Once I saw a picture of two men; one of them was sitting in his office, sweating, worrying about his next meeting. He seemed like he hated his job and don’t have any motivation at work, but stayed in it for all the money he could earn. Then there was the other man, sitting under a palm tree in the middle of a deserted island, with his hands behind his head, relaxing. Smiling. The picture had a title, too: which one is a wasted life?
Now, if you asked your friends the same question, probably all of them would give a different answer. We are all motivated by different things when it comes to work. Some work for money, some to showcase their creativity, while others do it so they can help people.
So, which out of the three different motivation at work is the real one?
The answer is simple: all of them. You need money to pay the bills and live a happy life, but you also need to be yourself at work in order to be happy. And, if you really want to feel content and satisfied, you should incorporate helping others into your daily routine as well.
Being inspired and keeping the motivation going isn’t as easy as it sounds though.
Okay, you have one of these three reasons (or maybe even all three), so it should be simple, right? This should be enough for you to get out of bed every morning and go to work. If your motivation is money, then surely, knowing that you will get a generous check at the end of the month should be enough to keep you motivated?
Equally, if you work in order to be yourself, because you are lucky enough to have a career you absolutely love and enjoy, then that should be enough, no? What about if you work to help others? Shouldn’t their happiness be rewarding enough to keep you going?
Now, the answer to all these questions is no. At least not all the time. If your kid woke you up in the middle of the night and you can’t go back to sleep, is knowing that you will get paid and be able to pay the bills going to be enough for you to go to work? Probably not. You will be upset, angry even at the prospect of doing what you don’t have an issue with other days.
How do you find motivation and still carry out your usual business, even on those days when you least want to work?
The answer isn’t as complicated as you think. Here are three easy steps you can follow to stay motivated:
- Find out what keeps you going. Is it money? You might want to set a reward for yourself at the end of a hard day. The ultimatum is simple: if you manage to still go to work, even though you don’t want to, at the end of the day, you can use some of the money you have earned to buy something you want. But be careful. This should be a tiny treat and not a habit to do every workday!
- Look for aspects of your job that you actually enjoy. You hate your boss, but your colleagues are friendly? Work with the latter, instead of focusing on the former. You will find that, eventually, the good will outweigh the bad. Of course, keep your main reason(s) in mind, too.
- Think about how you feel at the end of the day. Are you happy? That’s awesome. Make that your motivation for the next day. Find a sense of achievement in what you do. But if you are tired and drained every night before going to bed, you need to look for the core reason. Is it because you need to change your job in order to stay motivated, or is it something you can change?
Again, try implementing tiny rewards at the end of a successful day – but don’t be too harsh on yourself on days that don’t go that well, either. Sometimes even getting out of bed and putting clothes on is an achievement. Just remember: tomorrow is always another opportunity to get that motivation going. If it didn’t work today, it can work tomorrow. Just rinse, forget and repeat.
And, if it still doesn’t work, then maybe the Universe is trying to tell you that some sort of change is in order. Maybe your reasons need to change, or your attitude, and sometimes even the job itself. Don’t be afraid of these changes, as they always inspire you to create a better life and a happier future for yourself and your loved ones.
Also read about “The advent of the new US”.
