#motivation tips

after a month-long break of being lazy, doing what you want when you want, and focusing on yourself for once, it can be a challenge sitting down at your desk and getting back into that grind mindset that revolves around deadlines.

so...

here's some tricks that can help you!

ease your anxiety - mentally prepare yourself for the upcoming semester. open up your student portal and your school email, and just look at it. nothing is going to be there, but familiarizing yourself again with the very thing you'll be opening and closing for the next 2-3 months can put a lot of anxiety to rest. then go a step further by researching a bit on the classes you'll be taking. i don't mean start studying terms that may show up in the coursework, but just get a rough understanding of what you will be learning in this class.

start your semester routine before the semester starts - whether that's waking up early, setting out your clothes the night before, listening to music that you study with, setting up your desk a certain way, or eating/drinking something that you regularly ate/drank during your previous semester's study seshes lets your brain know that you're not messing around and it's time to get back into the swing of things. (yes our parents did this to us when we were kids... yes they were right)

go back-to-school shopping - okay, don't, like, be an over consumer (aka don't buy things you don't need because of fomo) but if you want some colorful pens because you think they'll help you study, or you need a new notebook, a new bag, etc, then go for it! when you have something new to play with you'll look more forward to the first day of classes because on the first day, you'll finally be able to use it!

READ THE SYLLABUS - can't stress this enough. just. READ IT. not only for your educations sake (because professors do put beneficial info in there) but also because this is a small, easy task that will get you back into the groove. seeing all the due dates, projects, and rules will make you realize, oh, yeah, this is actually happening. classes did start. gotta get back on my game.

get out of the house - seriously. or at least move to a different area of the house that isn't your bedroom. if you've been bedrotting the entire break, it'll be hard to break the habit of doomscrolling if you're still staying in that very same environment. get up, get dressed (something that is still put together but reasonably comfortable), have a meal, and head off to the library, friends house, campus study lounge, or cafe. this actively breaks the laziness streak because you're actively breaking the cycle. plus, being around other people who are also working on their own schoolwork will make you want to do it, too (it's called social facilitation!) remember, surround yourself with the type of people you want to be!

start small - your professor won't give you a huge project or test the first week of the semester (except maybe if you're an upper graduate... rip...) so there's no need to start your first week with multiple 5-hour long study seshes (don't burn yourself out in the first few weeks! it's a marathon, not a sprint). aim for short reading sessions, taking notes, making to-do lists, make your calendar, and knocking out small assignments. this reforms the habit loop, and once you get your brains gears turning, you'll then feel more comfortable with the idea of doing those 5-hour study seshes again; just like how runners have to warm up before a marathon, so do academics with their studies!

engage with study content - tiktok, youtube, tumblr, pinterest, whatever you fancy. see what other students are doing, watch study method videos, watch back-to-school hauls, make mood boards, etc. romanticize the idea of being an A+ student, and become one! nothing got me more in the mood to go back to classes than watching those aesthetic note-taking tip vids.

start assignments the day they're received - please y'all. do your future self a favor and get those assignments/readings done ahead of time. because nothing, and i mean NOTHING will pull you out of the study mindset quicker than procrastinating on your first day.

treat it like a job - set up hours within your week where you know you can get assignments/studying done within that time frame. don't make excuses or procrastinate on the job, just do it.

✧ what made me want to get my life together ✧

hey lovely! ✨

first of all, thank you so much for this question - it's something i think about a lot, and honestly? i completely understand where you're at right now. that cycle of consuming content but not taking action is something i was stuck in for the longest time.

for me, the turning point wasn't one big dramatic moment. it was actually a random tuesday when i realized i'd spent three hours scrolling through "how to be productive" videos without doing anything productive at all. the irony hit me so hard i had to laugh at myself!

what really pushed me to change was this tiny realization: all the planning and researching in the world couldn't replace even 5 minutes of actual doing. i was using self-improvement content as a form of procrastination, and it was giving me the illusion of progress without any real change.

here's what helped me break the cycle:

start ridiculously small i mean truly tiny steps. not "organize my entire room" but "put away three items." the smaller the action, the harder it is to talk yourself out of it. these micro-wins create momentum.

recognize that motivation follows action this was life-changing for me! i always thought i needed to feel motivated to act, but it's actually the opposite. taking even the tiniest action creates the motivation for the next step.

create a "done list" instead of a to-do list at the end of each day, write down what you actually accomplished, no matter how small. this shifts your focus from what you haven't done to what you have done.

find an accountability buddy having someone to check in with made such a difference for me. we send each other a simple text when we complete our daily mini-goals.

notice your resistance without judgment when you don't want to do something, get curious about that feeling instead of beating yourself up. ask "what am i afraid might happen if i try this?"

the most important thing i've learned is that transformation isn't about massive overnight change. it's about those tiny daily choices that seem insignificant in the moment but compound over time.

and please remember - the fact that you're asking this question shows you care deeply about your growth. that awareness is already the first step, and it's a really important one.

what's one tiny action you could take in the next 5 minutes? start there, and i promise the next step will feel a little easier.

sending you so much love and support on your journey! 🤍

xoxo, mindy

Put on some music that fits that character. I’m playing the part of a woman living alone in a cottage, happy with the plants and wild animals as her company, and I’m listening to a Cottagecore playlist

It has me so motivated to clean I’m rushing typing this so I can get back to cleaning. And you go further with it. Designate an outfit or an accessory to be that characters attire

Also not related to the character hack, but another one I’ve used is setting a timer, and working until that timer goes off. When it goes off you can take a short break, but until then, you have to work. Usually I’m so motivated to keep cleaning I skip the break, reset the timer, and keep working

Does anyone have any tips?

i require motivation to finish important things

would you please give the motivation

😔

Errrrmmm I don’t really now how to but I’ll try! :3

you got this!!! It’s gonna be so good when you finished!!! You’re going to fishing and when you do it’ll feel great trust me! buttt some methods I use are

when I need motivation for an art project I’ll watch someone draw like a YouTuber doing commentary vid while drawling someone lavendertowne or BreDrawz are people I usually listen to or watch when I wanna get in a drawling mood this doesn’t work for everyone but it works for me

Also sometimes if a project seems to overwhelming or big I’ll try to break it down into pieces like if I’m working on an art project for class I’ll try to focus on one part like for example “today I’m gonna get the floor done on this art!” Or sometimes like how classes are structured I’ll do art with background noise for roughly 50 minutes (that’s how long my classes r so this may vary) since that’s how long a normal art class is for me at school or any class for that matter

Finally something I used to do but not as much anymore is make a list of things in my project that need to be done and when I finish one I reward myself with something like 10 minutes of phone time before going back to working obviously you should pace yourself so you don’t over work yourself and get burnout make sure to not compare how fast you do something vs how fast someone else can do something that never ends well trust me

also this is just a bonus and i know this is long and probably annoying to read but if you do give yourself a reward like phone time for a certain amount of time i recommend you do something you don’t mind randomly stopping because you don’t want to just stay on your phone forever lol :3

More than just going outside.

Any advice?