I got a request to make a masterpost on motivation, but I decided to focus on the bigger issue that makes us constantly need motivation: burnout. Doing work when youâre motivated is great - youâre focused on determined. Waiting for the motivation to hit you is a different story all together. What if instead of waiting for motivation to hit you, you learn to find it within yourself?Â
you know that feeling you get when you have the flu and you just canât get your ass out of bed no matter how hard you try? thatâs how your brain feels when youâre burned out. Youâve got so much to do but you just canât get yourself to do it and you just donât care about school/work/grades anymore. Burnout is linked to depression, so if you are feeling any other symptoms of depression, please talk to a counselor or therapist.Â
some tips Iâve picked up along the way:Â
stay on top of your shit. If you know what to do and what you have coming up, you can afford to take time off for yourself if you need it. A little turbulence is better than crashing and burning. (I made a post on time management a few days back if you want to check it out)
your needs come before anything else. If youâve been working hard for the past few days, take a few days off and relax. Even if you havenât been working hard for the past few days, take a day off if you need it.Â
break up daunting tasks into multiple not-so-bad small ones. Have a giant research paper due at the end of the semester? plan out your work so you donât end up spending 15 hours working on it in one day.Â
find a hobby and make time for it at least once a week. One of the biggest stress relievers for me is painting. It keeps my brain occupied so Iâm not overwhelmed by my thoughts, but it also frees up some space for me to think about whatâs going on my life. Itâs like the brainstorming you get done in the shower.Â
brain dump before you start working. Getting everything thatâs in my mind out of it makes it so much easier for me to focus on the work I have to do. Instead of worrying about 10 different things, I tell myself that I can deal with them later because this way I make sure I donât forget about it.Â
create a support system. Have that one person you can rant to if youâre overwhelmed (If you need one, I am here). You will feel 10x better after you bitch about all the things that are on your mind (no matter how stupid they are).Â
Find motivation that doesnât really on that âsparkâ you get every once in a while. Riding that wave will only take you so far. Finding intrinsic motivation will help you learn better and consequently, do better.
Check out this gr8 pdf to learn more burnout and strategies to avoid it
Finding Intrinsic Motivation
Thereâs a great TED talk called the Puzzle of Motivation by Dan Pink that completely change my perception of motivation. He talks about extrinsic motivation (reward systems) and how they actual prevent us from thinking critically. Instead of focusing on our overall goal (getting a good grade in the class) we focus on getting the reward (finishing the assignment so we can get whatever we promised ourselves). Studies actually showed that intrinsic motivation increased the amount of critical thinking involved. Interesting stuff. Thereâs a whole field of psychology dedicated to this, but Iâm going to try my best to condense the research into a few bullet points.Â
Remember why you are here. Your education is a choice, not a requirement. If youâre reading this, you obviously what to do well. Why do you want to do well in school? To get into college? To get a good job? Money? Whatever the purpose is, you are here for a reason. Donât forget it.Â
Negative reinforcement is your friend. If your goals canât keep you motivated, think about what will happen if you donât get your work done.
The biggest key to getting your work done even if youâre not motivated is discipline. Hereâs a great post about developing discipline (sorry for linking it on my blog, it seems the original post has been deleted)Â
motivation masterpost by @areistotleÂ
avoiding burnout by @acdemic
study music to give you motivationÂ
dopamine-rich foods (to help keep you attentive)Â
managing studying with mental illness by @kawaii-geekgirl-studyblrÂ
how to study with a mental illness by @haleystudies
how to get motivated when youâre feeling depressed
my tag for some gr8 study playlistsÂ
my tag for some words of inspirationÂ
if all else fails, please go talk to your teachers/professors/counselors. they are here to help you and they want you to do well.Â
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