Getting out of a Rut - Getting Your Motivation Back (+ Making a Vision Board)

It happens to the best of us. Whether it's due to receiving a poor mark or something unfortunate happening in your life, it's unrealistic to keep that same positive energy up all the time.

There will be times where things start feeling like a chore and you may even think about giving up. 

But that's okay. It's normal actually. It's how you deal with it that matters. 

During the last two weeks of last term, I really didn't feel happy at all. I wouldn't say I experienced a dramatic decline in motivation as a result, as I was still physically able to study -- just not for as long as I do now and prior. I didn't have that drive to do my work, that feeling of confidence and having your full attention dedicated to the work you're currently doing. To put it simply, I wasn't in the zone. I was thinking about other things and I just had to force myself to sit and maintain seated at my desk every night. I was very lucky to only experience this for a short period of time and being during a time where I had no SACs.

So, what some reasons why we lose motivation? 

There are many reasons why you lose motivation. It's a very personal thing, so the reasons are going to be different for everyone and every time you experience a lack of motivation. At times, it can be difficult to pin-point what is the cause of the decline. Meanwhile, like with my story, you may know exactly why. 

You're bored

A reason why some of us may lose that drive is because you're bored with your routine. Are you doing the same exact thing every single day? Do you not look forward to the next day, the next week or the next month?

It's difficult to maintain an interesting schedule that keeps life entertaining with commitments such as school, where you start and leave at the same time every day. However, there are small things you can do in an attempt to combat this (which I will get into soon in this post!)

You're unhappy

Simply being unhappy can lead you to have a negative view of things and feel as if you have no energy. While it is a part of life to experience a lack of motivation due to being unhappy, it is often one of the signs of depression. If this feeling persists and is affecting your ability to do other things in your life, I strongly suggest seeking help from others. 

You're a perfectionist

Maybe you're comparing yourself to others? Or setting unrealistic goals for yourself? Or even simply being too harsh on yourself? 

Being ambitious is a good thing, of course. However, not achieving unrealistic goals is going to leave you feeling disappointed, unsatisfied and defeated (and often for no good reason if you're being too critical of yourself).

You're forgetting your goals (or not setting any at all!)

Sometimes we get too into something and just forget what our destination is. Continuously reminding yourself why you are doing what you are is an obvious solution to this. That's why it can be useful to create a vision board, which is something I am going to go into detail later. 

My vision board.

I know, some of you are going to roll your eyes at this. If you told me one year ago the importance of setting goals, I would just brush it off(hopefully not in a rude manner). However, goals give you something to work towards. They give you a purpose or a reason why you are doing something. Having a variety of short-term in addition to long-term goals is beneficial, as it gives you constant bursts of achievement. While it could be good to formally write these down, simply having them in your head is better than having none at all.

And there are many more reasons...

As stated prior, there an infinite amount of reasons why someone may lose their motivation. Identifying what is the cause is a massive step in the right direction to getting it back.

How do I get it back?  

Find your goals

Developing both short term and long term goals can be motivating, as they allow you to have something to work towards. They should be balanced, not being too far out of reach yet ambitious none the less. 

Go back to your ordinary routine

I know this helped me for sure. Have you been doing anything different in your life recently? Even something as simple as changing the time I began studying made me feel worse. Once I returned to studying the ordinary time I began each night, I felt like myself again. 

Look at things that used to motivate you

Have a hard think about it -- is there anything that has ever motivated you in the past? It sounds cheesy, but looking at inspiration quotes has motivated me some times this year. There may be a person, whether you know them personally or not, who inspires you. It really can be anything. That's why I decided to create a vision board, so I can constantly be reminded to stay focused, remember my goals and know what to do if I ever experience a lack of motivation again. 

Ease back into it

If you haven't been studying for the same duration as you used to, I suggest not throwing yourself in the deep end. Slowly get back into the habit and routine instead. Maybe have longer breaks in between or have shorter study sessions. 

Change up your routine

You may be thinking, didn't you just contradict yourself? While I did say returning to your old habits may make you feel happier, it is not always the case (aren't we humans a diverse bunch?). However, if the cause of your lack of motivation is boredom, it may be beneficial to consider changing up some things in your life. 

