How to Motivate Yourself to Work Hard (No Matter Your Mood)

1. How to Motivate Yourselfto Work Hard (No Matter Your Mood)
Work isn’talwayseasy.Sometimesyou’ve gottogrindthingsoutto get the stuff youneedtodo done.If
you’re strugglingformotivation,I’mhere tohelp.I’musingatleasta few of the techniquesI’mgoingto
coverjustto write thisarticle.
We’ve all beenthere.You’re sitting,staringatyourblankscreendreadingthe thoughtof work.New
emailskeeptricklingineveryfewminutes.YourToDo listisgettinglongerandlonger.Yourbossis
wonderingwhere the Michaels’file isandyou’re justdoing…nothing.
Maybe youopenupa Word document,butthenyoucheckFacebook.Again.Thenyougoback to Word
and type the firstwordof the title followedbycheckingTwitterforthe 55th
time today.Before you
knowit,an hour has passed.If you’re reallylucky,you’ve finishedwritingthe title of the document
you’re meanttobe workingon.Youmightevenhave managedtosave it to a folder.Youjustcan’t seem
to getmotivated.
If this scenariodescribesyou,you’re notthe onlyone.Accordingtoa recentGalluppoll nearly70%of
U.S. workersare eithernotengagedintheirworkor activelydisengagedfromtheirwork.If you’re not
motivatedtowork,you’ve gotplentyof company.
Beingunmotivatedreallyisnofun.Youknow youhave workto do, but youjustcan’t drum upthe
motivationnecessarytogetit done.While there’snosilverbulletsolution,thereare a few waysto
motivate yourselftogetto work.It doesn’tmatterwhetheryou’readesignerstrugglingtogetinspired
or an office workerfacingamassive pile of files,thesenine tipstogetmotivatedcanhelp.
Let’sdigin: Watch the motivational video 👉 https://uii.io/Determine
1. Challenge Yourself toJustStart
The hardestpart of motivatingyourself toworkisgettingyourselftoactuallystart.Whenyou’re looking
at an ever-growingToDo listor the massive amountof wordsyouhave to write (around2000 for this
article forme),the prospectof gettingitdone can seemimpossible.
The thingis,once youstart, thingstendtoflow.Thissentence hasfollowedonneatlyfromthe lastone.
The nextone will follow onfromthisone,andsoon and soon until I’mdone.The hardestsentence to
write byfar was the veryfirstone.

2. Once you’ve started,youbuildmomentum.Youcanlookback and see whatyou’ve done.Youmight
evengetintocreative flow.So,howdoyoustart? How do you motivate yourself towork?
Well honestly,the simplest trickI’ve foundistochallengemyself tostart.I seta countdowntimerfor30
seconds,andwhenitgetsto zero,I do the veryfirstthingI needtodo. If I still feel completely
unmotivatedandterribleafterwritingthe firstline of anarticle orrespondingtothe firstemail,thenI
needtotry somethingelse,butatleasthalf the time thistipworks.
Your firstgo to shouldbe the same.If youfindyourself aimlesslystaringata screentryingtowork up
the motivationtobegin,justsetatimer and whenithitszerotake the veryfirststep.Afterall,that’s
howeveryjourneybeginsoreverydocumentgetswritten.
Watch the motivational video 👇 https://uii.io/Determine2
2. First,Do It Badly
Perfectionismisone of the biggestcausesof demotivation.It’sreallybadamongwriters.Youkindof
wantto work,but because youfeel like whatyou’re producingisuttercrap,youcan’t bringyourself to
do it.
The trick here isto decide thatthe work you’re doingisn’tfinal:it’sthe firstdraft.Itdoesn’tmatterif it’s
bad,you can fix itwhenyouedit.All youneednow isa base—nomatterhow terrible—toworkfrom.
While thistrickissuperpopularwithwriters,itworksforprettymuchanything.Whateverthe task
you’re procrastinatingfrom,justdecide you’re goingtodoa bad firstpassor create a superrough
outline.Once you’vegotsomething—anything—done,youcanstart to buildfromthere..
Watch the motivational video 👇https://uii.io/Determine3
3. Eliminate Distractions
Work oftenhappenswhenyou’ve nothingbetterlefttodo,so one wayto make work happen,isgetrid
of everyalternative course of action.If youkeepcheckingFacebookorTwitterorRedditwhenyou’re
meantto be working,getridof them.It’smucheasierto blockthempermanentlyinasingle momentof

