Finding Motivation

Hello, I'm back!

So my last post was a little different, I hope some of you tried out the recipe and enjoyed it!

This post is on something that I've tackled within the past few months and I thought I'd share it. Finding motivation can be really difficult sometimes, whether you're in a work place or college or just doing day-to-day tasks. Being a sufferer of depression/bipolar disorder, I've found it really difficult to find motivation the past couple of years and I've really kicked myself for it, yet in the recent months, things have changed.

From a young age, my dad had my sister and I out working, encouraging us to earn our keep with a paper round. Though it was only something small (I believe it was £8 a round), it was still enough to provide me with what I needed from the ages of 12-15. I got my work ethic from my parents and I've always believed that if you want something, earn it, because it's a lot more satisfying than just taking it.

At the age of 16, I got my first job in retail in Norwich. I really enjoyed it because it gave me responsibilities and made me feel a lot more mature. It also helped develop me as a person. I'd always been quite a shy and quiet person, but I really came out of my shell from working in customer service and interacting with customers on a day-to-day basis, which explains why a lot of my jobs have been in retail.

Although I've been motivated with work and I know what drives me, the past few years/months have been quite difficult for me in terms of studies and finding a job in which I felt that I could thrive in. A thing that a few people don't understand, is when you're suffering with depression, it's very hard to get yourself out of bed in the morning, let alone think about what's going to happen in your day. It's quite easy to say "cheer up, things will pick up" or "get out of bed and get dressed, you'll feel much better", when in fact, those things are even more de-motivating. I've always worked through these feelings however, knowing that when I have a commitment, I honour it. My jobs were never affected by it but my studies unfortunately were. I've always been pretty good in an academic environment and I hated leaving school with GCSEs that I knew I could've got a better result in and leaving college with just one A-Level. However, I don't believe you should dwell on the past; you should just keep looking forward.

So here is how I found my motivation.

• Break things down into small, manageable chunks. If things seem difficult right now, or tasks seem unachievable, then break them down and do a bit at a time. By doing this, the task in hand doesn't seem quite so overwhelming.
• Find a sense of achievement. Set yourself goals throughout the day and when you achieve them, reward yourself. Acknowledge that you've done something well and be proud of it!
• Do things for yourself. Try your best and don't worry about what other people are doing. Go at your own pace or with the way you know how to do things and keep focused on yourself and the task in hand.
• Have a checklist. Tick off each task that you complete. It keeps you more organised and motivated to complete more tasks.
• Develop a positive "can do" attitude. There is no such word as "can't" and all anyone can ask of you is to try.
• Believe in yourself. There is no room for self doubt when you're trying to find motivation. Be confident in yourself and your abilities and prove to yourself that you are capable of achieving what you've set out to do.
• It's all about self-motivation. Don't rely on anybody else to take responsibility for you. Your success depends on you and you alone.

Though these sound very straight forward, they've really helped me the past 7 or so months and have allowed me to apply for jobs and apprenticeships and actually change my outlook on life. It's even motivating just talking about it! 

I hope some of these tips have helped. 

I'd love to hear how you motivate yourself!

Over and out, Rachel x.