As everyone's 'normal day' is different, the possibilities are endless. Consider starting a new personal project related to one of your hobbies or even something smaller such as eating breakfast outside rather than inside. Small changes can make a big difference, so don't feel like it will be pointless before you try it!

Talk to someone

When something is wrong, this is the first thing people suggest to do. Sometimes the obvious answer is the correct answer though. I know sometimes just verbally saying something can help me gather my thoughts and simply make me feel better for sure, even if it's just when I'm home alone (is that weird?). 

What is a vision board? How can it help?

A vision board intends to give you motivation. You can include pictures of where you wish to be in the future or just things which motivate you. I really like quotes, so I mainly put quotes that resonate with me on it. I'm not very artistic, so it isn't too pretty. However, it doesn't matter too much. As long as it reminds me of my goals, I'm happy. 

To begin, I stuck a piece of random fabric (which I should have ironed!) on my bedroom wall. 

Then, I got some sewing pins and attached images onto it. 

This quote just reminds me that good things are waiting for me in the future. Also, I feel like it resonates with me because when I was younger I would picture my life to be a book with various different chapters related to my life events. It sounds strange, but it's not really surprising. I've always loved books and reading. 

Additionally, I decided to include an image of a heart. This acts as a reminder to always do the things that I love and surround myself with positive people who I love (such as family).

This 'sad? write about it' quote, which I made up, reminds me how to deal with negative emotions. Ever since I was young, I've always dealt with sadness by writing. I even remember sitting in my wardrobe with a torch just writing in a notebook when I felt down. To this day, I still believe writing things down clears my head and improves my mood the best. 

 I think sometimes I forget how much power we have over our own lives. One decision can change the course of everything. I believe it's very empowering to think about.

 As you can tell from the imagery of this blog, I do love what nature can symbolise. Just like flowers, we grow and we go through periods where we aren't blossoming. However, there will always come a time where we bloom again.

 This is pretty simple, but it's just a reminder to do things that make me happy. It's also a reminder that if I'm not happy, something is wrong and I shouldn't just accept it or try to justify it. 

I don't think this really needs an explanation. It's just some supportive words.

 You probably can't understand my handwriting here! It says "I love stories and I love words. Communication solves problems. It heals people, it educates people, it connects people. Language is everything". It sounds very cheesy, but I do find the concept and abilities of language to be inspiring. I think it's just so mind-blowing that without language, we would have nothing and the world would be dramatically different (the fact that I'm an English Language student is obvious 😄). While I do really love to write, I genuinely believe that I'm not that good at it. I don't think I've ever even shared any writing I've done outside of school to anyone because I just don't think it's good. However, I do dream one day, somehow, that my writing will make some difference in the world. 

I used to really hate school. Like really hate it. To the point of researching when I could drop-out. I was never proud of my results (maybe with the exception of a couple of times in English). If I somehow had the opportunity to tell past-me that I was doing exceptionally well in school, I would have thought I was lying.

 This is mainly related to how, for some unknown reason, I think everyone perceives me as stupid.  Prior to my business management SAC beginning last Thursday, this really kind girl called out my name from across the room and said "You're getting 100% again!" and then I heard her say to her friend "She's [me] is so smart". I was flattered by this, but I still find it hard to believe that people actually view me that way. I don't feel special and I don't feel that intelligent, both at school and outside of school. I believe people view me this way as well, probably even more than I do. If this happens to be true, I do believe that one day I will prove otherwise.

 Similarly to one of the other pictures, I believe it's empowering to think about how much control we have over the course of our lives.

 This is a reminder that regardless of what happens in my life, I will always try my best to be kind to others. I guess I kind of believe in karma. I think if you act in a negative way, you will attract negative thoughts and negative people in your life.

Life is hard, everyone knows that. Year eleven is difficult at times, but it's only going to get worse next year. But that's okay, it's not meant to be easy!

Here's my completed vision board! I ended up moving the rose to somewhere in the middle.

Hopefully this has inspired you to make some improvements in your life or even motivate you to make a vision board! If you were to construct a vision board, what would you put on it? Let me know in the comments!