Self-Motivation: 11 Ways to Increasing Personal Motivation

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Self-motivation is an essential skill for development, both personally and professionally. An individual who understands their desires, values and priorities can understand what really motivates them and, in turn, can channel their energy to reaching fulfilment. The truth is, a self-motivated person knows how to attract opportunities and resources, because they are not afraid to take the action required.

Investing in self-knowledge and understanding is vital to developing self-motivation. In fact, what drives you to leave the comfort zone and be able to pursue your dreams and professional goals, is what will ultimately drive you to improved self-motivation too.

There are several factors that can motivate us. These factors can be a combination of both internal (thoughts and feelings) and external (life situations and circumstances).

Practicing daily techniques focused on positive attitude and approach are a great place to start.

Remember that your motivation is up to you. Your boss, your partner, your spouse, your friends, relatives, or analysts are not capable of fundamentally changing this. Sure, they can help, but you alone are ultimately responsible for your motivation.

Having goals in mind is essential to keeping motivated, because when we think about our goals, the desires to achieve said goals come naturally. Developing further enhancing willpower, determination and focus will add to our ability to translate motivation into required actions.

If you think self-motivation may be an issue for you, here are some tips that can help you create a daily routine and subsequently boost your motivation.

1 . Invest in Fundamental Self-Knowledge
We have established that, at the end of the day, you are responsible for your own motivation. Therefore, self-knowledge is the first step for you. Understand and learn more about your skills, abilities and even points for improvement. Self-knowledge is important, as it will unlock the ‘how’ and ‘why’ behind self-motivation and the goals for which motivation are important.

2. Begin Personal Planning
It may sound cliché, but this one is true. Personal planning is the key to professional achievement and success. Through planning, you really can maintain the balance between personal and professional life. You’ll know where to start and where you want to go. Search for tools to make your plans and set the best planning period for you. This could be daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly. Invest in agendas, bullet journals, planners and other accessories geared to organisation and planning.

3. Get Active
There is so much research out there which cites the benefits of exercise - and countless surveys that show how it can improve you. When you don't exercise, it's not just your fitness that suffers, but your other goals suffer as well. Your work after exercise, is likely to set you up for productivity. Sure, take the weekends off but if you can do so, try and start exercising at the beginning of every working day. We’re pretty certain you’ll feel the different. It is one of the best ways to motivate yourself.

4. Have self-confidence
Self-confidence is the key to motivation! Insecurity, fear of taking risks, making mistakes, and being ridiculed are all things that prevent us from achieving. Really try to work on developing your self-confidence through a greater sense of self-understanding. Know where your strengths and weaknesses lie and work to use these to your advantage.

5. Understand What Fulfilment Looks Like
Developing a level of awareness around what makes you feel happy and fulfilled as a professional, as well as understanding your dreams and knowing what you want to achieve are all fundamental to staying motivated. Quite often individuals will have goals and objectives but not have a clear vision of the level of fulfilment beneath them. Work out what they are.

6. Set Realistically Achievable Goals
Goal settings is vital to success. Self-motivation comes when you realise that everything makes sense to you. Having goals set helps you to recognise your skills and find the energy to keep making progress and if you are tracking your goals effectively, you will quickly be able to clearly visualise that success.

7. Develop Emotional Intelligence
Thanks to Emotional Intelligence, you can identify and understand emotions, feelings and what they cause in our existence with greater precision. It is also worth noting that Emotional Intelligence points out ways in which we deal with our emotions. Identifying, understanding, and respecting the differences of the people with whom you interact, can help you to build stronger relationships. But did you know, the satisfaction achieved through positive relationships can actually motivate you?! So, go and make new friends, form mentoring relationships and invest in existing relationships.

8. Don't lose focus
It is important to keep in mind that challenges are always present. You are unlikely to have life plain-sailing for long periods of time. That’s just life. the important thing is not to let these challenges interfere with your work. Be careful of distractions and mindful of staying focused on your results.

9. Learn to Think Positively
Positive thinking and working on mindsets are not a one-off. Learning to think positively and practicing it on a frequent basis is vital to success. Positive attitudes not only allow us to face challenges head on, reach our goals and go further but they also allow us to create good humour, positive vibes and relaxation with colleagues, friends and co-workers.

10. Invest in Relationships
Rarely will you find an individual who achieves success alone. We are sociable beings, and we need other people to achieve dreams, share problems and be happy. A good interpersonal relationship with mentors, superiors, colleagues, and customers can make a huge difference to motivation.

11. Don't be afraid to change
We often settle into jobs and organisations, despite them not bringing us professional satisfaction. Sometimes what we settle for doesn’t even align with our goals. Yet, we let ‘life’ get in the way and we settle for something because it feels comfortable. Don’t be afraid of change. Change will help drive you and give you opportunities to reach goals and objectives.

Mentoring in Self-Motivation If you believe you need help to be a more motivated person, know that mentoring and coaching can be powerful allies in your process. If you’re looking for a mentor to talk to about motivation, you can join PushFar free. Motivation is a complex issue and motivating yourself may seem to be difficult for some people. Self-motivation is a challenge because it comes from within. You can rely on external factors and friends to help motivate you, but at the end of the day, you are solely responsible for motivating yourself. The sooner you learn to motivate yourself and stay focused on your goal, the greater your chances of success. Remember to examine and understand your needs, change the way you view unwanted tasks and always try to link them to something intrinsically motivating.