5 Strategies to Increase Motivation
My mind wants me to go to the gym, but my body tells me to stay in bed. My mind is telling me to cook a healthy meal, but my body is craving take-out. My mind likes the idea of completing my work assignments on time, but my body is keen on procrastination. Does this mind-body disconnect sound like something you’ve experienced? Likely, for many, the answer is yes. There are an abundance of activities and behaviors that we wish we could readily engage in to better ourselves, yet we struggle to follow through on these pursuits.
What is Motivation?
Motivation is what pushes us to do something. It’s the reason behind our mind’s desires and our body’s physicality being able to work in alignment to stimulate action.
Research on the topic of motivation reveals important findings. First, becoming motivated to engage in a new behavior is hard! These behaviors require brain power, literally. Our pre-frontal cortex must attend to and focus on the task at hand in order to accomplish it. Alternatively, those behaviors that seem to come easy or naturally to us, ones we may describe as habits, no longer require this level of mental effort. Second, positive outcomes increase your chances of re-engaging in a behavior. As one theory emphasizes, rewards are reinforcing, and punishments are not. Related, another theory emphasizes that rewards can be either external (based on societal reinforcement) or internal (based on personal values). Your rationale for wanting to engage in the behavior is essential. People are more motivated to perform an action when the desire or intention is coming from within, in other words, when one chooses to engage in a behavior out of his/her own agency and volition, not because of pressure from others.
Feeling unmotivated? Here are 5 Strategies to Increase Motivation:
Don’t get frustrated.
Enter with the understanding that the task at hand will be hard, and it will take time. Expecting perfection right off the bat is unrealistic.
Check in on your priorities.
Ensure that you can properly concentrate on the new behavior in which you wish to engage. For example, if a specific work assignment is your priority for the day, it may also be difficult to focus on the new exercise routine that you hope to begin. Prioritize your tasks, and determine the best setting and time of day to begin the new behavior so that you can exert the mental and physical energy it requires.
Think through your “why” or you reason for wanting to engage in this new behavior.
Do you feel forced to participate? Are you doing it because people around you are doing it? Did you see someone on social media do it? These experiences don’t necessarily mean that your level of motivation will be low, but it’s important to find a personal connection to the new behavior as well. In other words, I want to clean my house because I feel more at ease when the clutter is gone, not because I’m having guests over for dinner, and I’m afraid of what they might say.
Be specific, realistic, and consistent about your goals.
Motivation is hard to uphold when the task or goal is broad and seemingly unattainable. Instead of setting a goal of reading all the books in your house that you have not gotten to yet, aim for reading one book this month. If you accomplish this task, set a goal of reading two books next month. As you begin accomplishing behaviors, regardless of how small, your level of motivation to proceed will likely increase.
Identify and implement a reward system.
When you’re feeling incredibly unmotivated, choose rewards that provide immediate gratification. This will help you cross that boundary from inactivity to activity. For example, if I spend 30 minutes reading articles for my research paper, I will reward myself with 30 minutes of screen time right after. Once you’ve begun engaging in the behavior, then you may choose to gradually decrease the reward or perhaps assign a more internally motivating reward for better long-term results.
If procrastination or perfectionistic tendencies is holding you back from accomplishing goals, you may benefit from therapy. Reach out to me here to get started!