It’s funny how motivation works. Some days, you wake up with so much energy and inspiration that you’re ready to take on the world. Other times, it feels like you have just enough energy to crawl out of bed.
Even though motivation seems random, it’s not. It takes effort to feel motivated. More specifically, it comes when you’re passionate about something.
Don’t worry if you find it hard to get up and go to work every day. According to a Gallup study, 60% of people are emotionally detached from work, and 19% are miserable at work. And a mere 33% of respondents felt engaged.
Once again, motivation requires effort. Keeping yourself refreshed and renewed is something you need to do every day. In that light, here are 12 ways to get motivated every morning to get you through the day.
1. Get plenty of sleep.
Do you have a hard time getting out of bed in the morning? Well, the culprit could be that you aren’t getting enough sleep.
The National Sleep Foundation suggests that most people need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep a night. So if you’re falling behind on sleep, you might need to adjust your waking and sleeping times. Thankfully, to get more sleep, you can try the following methods:
- Maintain a consistent circadian rhythm by rising at the same time every day — including weekends.
- Take advantage of sunlight in the morning to help your body produce the right hormones for sleep and wakefulness.
- Don’t rush through your evenings, including finishing your evening meal at least four hours before going to bed.
- At least 30 minutes before you go to sleep, turn off your screens. After all, blue light from your TV and phone impairs your sleep.
- Use sleep aid supplements, such as melatonin, if you have trouble falling asleep.
- Strenuous exercise should be avoided within four hours of bedtime to prevent disruptions in sleep hormone production.
- Keep your room like a cave. In other words, your bedroom should be dark and cool.
2. Don’t hit snooze.
Avoid hitting snooze in the morning. In addition to being bad for your psyche, it’s also bad for your motivation.
“After you hit snooze and drift off, your brain starts its sleep cycle all over again,” Alan Henry said on Lifehacker.com. “When the alarm goes off a second time, you’re likely at an even deeper, earlier part of your sleep cycle, which results in you feeling even worse than you did the first time.”
Additionally, refrain from waking up surrounded by blaring alarms, radio static, or irritating talk news. Choose a soothing, upbeat alarm instead. Getting up will be much easier if you listen to your favorite song or listen to a funny podcast.
3. Pose a few positive questions to yourself.
According to Henrik Edberg on PositivityBlog.com, whenever you wake up, ask yourself five empowering three-part questions as follows:
- What am I ______ about in my life right now?
- What about it makes me _______?
- How does it make me feel?
“Put in your own value in the blank space,” he says. “For instance, a couple of my questions are:”
- What am I happy about in my life right now?
- What am I excited about in my life right now?
“It’s important that you really feel how it makes you feel,” Edberg adds. “When I think about the last part about what makes me happy right now, I really feel it.”
Morning questions can fill you with appreciation and positivity based on how they are framed.
4. Your biggest dreams should be visible to you as soon as you wake up.
In order to live a fulfilling life, our brains constantly need reminders of what we hope for. By writing it down, we become conscious that what was once a dream and thought suddenly becomes tangible and clearly visible.
As a result, it is no longer just a vivid imagination. But, instead, something that could actually come true.
5. Establish routines.
Getting yourself out of bed in the morning requires more than your morning routine. Just as important is what you do in the evenings before you hit the hay.
As an example, by picking up clutter and cleaning the mess around your house before you go to sleep, you can wake up to a clean home. In turn, this helps you feel energized and refreshed in the morning.
Before you sleep, take the time to read for a while. As a result, your brain will disengage from the day’s activities.
Your morning routine could consist of making your bed, watching a TED Talk, journaling, or decluttering your workspace. An efficient morning routine improves mental health, lowers stress levels, and increases energy levels.
Whatever your morning routine, I also suggest that it includes at least one thing you love.
As Tony Robbins says, “There are 2 different kinds of motivation: Push requires willpower, and willpower never lasts. What will last is pull – having something so exciting, so attractive, something you desire so much that you have a hard time going to sleep at night; you get up so early in the morning and take it to the next level. That’s what you’re looking to get.”
You can utilize pull motivation by incorporating at least one thing you enjoy into your morning routine. For example, I listen to one of my favorite podcasts as I take a brisk morning walk. It may sound corny. But, as I anticipate listening to a new episode, I am excited to start my day.
6. Map out your day.
Write down your goals for the following day before you go to bed. Also, organize your projects by priority. And take note of any appointments you have coming up on your schedule.
It may seem like a lot of planning. But this ensures that you’re in control of your day. As a result, you’ll stay motivated and on track and won’t be distracted by other things. Also, since you know what needs to be done, you’re reducing the number of decisions you have to make. In turn, this preserves your energy throughout the day.
7. Wear something that makes you feel good.
The right outfit can make or break your day, even if you don’t realize it. The reason is that when you feel comfortable and look good, you project confidence. In most cases, that’s a big motivator for us.
It sounds simple. But, wearing a wardrobe that you are excited to wear can boost your motivation for the day.
8. Stretch and exercise.
Regular exercise releases dopamine, which is the chemical responsible for making us feel happy. To put it another way, this is our biology working its ‘feel good’ pill, which boosts our positivity.
Plus, you’ll stay fit, healthy, and in great shape if you keep up with your exercise. You already know this — so why do we miss this opportunity? I’ll save that for another article.
9. Make yourself accountable.
It’s more likely that you’ll follow through when you get someone else involved in your productivity. Furthermore, this can give you something to look forward to.
“Your motivation to get out of bed can be enhanced by planning with a friend that you will both work out in the morning from your own homes or follow an online exercise routine at the same time from your respective locations,” says licensed psychologist Selena Snow, Ph.D.
It is also possible to hold yourself responsible for helping someone else. For example, helping a colleague catch up on an assignment because they were under the weather.
10. Have a morning mantra.
“Words hold a lot of meaning, so imagine the power of saying something motivating to yourself each and every day,” says holistic business coach Tiffany Napper. “A great mantra should incite a feeling inside you – a feeling that you don’t quite feel in your soul yet, but you want to … a feeling of empowerment.” After one week, evaluate how you feel after repeating it 20 times every morning with heart and soul for the next 7 days.
Tiffany suggests the following morning mantras to brighten your day:
- I am worthy just as I am.
- I will achieve great things through small steps.
- Everything I need is within me.
- I am fulfilling my purpose in this world.
- I am centered and at peace.
11. Surround yourself with inspiration.
Keeping something inspirational in your room, such as a favorite painting or framed photo, can provide inspiration. Another option is to create an inspiration board, a compilation of pictures, quotes, or anything else that makes you happy, and keep it in your room as a reminder. As a result, you will see happy, positive thoughts in the morning and at night, instilling motivation as soon as you wake up.
12. Shake things up.
While routines serve a purpose, there’s a danger of them becoming mundane very quickly. As a consequence, your motivation can diminish as you do the same thing every day.
To avoid getting stuck in a rut, do something different. Perhaps you could try a new route to work, visit a new café, or try something new from the menu. Adding variety to your life not only boosts your energy but also motivates you.
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