Have you ever felt unmotivated for days or even months without wanting to get out of your bed?
Okay, I know the answer is yes. Because we’re human, and it’s okay. But what is not okay is to feel like this for weeks or months and just do nothing. And by doing nothing, I don’t talk about doing something really productive like having a new project or cleaning your house. I talk about not doing your hobbies, not socializing, or whatever.
When we feel unmotivated, we wait for the aha moment. We spend too much time scrolling on social media and reading quotes about motivation because we think it will improve our thoughts and improve our lives. But I don’t think it’s the best solution.
To improve our lives or to improve our thoughts and to move, the best solution is ACTION.
But I think it would help.
I was in this kind of low. Like really low. I wasn’t able to get out of my bed. I think one day, I spent my whole Saturday in my bed thinking about my life. And I didn’t eat!! Yes, me, I didn’t eat!! And it lasted for a few months like this. And it’s not by reading the motivational quote that I got out of my bed. It’s by action. But not any action.
So here’s what I did and what you can do to get out of a rut.
Why you’re unmotivated
And right now, you don’t really know why you’re in this kind of state. Maybe you need some sleep; perhaps you achieved so much that you can’t do anything anymore. But perhaps it’s not the case.
So try to analyze why you don’t want to do anything. Perhaps you didn’t have the expected results you wanted for one of your projects, and you feel discouraged. Maybes, you just need a break, and you need to rest.
So take a piece of paper or your journal and ask yourself how you feel right now.
And you can ask yourself these questions:
- At that moment, why I don’t want to pursue my project?
- What is holding me back? Am I afraid of something? (if you want to see more about this, watch my video about fears and limiting beliefs)
- And finally, what is the small step I need to achieve to get back on my way?
Analyze your thoughts; your feelings is the most powerful action you can take to move on.
When I was feeling like that, and when it’s the case, sometimes, I take my journal, and I write everything that comes to mind. And I ask myself these questions.
If you feel a little bit lost in your life, you don’t have projects, or you don’t really have passion. I have something for you. I created a FREE workbook with the most important ten questions of your life. It will help you have a clearer vision of your future life, what you like to do, and your personality. It’s the first when you want to change your life. I will put the link in the description below.
Use the 2-minute method
Okay, so now, you probably understand why you don’t do anything. So the second tip is to do all the things that take less than 2 minutes, like cleaning your desk or doing the dishes (okay, maybe it’s not really 2 minutes), and just keep going on. Try to do as many things as possible. And you will see that you will achieve so much in so little time.
The 2-minute method is something I learned by reading the book getting things done, and it’s really effective. I encourage you to read this book you want to find tips to be more productive.
When I’m not feeling motivated at all, I try to analyze all the things I can do in less than 2 minutes, and I do it. Okay, it’s easy when you’re apartment is a mess. But you feel boosted! And after that, you’re ready for the real things.
For example, last week, I was alone because my boyfriend was on vacation. And when I’m alone, the apartment is a mess. Yeah, I know. I don’t like to be in this mess, but it’s stronger than me. I’m totally discouraged from doing anything when I’m going back home after a long day. So I accumulated for a week, and on Sunday, it wasn’t possible anymore. So I take the tasks one by one, and finally, I achieved more than what I wanted to do. I did things I didn’t plan to do, and finally, it took me just 2 hours to do everything. But if I didn’t do it all at once, I would have done them, taking a lot more time.
And it’s so satisfying!
I also like to do it for my Youtube channel. For example, I start by making pins for Pinterest, then I create my thumbnail for the video, and finally, in less than 30 minutes, I achieve so many little things. It’s like batching. You do approximately the same thing to save some time. Like cooking, doing your laundry, or even creating youtube videos.
I like to simplify my to-do list to make things achievable. So I have many small and simple things to have the feeling to be more efficient and achieve more in less time. And it’s so satisfying to check the boxes.
About this method, you can find it not for you because it could feel discouraging to see all the things you have to do. But actually, I like to have that and to have the feeling to achieve a lot. So it depends on your personality.
Okay, so let’s move on to the next tip.
