When You’re Just Not Feeling it Anymore! 3 Step Motivation Makeover

When you're just not feeling it anymore

So it’s the end of January, how are we doing with the New Year resolutions? It’s usually about this time that our motivation starts to wane a little and those habits that we have tried so hard to change start creeping back in. Whether it’s eating healthier, losing weight, doing more exercise or simply getting up earlier there is no doubt that for some people changing behaviour takes a lot of motivation, motivation that they seem to lose after the first couple of weeks or so. I’ve always found it interesting why some people are more disciplined than others, they appear to have more get up and go – and are more motivated to do the things they really want to, whereas some, really want to do the things that they know will make them feel better or change their lives but they just don’t do it. As usual it boils down to what we think about it and it’s less complicated than you may think. I have lots of clients through my door that claim they have no motivation at all and I always give them the same scenario. I ask them to imagine that they’ve just found out they have won the lottery, it’s a ticket that they’ve forgotten about but they’ve found it in their pocket, they’ve rung up the National Lottery but they need to get to London tomorrow morning to claim it otherwise they will lose the right to claim. Will they go or do they lack motivation? Of course they’d go! It’s a no brainer, there is no way that they would sit there and say ‘I can’t be bothered’ or ‘it’s too much hassle’ or ‘it’s too cold!’ so to me, this suggests that it isn’t motivation that they lack at all, it’s what they think about what they are doing that is the problem, because if the prize is big enough, motivation is plentiful! We all have an abundance of motivation when we need it, it’s within us already, but like most things it’s our thinking that gets in the way of it – like static on the line, if you like! So how do we get a handle on this thinking so that we can achieve the goals that we want to achieve?

Here are my top three tips:

1. Recognise that it is just thinking that you are doing. In these circumstances we often get sucked into thinking that our thinking is real, that just because we think we can’t be bothered, means we really can’t be bothered. Now we know that that isn’t true because it’s something that you want to achieve, something that you are bothered about. When we allow that thinking to settle we can come back into the moment, back to a point of feeling motivated about our goal. 2. Really visualise yourself doing whatever it is that you want to do (but your thinking is telling you that you can’t be bothered to do), make this your lottery win, how are you going to feel while you are doing it, when you have done it. Really focus on this visualisation and then notice how differently you feel about how much you want to do it. This can work especially well if you have a goal for getting up earlier in the morning and going to the gym! 3. If you are struggling with tips 1 & 2! Imagine that you have an enormous hammer and that you are squashing all the ‘can’t be bothered’ ‘it won’t work’ ‘it’s too cold’ thoughts down to absolutely nothing. It can actually feel quite cathartic! Above all remember that you are not alone, whilst change can be easier than you think, it doesn’t mean that our little brains like it much and sometimes it’s about taking control, reminding ourselves that we are naturally motivated and focusing on the prize at the end that will see us through. By: Andrea Morrison  Andrea Morrison Andrea Morrison is a Transformational Life Coach, Clinical Hypnotherapist & Speaker and is author of The Feel Good Factor in 30 days, for more details go to www.andreamorrison.co.uk