Motivation gets you started and habit lets you carry on

When life seems too much, with lots to do and not enough time, instead of tackling each issue head on, we can be overwhelmed with low self esteem and procrastination begins. There are many distractions in the world and it can seem tricky to decide which is more important, so we just lie on the sofa and watch Netflix and it seems impossible to get motivated again... Here are some ways I have found to boost my own morale.

There is a message that appears on the screens at my gym, and I thought of it this morning as I walked to the gym. Just the idea of doing a work out seemed like such a difficult task because I haven't been for several weeks, but this message helped me revive the determination within.

'Motivation gets you started and habit let's you carry on'

I like to regularly work out - it releases endorphins and makes me feel better about myself, and that I have actually achieved something that. Although, I have recently had an injury from which I needed to recover, and added pressure from this course that has taken a lot of my time requiring me to study, I have had the stress of buying a house, and I attempting to start additional work experience to improve my chances of a new role at work - so I have not been very motivated recently. So, I convinced myself that if I can get through this first session, each time after that will just be habit!

Losing motivation made it difficult to find the 'want' to go back to the gym, and I have often felt guilty when I wasn't focusing one of the current major challenges. However, I have come to realise that I should still be taking time for myself; relaxing or doing the smaller things that make me feel good - anything that doesn't put too much pressure on myself to achieve.

What do you do to relax, make you feel good or helps clear your mind?

It is always thrust upon us that we should be constantly doing things to better ourselves and made to feel guilty when we take the time to relax, but remember we need these moments to recharge to improve our concentration and chance of success.

I have realised that there will always be challenges to face; some big and some small, but despite the size of the challenge, I have found that each one should be approached in the same way: It should not be viewed as an entire mountain to climb in one go, but broken down into manageable chunks. Taking each step at a time can make these huge problems seem easy.

How do you tackle the big challenges in life?

I like to make a 'to do' list. The process of ticking each task off fills me with a sense of achievement and encourages me to keep going. This is one of my favourite ways to improve my motivation. I am trying to look at the a big challenges in the same way, by giving myself milestones - small goals to work towards so the destination doesn't seem so far away. Then before I know it, I am done. And I think 'What was all the fuss about'?