Ideas on getting out of a rut
And some nourishing links of inspiration.
It’s pretty cold outside. And ugly. And it’s Monday on top of everything.
We’re approaching that time of year when every day seems like the one before it and the one after it — aka February — or Mondays.
After a very lazy and thoughtful winter break, my motivation is off playing it’s own version of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Sadly, I’m not invited to the adventure.
What to do when that happens? How to tempt motivation back to working with you?
Full disclosure: I write this from a place of learning, not of expertise. I actually began writing this very article in the hopes of luring my motivation back to its rightful place with me.
So while not an expert on the subject, I do have a considerable amount of experience with pushing myself up-hill to work despite being utterly demotivated to create something novel, meaningful or even fun. Heck, I’d even settle for merely fun without the performance pressure.
So here are my personal go-to tips, in no specific order:
Make space, part 1. Clean up your office. Declutter your files, both digital and paper. Make your space inviting. As a hyper-organized declutter nut, even my space accumulates flyers, downloads, white papers or just scribbles of thoughts in my iNotes. People say it’s a diversion. I’ve found that getting the cleaning up out of the way right from the start makes for a great ritual to kick-start the creative process.
Now really make space, part 2. Tackle the laziness head on. Make no room for any limiting beliefs, dreary self-commentary or outdated projects. Make space in your mind, as well. Nothing is standing in the way of your best possible work, apart from yourself.
Read. Read. Read. Be a sponge for other people’s ideas, thoughts, perspectives. Let knowledge inspire your thinking. Ponder on new things. Explore new concepts or skills. Sooner or later, an idea will speed toward you, calling you to catch it and work it out. Motivation will follow without you even noticing.
Get moving. Move your body and your mind will follow. All this sitting and lounging makes for poor brain circulation. Even just going for a walk through a park, the neighborhood, not the mall. Be part of the real world out there.
Change your routine. Sometimes I get stuck in a certain way of thinking or acting. I’ve found that breaking the autopilot mode also helps me shift into a different gear of thought. And oddly, it can feel like hitting reset on my motivation.
Unpack the why. Demotivation can be a very real sign that something is not working anymore. It’s your inner voice showing you that something needs to change. The hardest part, though, is figuring out what exactly that is. After all, your inner voice may not be speaking with you at the moment. So be kind to yourself while you explore what you’ve outgrown.
To wrap things up, it’s good to remember that a balanced life means there will be a constant back and forth between things. After all, balance is not static abundance of “the right stuff”. I think that’s zen. It rings very true imo.
Thanks for taking a moment to muse with me. I realize I called this issue Vol. 1, and additional volumes may follow. It really depends on how I feel (and you feel) after sending this out. After all, this was an exercise in motivation hunting 😊
If you’d like to share your thoughts, reach out on IG or hit reply to this email. Always thrilled to hear from you 😊
Happy monday.
Désirée
A few things that have nourished me recently
On balancing out too much wokeness. Read
An example on resilience at any age — A 30-year cult column gets ditched.
On saving our cities.
On writing as strategy. Read
On healthy growth and some smart things on intentional marketing practices, from two minds I’m lucky to know personally.
On years that feel unfinished.
Listening in on Fathom’s status update — and reading the weather app wrong.
And a little self-promotion: Part 2 of building new business relationships airs tomorrow! Humbly speaking, I think it’s worth the watch. (Yes, I’m back in front of the cam this episode.) Subscribe to my channel to stay in the loop and check out part 1 here.