13 Ways to Stay Motivated in 2018
As creatives, we tend to find ourselves in these drained states where we JUST DON'T FEEL LIKE IT!
We have to be self starters and when we are our own bosses, it can be hard to find new ways to stay motivated. I polled 100 creatives and 87% of you said you have the same problem as me. Look, I'm glad I'm not alone, but seriously, there HAS be a better way.
YOU CANT OVERWORK YOURSELF
Every once and again I AM PHYSICALLY EXHAUSTED. So when I notice it I'll take a nap... maybe I’ll sleep the day away as soon as I get some down time. I think it’s important to listen to what your body is telling you. The last time I felt like this I slept almost the ENTIRE day away and it felt really good.
It wasn't until recently that I got to the point where I can sleep all day and not feel guilty. I used to get so mad at myself when I slept longer than whatever you consider a normal nights rest (for a single mother of two with a business to run and the ambition of the world lol) ... which for me is normally anywhere from 4-6 hours of sleep per night. But because wasn’t being productive and hitting my own daily goals, I’d feel the need to call "all-nighters" for myself. I use the term "all-nighter" VERY loosely because I can only work a few hours before my brain literally turns into mush ESPECIALLY if I'm already at the point where I'm worn out.
The crappy thing about that is, I would be so tired that I couldn't even THINK, let alone get any work done. It was pure stupidity. I couldn't get anything done the next day either because I was the hell tired!
REST YOUR MIND BODY AND SOUL
I had to realize, refueling the body is super important. I HATE that I had to learn this the hard way! I needed sleep to keep my creative juices flowing. The thing that was different this go round, was that my mind hadn’t been as rested as my body. That next day for me was a complete dud. I sat curled up on my couch in front of my television screen (which is something I HARDLY EVER DO) and binge watched the entire last season of "Being Mary Jane”!! The only thing I actually did was take a conference call with my salon team. Other than that I was practically cut off from the outside world.
Since watching tv is something I hardly EVER do, I really sat down and tried to process it all. The next morning when I woke up I was back to my normal self, in GO MODE! I had an extremely productive day. I was checking things off my to do list like my normal GSD SELF! (GSD is Get Shít Done ... lol). It makes me think every time I get like that.
FIND WHAT INSPIRES YOU
On a normal day for me, in the morning I always try and find a way to incorporate inspiration. Although I’d love to do it all I tend to pray and then pick something off this list:
Meditation
Listen to an inspirational speech or lecture
Take a nap (yes I said take a nap, yes in the morning! I feel like you’re judging me but that’s what works for me darn it lol)
Read
Take a bath
Light a candle
I want to get to the point where I can fit more of this in a day but this works for me at the moment. I’ve also realized, being a creative can have us needing more options and variety to stay motivated. Because of this, I've composed a list of 13 things other creatives (that I think are dope) have suggested:
STAY MOTIVATED
Search for things that inspire you
Do something you've never done before
Surround yourself with other creatives
Go somewhere new
Listen to music
Visit a museum
Take a break
Keep negativity away
Stay positive
Surround yourself with ONLY positive ppl
Workout
Get still and be silent
Travel
What I've learned as a business owner, self starter, and all around creative is that rest is just as important to productivity. We often look at it as taboo because there are so many things that we want to get done. What we have to realize is we NEED to be fueled properly to accomplish it all.
There is no right or wrong way to re-group. The important part is that we take the time to replenish ourselves physically AND mentally. Be good to your body, keep your mind positive, and the rest is in the bag!
