How To Boost Your Motivation To Reach Your Goals

Anyone can set a kick ass goal but not everyone can stick with it. Sometimes life gets hard and our motivation to do anything let alone work on a goal is just not there. I have really struggled with motivation and consistency when it comes to goals. Like many people, I would start off really strong. I would be working hard for a month straight and then one bad week totally derailed everything. Finding ways to boost your motivation will be so helpful in the long run!

Motivation & Consistency

I would argue that motivation and consistency are the two main factors in achieving your goals. Motivation because we normally need some push to do the things we do and consistency because if we don’t show up everyday and put in the work, nothing will happen!

The interesting thing here though is that motivation comes and goes. Some days we wake up ready to take on the day and everything it throws at us. Other days we barely have enough motivation to get out of bed. So, it’s safe to say we can’t solely rely on motivation to achieve all our big goals and dreams.

Consistency on the other hand, does not necessarily require motivation. Consistency is a learned skill in my opinion. I think anyone can learn to be consistent. For example: consistency is waking up everyday at 7am when you said you would because it’s part of your new morning routine. Will you always be perfect? No. Can you learn to do better every single time to wake up at 7am? Yes! Eventually you will create the habit of getting up at 7am and remaining consistent will be easy peasy. 

How to boost your motivation

Set tiny milestones

When I say tiny milestones, I mean tiny. There is something about checking a task off your to-do list or meeting a milestone. The best part is, it doesn’t really matter how big or small that milestone is, you will still get those good feelings!

If you have a goal of losing some weight, you could set all sorts of tiny milestones. 

• 1st work out, 5th workout, 10th workout, etc.
• 1 pound lost, 2 pounds lost, etc.
• Add 1 vegetable to dinner, add 2 vegetables to dinner, etc. 

Those are extremely basic examples but it shows that you can set these tiny goals for the bigger goal that will get you PUMPED UP when you achieve them! 5 workouts doesn’t seem like a lot but how good would it feel to cross that off your list? 

Review your progress often

This can be a really big motivating factor whether your progress is positive or negative. As humans, we are motivated by 2 main things: pleasure and pain. We are motivated to gain pleasure and to get more of it and we are motivated to avoid pain. 

When you review your progress and see how great things are going, you will get that motivation you need to keep going. For example: seeing that you lost 2 pounds would motivate you to keep going. When your progress is not so great, the pain associated with it can motivate you too! The key is to review often, like once a week! This way you can see all the small progress you are making and it keeps you motivated on an ongoing basis!

Change your surroundings

Have you ever been sitting at your computer for hours on end getting nothing done but then changed the scenery and all of a sudden had this burst of energy? Next thing you know you are typing up a storm, ideas are flying, and it’s like you’re a new person? 

Changing your surroundings can be a great way to spark some motivation. Whether that means taking your workout somewhere different, taking the laptop outside, or just decorating a space differently. 

Get an accountability buddy

Staying on task and motivated can be a lot easier when someone else is checking in or doing the work alongside you. Finding a friend, family member, or even a stranger online can help you stay motivated to work towards your goals. I personally find someone checking in on me can be the biggest source of motivation and drive. I don’t want to have to tell someone that I didn’t get my workout in or I did not maintain my morning routine. So, find someone who will hold you accountable AND who can be a motivator for you on the hard days. 

Rewards, rewards, rewards

Rewards can be a powerful way to keep the motivation going when it comes to our goals. Of course, you want to be careful not to reward yourself too much or else it kind of loses its meaning. Rewards are great for hitting milestones or for tasks that are really hard/ disliked. An example would be rewarding yourself with a special treat after you gave a presentation you were super scared to give. Rewards can be used to motivate yourself immediately (like the presentation) or longer term (like buying a new pair of shoes after hitting a workout milestone).

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I hope this post helped you discover some ways to increase your motivation when it comes to goal achievement! Its obvious that staying consistent and motivated can be really hard. However, there are ways to keep the motivation going even over long periods of time or when times get tough!

Let’s chat!

What are your tips and tricks to staying motivated?