Use a timer
When I wrote my thesis, it was difficult to just sit and write it. So I use the Pomodoro method. So I put a video on Youtube with 25 minutes of working and 5 minutes of break, and actually, like a charm!
When I only have one hour or even a morning just for me, I like to do it. I like to use 25/5 min or even 50/10 minutes.
I tell myself that it’s only 25 minutes, but it’s crazy how many things you can do during this time. It also helps me focus on what I need to do because I use the 5 minutes to scroll on social media or make tea. And then I’m focused on the 25 other minutes.
It’s a really good tip if you don’t have a lot of time.
I think you can relate if I tell you that you don’t start something if you don’t have an hour ahead of you.
I’m like that too. But I realized how much time I wasted because I waited to have an hour to do something. So now, I try to do this method as much as possible.
Do easy things or do what you love
When you feel unmotivated, it’s difficult to do complicated things. You feel instantly overwhelmed. So try to do easy things or things that you love to do. For example, it’s crazy, but I like to edit my videos; I find this easy. So when I don’t have the motivation, but I want to publish another video, I edit. And after that, it’s easy to things more complicated.
But for example, I feel totally overwhelmed by managing my social media. For me, it’s too much work, and it’s too complicated. Yeah, I know it’s crazy! So for this, I do it when I’m feeling super productive, but it’s not always the case.
And just a reminder here, you don’t have to be productive 24/7. If you feel unmotivated, doing something you like to do apart from your side hustle or your projects is great too.
In this case, I like to take a book and read for an hour or even go outside and just walk in the park. When I do this, it’s a kind of meditation. I think about a lot of things, and after that, I’m feeling motivated again. It helps me to refocus on my projects, know what’s important, and move on towards these goals.
It’s like when you go on vacation and think about all the things you could do when you are back home. I don’t know if it’s something you feel too when you’re on holiday, but it happens to me all the time when I’m far from home.
In these cases, you feel so motivated that you want to go home faster! Use it to your advantage!
Think about what would be your future if you start today
Okay, so we know that we needed to start yesterday. But it’s done, so don’t think about it. But the best day is today.
So when I’m feeling discouraged or unmotivated, I like to remind myself what could be my future if I continue or start today.
And most of the time, because I’m not perfect, I feel boosted, and I want to move to see what I want for my future to be achieved.
It’s difficult to have a job, a 9 to 5, and to have a side hustle that we want to transform into a full-time job. We are exhausted and, sometimes we don’t have the will to achieve anything. When it’s the case, I like to remind myself that it’s this freedom that I’m looking for. So I do the things to be closer to that.
If you struggle to have a vision for your future life, try this.
Take an app like Spotify and put on some meditation music. Focus on your breath for 30 seconds and then
think about your future self in 3 years from now and then ask yourself these questions:
- what is your perfect day? Where do you live, what do you do for a living?
- What are your activities? What do you do during your morning routine?
For each of these questions, try to envision your life with as many details as possible. Where do you live, with who, what do you do with your life? How do you feel?
I know it could be difficult to answer, but my vision becomes clearer and clearer by doing this every three months. And there are always some elements that come back in every single vision.
Which decisions will you make closer to this vision?
Think about what you can control instead of what you can’t
Think about what you do and not the result of it. Think about what you can control and stop thinking about what you can’t.
For example, for Youtube, I want to do a video a week, but I don’t give myself goals about followers or views because it doesn’t depend on me. What depends is the quality of the video and how many times I put a video on the platform.
I wasted so much time looking at the analytics, and I blamed everyone if it wasn’t good.
I tended to take too much into account the results of my project,s and I thought that the quality of what I did wasn’t enough.
Then, I read the book Deep Work in which the author explains that the results are better if we focus on the work and the achievable things than the results in themselves. So what we can control instead of what we can’t.
So, for example, if you want to write a book, it’s much better to focus on the number of pages you will write today instead of the number of copies you will probably sell.
Think about it!
Tell me in the comments below what your strategies are when you feel unmotivated and don’t want to get out of your bed? I’d love to know!
Hi everyone! I’m Anna and I’m a twenty-something woman. Most of the time, I like to rewatch all the episodes of Castle and read A LOT of personal development books! And I have a cat : Pizza, because I love … Pizza!