Rebuilding Momentum After Setbacks
February 27th, 2005 by Steve Pavlina
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If you ever find yourself feeling demotivated because of too many setbacks in a short period of time, here’s a simple way to rebuild your confidence and restore motivation: Switch to smaller tasks you’re certain to achieve, and just do those for a day or two. Put the big projects off for a moment. Get back to the basics.
Clean out your refrigerator. Get an oil change for your car. Get a haircut. Cook your favorite meal. Buy a gift for someone’s birthday. Organize your desk. Do the dishes. Restock your supplies. Balance your checkbook. Buy that book everyone is telling you to read. Upgrade your most frequently used software to the latest versions. Clean up your web browser bookmarks. Give your significant other a nice massage. Maybe send me a quick feedback to let me know if anything I’m writing is making a difference for you, or shoot me a suggestion for future blog entries (I make frequent posts based on reader suggestions). Just do lots of little things you can complete one by one, racking up a series of small personal accomplishments.
Temporarily stick with dead-simple tasks as much you can, whether they’re work-related or just personal. This will gradually rebuild your self-image as someone who competently gets things done. You’ll start feeling just a little more motivated because action induces motivation. Plus you’ll enjoy the small benefits of completing all these little tasks, and those can add up.
Moreover, do a really good job on these simple tasks. Do your very best. Make those dishes shine. If you’re doing a lot of physical tasks, put on your favorite music. Enjoy the process. Remember these are easy tasks.
Once you start feeling pretty good about getting these simple tasks done, graduate to medium-sized tasks. Do something a little more challenging, and get it done no matter what. If you start floundering, drop back to the simple tasks and stick with them for another day or two. Gradually build your momentum until you can enthusiastically return to your most ambitious projects.
We all get demotivated at times. But no one has to wallow in this state. It’s just a sign that it’s time to sharpen the saw. Get back to basics, and retrain yourself to feel confident again with lots of small victories. While working on minor tasks isn’t a great long-term strategy, it can provide the short-term boost needed to return to more challenging work with a strong drive.
February 27th, 2005 at 7:14 am
Steve,
This is good advice.
I also find it useful to focus on the purpose of what I’m trying to accomplish. When I remember the purpose, I get excited and re-motivated even though there have been setbacks. I then start thinking about other approaches to accomplishing the purpose which leads to action.
February 27th, 2005 at 12:38 pm
Yeah, it’s funny how unrelated things can affect our productivity. One can use this in a maintenance mode by regularly engaging in activities that take us out of our comfort zones, especially things that are challenging or high-risk (e.g., rock-climbing, bungee jumping, skydiving, or even public speaking (these things are relative to the person doing them)). By doing this on a regular basis, our confidence level at work can soar, making us feel unstoppable! A real-life example? Look at Richard Branson!
February 27th, 2005 at 5:03 pm
Steve, good writing. Keep it up. Gatting back to basics is something I have mentioned time to time myself.
March 1st, 2005 at 3:13 am
Steve, since you’re soliciting ideas, here’s a funny anecdote about how clear goals make all the difference: Acrobatic Rabbit.
March 1st, 2005 at 8:22 am
Excellent post!