3. strengththanto constantlyresistthe temptationtocheckyourfavourite subredditseverysecondof
everyday.It’sthe same withstuff like email.If it’snotabsolutelycritical forthe taskathand, turnit off.
Whateveryourgo-todistractionsare,getridof them.If you’re drawnto the watercoolerto chat with
your colleagues,thentalktoyourbossabout startingworkearlierorstayinglater.That wayyoucan get
a couple of hours of uninterruptedtimetoreallyfocusonwork.If youwork fromhome and keepjust
watchingone more episode onNetflix,thengotoa co-workingspace or coffee shop.Withoutthe
temptationaround,youcan’tbe tempted.
You knowyourself best,sowhateveryourgo-todistractionis,tryandmitigate itina momentof
strength.Personally,Iuse the Mac app Focus to blockdistractingwebsitesandappswhenI’mmeantto
be working.Ihave it set up so I onlyhave tobe strongenoughto pusha single buttononce forall my
favourite distractionstobe blockedforanhour. Withnothingtodistract me,whatotheroptiondo I
have but to getsome workdone?
4. Make Sure Your Goals Are Realistic
Oftenwhenpeopleare strugglingtogetmotivated,they’re makingamountainoutof a molehill.Their
task listisn’ttoobad,theyjustdon’twant to start. I’mas guiltyof thisas everyone.Butthere are some
people whoare actuallyfacingamountain.If you’re one of them, youneedtostepback and reconsider
whatyou’ve takenon.If you’ve gottoo much workit’sno wonderyou’re notmotivatedtowork.
Start by settingsome realisticgoalsforwhatyoucan achieve.There’snopointtryingtorespondto700
emailsina single day.You’ll justbe paralysedbythe thoughtof what’sinfrontof you.Instead,tackle a
small chunkeverydayfor as longas ittakesyou to getthroughthem.Similarly,don’ttryandput
togethera full conference speechinasingle day.Breakthe speechupintomanageable chunksandtake
care of themone at a time.
Watch the motivational video 👇https://uii.io/Determine4
5. Do SomethingtoRecharge
The worst thingaboutprocrastinatingishow drainingitcan be.I feel muchmore tired afteranhour of
scrollingthroughTwittertryingtofindanyexcuse nottowork thanafter an hourof actuallyworking.If
you’ve beensittingatyourdeskslowlylosingthe will tolive foranhour,thenstepawayand do
somethingtogetsome energyback.

