2 Questions To Ask Yourself When Motivation Is Lacking

Motivation is a pesky concept to nail down. We know what it is, we have hope for where it can lead, but we can't always seem to find it. Then because we can't seem to find it we feel guilty, which on occasion leads to forward progress, but more often than not has quite the opposite effect. Perhaps one of the following scenarios sound familiar:

• You have a list a mile long that seems insurmountable so instead of tackling it you're on your couch in your pjs because the second season of "Cheer" just dropped and you HAVE to find out if Navarro holds onto the title or if they are toppled by the evil TVCC down the road? 

• Yesterday was a super productive day where you conquered your enormous to-do list, got your work out in and served your fellow man, but it's today has devolved into mindless tortilla chip eating while scrolling through social media.

• You want to get healthy, you know you'll feel better if you do, but you've read 999 different books, articles, and IG posts about the "right" way to do it and they are in direct conflict with each other. "Bread is the root of all evil!" "Eat ONLY grains. Meat will kill you!" "Diet Coke is....(well, let's just leave Diet Coke out of it, shall we?) So instead of making a plan you are so overwhelmed that you give up and take a 2 hour nap.

Chasing motivation can be exhausting. Finding it is elusive. Instead let's take "getting motivated" out of the equation and shift the focus to getting unstuck by asking 2 simple questions and then digging a little deeper:

QUESTION #1: HOW DID I SPEND MY LAST HOUR?

Remove judgement--the past is behind you and it can't be changed, but it can give you some good data to work off of. Take the emotion out of it and consider what you can learn from the last 60 minutes. Dig deeper by asking:

• Am I happy with how I spent the last 60 minutes?
• Did it fill my emotional cup?
• Did it move me closer to my goals?  

If the answer to these questions is yes, then fantastic! You're headed in the right direction. If the answer is no, that's OK! Take a minute to figure out why you were unhappy with the last hour. Consider asking the following:

• Was I buffering (avoiding) a necessary task?
• Am I stuck because I have "perfection paralysis"? 
• Are my expectations realistic? If not, how can I reframe them?

QUESTION #2: HOW WILL I SPENT MY NEXT HOUR?

The beauty of the future is that it isn't written yet! Starting NOW you get to choose how you spend the next 60 minutes. It's a clean slate waiting to be filled and thanks to question #1 you have some great information to work off of. Analyze what that information means for your goals and decide accordingly, using some of these questions to find your answer:

• What is one small step I can take right now?
• How can I make my expectations more realistic?
• What will be my priorities be for the next 60 minutes? (Set the intention).
• How do I want to feel when the hour is up? 

Simplifying the process by asking these 2 questions and then digging a little deeper can help you overcome the overwhelm and propel you to positive action which will yield positive results. Your future is not yet written and change is possible regardless of your previous pattern of behavior.

In the meantime, be gentle on yourself, learn from the past and look forward to the future with faith (and maybe a Diet Coke.)