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5 Ways To Stay Productive When Motivation Is Missing

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lacking motivation at work

Let’s be real, productivity isn’t always about motivation because sometimes “motivation” also needs some motivation to even come through for you.

You wake up, your to-do-list and deadlines are staring you right in the face, but all you want to do is stay in bed and scroll through “AI cat videos” while eating a plate of popcorn.

Everyone feels this way at some point; students, creatives, remote workers, 9–5ers, even entrepreneurs who are supposed to be “carrying their business on their head” 

Let’s look at 5 practical ways to stay productive, even when motivation is MIA.

1. Create a Bare Minimum List

creating a bare minimum list for motivation

You have almost 20 tasks listed on your to-do-list without breaks in between, and you expect motivation to show up.

Creating a “bare minimum” list is a game changer. Make a small, realistic list of 2–3 non-negotiable tasks that must be done that day, no matter what. 

Finishing them will give you a sense of progress and the joy to reward yourself with snacks and Ice cream.

2. The 5-Minute Rule

What were you thinking creating a day to-do-list with 20 tasks, when you are struggling to even start the “bare minimum”?

Getting started with tasks on your list is often the hardest part; this is where the 5-minute rule is utilized. Tell yourself you only have to get the job done in 5 minutes. 

Of course, your brain agrees and you get to start working. Most times, once you start, you almost don’t want to stop anymore. 

3. Get An Accountability Partner

having an accountability partner for motivation

“One man mopol” does not always work, sometimes you need people or at least one person that can always push you to achieve things.

Find someone else who’s struggling to get things done and become besties. You don’t need to talk all day, just check in, say what you plan to do, and update each other later.

It’s easy to slack off when you are working alone. But working with someone else? You don’t want to be that person who didn’t show up.

4. Change Your Environment

You want motivation and your bedroom is your work space, right in your bed, you’re not ready at all.

Your brain might just be bored of the four walls of your room. Move to a different room, work from a café, or even just rearrange your desk. A small shift in the environment can help a lot more than you think.

If you are in a proper work space or you at least “pretend” to be productive, motivation would come visiting.

RELATED: Why Co-working Might Be the Best Thing That Happened to Remote Workers.

5. Celebrate Your Small Wins

Take a break when you finish a task, there’s no need to overwork your brain, just take time to relax before moving on to the next task.

That you successfully completed a task, you have tried so go ahead and celebrate your resilience and win, it could be  your favourite snack or a quick dance to your favourite music.

The more your brain connects productivity with reward, the more likely it is to do it again the next day.

Motivation is a great feeling, but it’s unreliable. Discipline, however, shows up even when you don’t feel like it.

The next time motivation seems hard, you just need to trick your brain, start small and do things in manageable ways.

Productivity isn’t about being perfect, it’s about showing up, even if you have to drag yourself. You can do it!.

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Oluwabamike Adesugba
Oluwabamike Adesugba
Oluwabamike (Bam Bam) Adesugba is currently a digital marketing intern interested in knowing all that marketing entails. One could say, she loves the content creation aspect more, as well as getting to write and publish her own work. Oluwabamike takes pleasure in reading books, watching horror movies, and meeting new friends.

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