4. I’ve foundthatwhat worksforme isto make a cup of coffee,stepoutsideforaquickwalk,or listento
one of myfavorite pump-upsongs.Ifeel evenbetterwhenIcombine all three!
If the motivationtoworkhardreallyisn’tcomingforyou,do the same.Justtake a few minutesof an
actual break—evengrabanap if you can—andthencome back at it stronger.It’samazinghow much
steppingawaycanrefreshyou.
6. RememberWhyYou’re DoingIt
No matterhowdisconnectedyouare fromyourwork,there’salwaysareasonwhyyou have to dothe
workin frontof you.Evenif the trialsand tribulationsof the companyyouworkfordon’toverlyconcern
you,there’satleasta reasonyou’re sittingwhere youare.Itmightjustbe to feedyourfamilyorsave up
for a dreamtrip,but you’re notthere forno reason.
Note:If you’re trulyunhappyinyourjoband are constantlydemotivated,thenyouneedtostartmaking
a career planand lookat howyoucan getout of there.
Hatingyour joband doingitjustfor the moneyisthe absolute worstcase.It’sfar more likelyyou’re
doingyourjob because youfinditan interestingchallenge,you’re wellcompensated,people are relying
on you,or you’re highlytrained.Whenyou’restrugglingtogetworkdone,take a few momentsto
rememberwhyyouchose thatcareer.If you’re adesignerwhose workgetsturnedintophysical
products,grab one off a shelf andfeel it.It’scool that the workyou’re doingonyour computeristurned
intothat. If you’re a traderor salesperson,thinkbackoverhow some of yourbiggestwinsmade you
feel.Prettygood,Ireckon.Thatshouldhelpyoufindthe motivationtoworkhard.
Everyone hasdowndays,so don’tbeatyourself upif you’re notmotivatedtowork.Justremindyourself
whyyou’re there,andsee if thatgivesyouthe kick youneed.
7. Get an Accountabilibuddy
Self-motivationisalwaysachallenge.It’smucheasierif you’vegotsomeone else toholdyou
accountable.One simple waytogeta bitof extramotivationwithoutrelyingonyourbossscreamingat
youis to getan accountabilibuddy.
Talk to a friendwho’salsostrugglingabitwithmotivationandagree toholdeach otheraccountable.At
the endof everyday(orat lunchtime or wheneveryouchoose),checkinandtell eachotherwhat

5. you’ve accomplished.The thoughtof havingtotell afriendyou’ve spentall dayonFacebookwill almost
certainlymotivate youtogetsomethingdone.
If you wantto take thingsevenfurther,youcouldgive yourfriendpermissiontohandoutrewardsand
punishmentsbasedonhowyoudo.There are serviceslike stickthatmake itsimple.
8. Do the BrainlessWorkYou’ve BeenPuttingOff
You don’talwayshave to be firingonall cylindertohave a productive day.Eventhe mostcreative jobs
have huge amountsof mindlessadminworkthatneedsdoing.The followingtasksare all low energy,
but importantenoughthattheyneedtogetdone:
Gatheringtogetherdocumentsforyouraccountant(I’ve beenputtingitoff forweeks)
Updatingyour tax informationwithyourclients(same)
Respondingtoemailsthathave beensittingunansweredforweeks
The time to do these tasksiswhenyoudon’tfeel like tacklingsomethingbigger.
The bestthingabout mindlesstasksisthatyoucan get to an almostZenstate withthem.Goingthrough
your oldaccountsto flagbusinessandpersonal expensesistime-consuming,butstrangelyrelaxing.You
can throw onsome tunesand justgetdownto it.If it’sbrainlessenough,youcanevenlistentopodcasts
or audiobooks.
At the endof the day,you’ll still feel like you’ve accomplishedsomething—because you’ve
accomplishedsomething.Itmightnothave beenyourprimarytask,but gettingsomethingdone isstill a
lotbetterthan nothing.Andit’sasteptowardshow to getto work.
9. Give Yourself PermissiontoDo SomethingElse
If all else failsthere’sonlyone thinglefttodo:stepawayand do somethingelseproductive or
somethingyouactuallywanttodo.
Time spentprocrastinatingmindlesslybrowsingFacebooktododge workiscompletelywasted.You
don’twant tobe on Facebook,you’re justnotmotivatedtowork.If you’re notgettinganywhere,then
give yourself permissiontogive upandgo anddo somethingworthwhile.

6. Now,the keyhere isthat the alternative hastobe worthwhile.If it’snot,you’ll justfeel badabout
skippingwork.However,if youcleanyourhouse fromtopto bottom, reada good book,or hitthe gym,
you’re actuallyusingyourtime well.It’sbasicallypositive procrastination.
While thisoptionshoulddefinitelybe partof your playbookfordealingwithdayswhenyou’re
completelyunmotivated,itabsolutelyshouldn’tbe yourfirstplay.If youtake the easyway outand just
start cleaningeverytime workdragsalittle,thenyou’llnevergetanythingdone.Thisoptionisforthe
one or two daysa month whenyou’dreallyratherbe anywhereelse.