I am on my 3rd cup of coffee, I have checked my email inbox 100 times (no new mail, still), read through my proposals, checked voicemails. And then suddenly, I get the urge to go chat with a co-worker, and then I decide to get a snack out of the fridge, and then I figure now is as good a time as any to catch up on the daily news, hmmm I wonder what’s on TV tonight…..
Crap. I have successfully wasted 2 hours doing absolutely nothing. There is certainly no lack of work: I could be making phone calls to follow up with clients, doing research for my newsletter, looking at my first quarter sales, but I’m not. What’s going on? I am trying to get myself motivated, right after I finish watching this hilarious clip my friend sent me from YouTube….
It’s a serious phenomenon happening each and every day right in our very own respective cubicles; we’re lose motivation faster than the polar ice caps are melting.
So, how can you stay focused, and intern, stay motivated at work? Not every task put in front of you is going to make your heart sing. I love doing expense reports as much as the next guy, but sometimes I yearn for something a bit more stimulating. Call me crazy. So how can you create a happy balance at work so you feel motivated to both the desirable and undesirable tasks with equal amounts of fervor?
Step One: Examine. Figure out what you love about your job, what you hate about your job, and everything else in between. Make a list and split tasks into categories. This can make accomplishing the ”hate” tasks less daunting when compared against the “love” tasks.
*Tip- If you cannot find one aspect about your job that you love, you might want to consider switching careers.
Step Two: Set a schedule. If you delineate when tasks are to be done and deadlines for completion, you are far more likely to accomplish your goals. Keeping a calendar is essential. If you are most productive in the morning, do the tasks that require the most thought and effort in the beginning of the day while saving more menial, monotonous tasks for another part of the day when you mind is less alert.
Step Three: Make a list. If you write down everything you need to do in a day/week/month you can focus your energy and not waste time trying to get organized.
Step Four: Alternate. Do the tasks that you like the least, first. Just like eating your vegetables when you are a kid, you can’t have dessert until you eat your Brussels sprouts. But once you have gotten the less desirable tasks out of the way, make sure to reward yourself (in a reasonable capacity- you don’t get to take the rest of the day off just because you stamped a few envelopes).
Step Five: Get Real. Don’t set goals and expectations for yourself that are unattainable or unrealistic. You will become frustrated and lose motivation quickly by setting the bar too high. But Don’t set the bar too low either. No one is impressed that you achieved your goal of showering all 7 days this week! By setting reasonable expectations, you reap the benefits of achieving your goals both large and small.
Step Six: Check in. If you start to feel yourself slipping into the oblivion of distraction, figure out why. Maybe you are not challenged enough, seek more responsibility, have outgrown your job role, don’t like your co-workers, feel like you have plateaued. If after examining all these factors you still have your head in the clouds, it’s time to dig a bit deeper and really look at your career and lifestyle versus just you daily and monthly organization.
Other factors that may enhance daily motivation include:
-Music(or lack thereof)
-Office Personalization- bring in pictures of friends, family, pets, just make sure they are office appropriate (no keg stand pictures).
-Good Lighting
-A Better Chair
-Snacks- Sometimes something as simple as a snack around mid afternoon can be enough to recharge your batteries and wake your brain up.
-Keep personal tasks to a minimum
-Interact with your co-workers
-Keep work at work- if you are taking work home at night the line between business and personal gets blurred. Keep work outside of the office limited, where possible.
