5 ways to get you back into action and motivated again.

If you’re like me, you want to be as strategic as you can in how you plan your time and what tasks you set out to do. It makes good sense to be working towards your long term goals through all of the activities you participate in. It’s important to stay on track and knowing where you are heading.

But where are you heading and what is the best way of getting there? I’m sure many of you will recognise these feelings. Worry becomes procrastination which creates more worry etc.

Are you taking yourself too seriously?

Take a walk to calm your thoughts and lighten your spirits.

When you begin to take yourself too seriously, the need to be strategic can become an overwhelming need to ‘get it right’. This is a sure-fire recipe for  over-worrying (if such a term is possible), which in turn easily leads to feelings of being stuck. It’s rather like a form of business stage fright, “I’ve got to get on, but I just don’t know how I can manage it”.

The important thing is to change your mind-set around it.

One of the best ways of doing that is by being playful or light-hearted about it all. Here are some of my suggestions of things you can do to lighten your mood, get you back into action again and feeling motivated once more.

• Start by writing a blog post on any subject that takes your fancy. Often the process of writing creatively and with a sense of pleasure can focus your thinking and get you into a calm, pleasant space where you begin to think more clearly.
• If you want to know how to go about something, ask yourself that question but don’t go searching for the answer yet. Go and do a crossword or a sudoku puzzle and when you come back just listen to the first answer that comes to mind.
• Go out for a walk, preferably somewhere green. (Don’t go for a run or a swim as this takes too long and can too easily become a form of procrastination in itself.) Just breath fully, notice what’s around you and let your thoughts gently flow with your walking.

Seeing things clearly and simply put, helps decision making more easy.

• Write 3 tasks down on pieces of paper and shuffle them or roll a dice to see which you should start with. It’s a good idea to have 2 short, simple tasks and one more substantial one to do. Whichever comes up, just go for it and get it done.

• This is where having a coach really comes into its own. Your coach’s job is to help you think clearly and confidently take the actions you need to. If you don’t have a coach, phone a friend. Tell them what you intend to do and ask them to call you back in an hour to see if you have completed the job. Just go with the first idea that comes into your head and don’t question whether it’s the best one or not; the point is to get started.