May is the mental health awareness month. Mental health is as important as our physical health, but unfortunately it is largely overlooked. In support, I will begin the discussion with something uplifting that probably most of us will find useful.

Motivation is an uncomplicated concept. It doesn’t always have to be something heavy that makes you move mountains. Some days we seek it to simply go brush our teeth and get on with the day! We have all been there for varied lengths of time. Simplest things can every so often help find motivation for tasks big and small. I am sharing a few things that have always worked for me.

I have tried to present the recent creative/look-book pictures with a meaningful discussion to strike a balance between the virtual and literary appeal.

Reward system:

Works every single time. Most of us just fail doing routine things some days because it doesn’t seem to produce any wow-factor in the chain of events. Nothing wrong with mundane things but they just don’t seem to actually push us on hard days. A food treat that you always feel happy eating, or a small present you always wanted to buy yourself, planning a small trip for near future, or just booking a pamper session some place nice; anything which gives you something to look forward to, is a good motivator to do the mundane things in the NOW.

You may very well have to push yourself to even arrange the reward. But remind yourself how a new gadget made you feel last time or how you have always enjoyed a nice facial and just arrange for these things to happen in the next few days. Simplest way to find motivation!

Finding Validation. Talking to someone about feeling blah:

Open up about what might be dragging you down or about just feeling empty. Talk to a person you trust or know to be someone who would show compassion and patience. Chances are that saying it out loud will help the blah feeling go away a little already. And a few kind and encouraging words from a friend will make you feel better and motivated! We crave validation even when we have elevated sense of self and have given up trying to please people. Basically we only evolve in our tastes of who we seek validation from. Lately, this has been working wonders for me when facing challenges and disappointments while trying to make it as a blogger. I have been able to find motivation to not let the bad feelings dampen my enthusiasm.

Watching educational videos/talks; watching your favourite famous personalities share their struggles and success stories:

There is a reason why masses love watching their favourite celebs be real, raw and vulnerable publicly. It humanises them and you feel connected and inspired. We need reminders that success didn’t just happen out of nowhere, a person had to work hard and persevere through rough times for it. And they stayed at it and finally made it. We know it but an inspiring reminder every now and then reaffirms our faith.

Fear:

This one is unusual. Fear of growing old and fear of missing out are two of my biggest fears. In my young and prime years if I do not work hard, push myself and hustle to fulfil all possible dreams, I will never catch up. The best time to act and make efforts to achieve a goal, is now. Fear of losing time is overwhelming and daunting but take it and drive with it to remember that it is better to do what you must than regret lost time. In hindsight, we always tend to regret having let the time slip and not having made the best of it. This one admittedly helps find motivation in a not-so-conventional way.

Count your blessings and practice active gratitude:

Quite literally begin writing down what you are taking for granted. Having a healthy functioning body, possessing all your body parts, having access to food and clean water, freedom, infrastructure, family and friends, a sunny beautiful day, all of it. If just the listing doesn’t do it, focus hard on a memory when any of these failed you even for a second and gave you that feeling of fear and doom. Be actively grateful that none of these hardships make up your entire life.

Remind yourself:

Remind yourself of things that you are dissatisfied with and are hungry for, madly in love with, things that are worth fighting for. All these combined will create a bigger picture instantly to remind you how each small step is contributing towards your goals. You want to visit a dream city so bad, get out of the bed and do your job. Fulfil your duties so that you gather enough money and accrue enough leave, to actually make that trip! List all your big and small wishes and dreams. Just jot them down briefly. Trace them down to simplest reason why they aren’t fulfilled: chances are the reasons would most likely fall under lack of time/lack of money/family obligations/health. Dissect it further to find out how to sort those key things and you will see what you must do to lighten this load.

Seek Novelty:

If the reason you find yourself unmotivated is because you feel you have no support system, then try to explore/travel and experience new things. If we fail to get out of a set pattern including same people and tasks, it is bound to not change the way we feel! Occasionally we need a fresh perspective and then the same mundane things will bring joy again. A new experience will present the same things in a new light and evoke more positive feelings towards things that had initially stopped motivating you. New experience and people will also make you see your own qualities in new light and give you confidence. Or make you introspect what could be improved. Either way, it inspires something positive and/or actionable to give us a direction.

Motivation comes in all forms and sometimes something nice and positive that you just think in passing, needs to be said out loud; because it is kind and nice and may just give hope and light to someone who desperately needed to feel good.

All images by Tori Davis.
Styling, hair and makeup by me.