with it. Here are some tips that will help you to find what works for you:
Timing
If you read Daniel H. Pink’s book When, you’ll realize that timing is everything. Many people peak in the morning—either early morning or late morning. Then they have a slump in the middle of the day and their energy picks up again in the evening. However, there are other people who are owls. They can be somewhat productive in the morning with the same slump in the afternoon but they always peak in the evening.
Which of these patterns do you fall into? Figure it out and then schedule your most important work to be done in your peak hours.
Visualization
If you’ve read Rhonda Byrne’s book The Secret, then you’re already familiar with the idea of visualization. The idea is to paint a picture of what you want in your mind. Or if you’re not too good at that, then find a physical picture that represents what you are looking for and put it in a spot where you will see it all the time. Byrne recommends starting a “vision board” with all the things you want.
You’ll find that something as simple as a happiness or joy visualization will keep you going when your energy starts flagging. How do you know if something is a happiness or joy visualization? Just think about whether looking at it will bring you happiness or joy.
Judgment
One of the things that prevents people from working is a fear of failure. What if what you do isn’t good enough? What if your boss reprimands you for it? What if you make a mistake? What if it doesn’t lead into the results you wanted? There are a lot of what-ifs.
But while you’re in the process of working, suspend judgment. Be willing to work badly. If you let your fears hold you back, you’ll never get started. At least this is what’s recommended by creativity guru Julia Cameron who says, “Perfectionism has never heard that anything worth doing is worth doing badly–and that if we allow ourselves to do something badly we might in time become quite good at it.”
