The depressing result of low motivation is tough. It causes low self-esteem, guilt, and worry. Your relationships with family, friends, and colleagues as well as your job opportunities and mental health might suffer.
Do you ever get frustrated that you simply can’t get going on a task? Have you ever put in a ton of effort into something but have that sinking feeling like nothing is really getting done? Do you have trouble focusing and finishing things that should be easy?
Here’s the seven causes of low motivation:
1. Procrastination
Procrastination is when we avoid a task for no good reason. People postpone tasks that are stressful or challenging because it’s easier to just not do them.
The problem is quality.
Everyone wants to do an excellent job of everything, and unfortunately, the more you think and stress about it, the more difficult the task will be. The key is to just start and lower your expectations. By simply starting, cutting corners, and producing something, you’re moving forward. This is the most effective solution to procrastination – just start with lowered expectations.
The second biggest challenge with procrastination is dedicating time. If you’re procrastinating taking on a task because of the potential/presumed time-commitment, just block off 20 minutes to take on the most important next step of your goal.
Need an extra push? Think of a small reward! Anything that gets you interested. Just keep it healthy.
2. Mood
When you’re unmotivated because of a bad mood, you’ll avoid taking on anything challenging. A bad mood won’t let you get anything done. It can be the root cause of poor motivation, so we need to solve this.
What you need is a distraction.
Improve your mood by doing something relaxing or fun. Physical activity, taking a rest, looking at your vision board, and even rage-cleaning can switch you out of a bad mood.
3. Fear of failure
People have a lot of fear around wasting time. They assume other people are naturally better, and they worry that they’re never gonna achieve that same level of success.
Think about this another way: fear of failure may just be the best way to avoid failure. Fear is an excellent motivator. Want to guarantee not failing? Just don’t try.
Listen, no one wants to fail; it’s just how you respond to that. If you give up, the effort is lost. If you refocus and learn from those lessons with greater motivation, the effort was a benefit.
4. Dopamine
Your own brain is against you. It wants to be happy, safe, and prevent ourselves from risk. That happiness comes from little bursts of dopamine, and it’s one of the biggest productivity killers.
Dopamine drives you toward the things that excite you, and the opposite direction from the things that might be difficult. Why work hard on studying, learning, practicing, or anything productive when you could be watching nonsense, reading useless news, or playing a stupid game?
How do you cure dopamine problems?
- Start taking notes about things you do to avoid productive time. Which do you want to reduce or even eliminate?
- Spend 3 days on a dopamine cleanse. Do none of these unproductive things. Don’t worry about taking action on goals at this point – just worry about dopamine-based time sucks.
5. Time commitment
“I don’t have time” equals “I don’t want to make time.”
Really, what are you doing with your time?
- Sleeping in? Go to bed early and get an alarm.
- TV / Games / Internet / Social media? Quit losing hundreds of hours to mindless consumption.
- Household tasks? It’s called “outsourcing”.
- Looking for things? Get organized.
- Commuting? Move or change your start time.
Get a routine, commit to productivity, prioritize life over “time drainers” – those things that take your time, and give you nothing in return.
Decide to make time for what you want.
6. Risk
People get so worried about the possibility of failure more than they get excited about being successful. It’s totally OK to be worried or afraid of failure, but you can’t let those feelings stop you from taking risks. In most cases, what’s really the worst that can happen?
You can look at any risky challenge, and think about the potential worst outcome. Is it really that bad to waste a bit of time or money if it helps you get what you want?
Here’s the trick: Take calculated risks
Failing leads to knowledge, knowledge leads replanning, and replanning leads to saved time. If you end up wasting a little time but end up with a better plan, it’s absolutely worth the effort.
7. Letting go of the past
Yesterday is gone. Think about the stock market. Traders around the world are buying and selling everyday. Traders have to absolutely and completely forget yesterday. Yes, they could have made millions making the move they considered, but they know that yesterday is gone. “Shoulda woulda”. Like them, you need to be always moving forward. It’s never too late to start, and it’s never too soon to take action.
Stock brokers have the most amazing quality of forgetting yesterday and only thinking of today and onward. Your past mistakes, failures, missed opportunities, traumas, loss, and regrets need to get out of your mind entirely. These events are robbing you of excellence today.
It’s tough for so many people, but the past is no longer real. It was real then, but it’s not now. The future isn’t even real; it’s a concept or idea. Depression about the past and anxiety about the future is something only in your mind.
So what can I do to be more motivated?
Low motivation leaves you unfulfilled. By understanding these causes of low motivation, you can take steps to address them.
When you prioritize yourself, you unlock your potential and achieve the success you deserve.
