When I started this blog, I was naïve enough to think that it would always be as easy and organic as it was that first month. I was cranking out posts daily, in a Twitter chat every night, and people seemed to engage and relate to what I had to say.

And then I hit the wall, and it all seemed to come to a screeching halt. I learned that what I feared most – actually writing the blog post – was the easy part. It was getting out of bed, turning off Netflix or closing Instagram and getting motivated that was killing me.

It eventually reached the point where I had to sit down and make a list of ways to get the work done even when I really didn’t want to. Life has a funny way of interfering with our productivity when chasing our dreams, so here are some shortcuts around it.

Contents:

6 Ways to Get Motivated When You Don’t Feel Like It

Set aside social media free time.

Instagram and Twitter will be the death of me. I follow many bloggers on both social media networks and enjoy reading what you guys are writing. The problem with social media is it will slowly eat all the time you have, and the work will not get done.

What I find works for me is carving out a half hour or a full hour and shutting all the social stuff down. I use this time for a simple brain dump, brainstorming session, or even sketching out the bones of a future blog post.

It’s also really easy to compare yourself to others and find yourself lacking if you’re always on social media, so free time to see that you’re equally as awesome is always a good idea.

Reward yourself.

I plan to use a points-based system and treat myself to little things (and not-so-little things) when I reach a certain threshold. I have been writing a blog post, responding to comments, replying to emails, and participating in Twitter chats as I am working on getting back to a regular posting schedule.

I have 5-point rewards, 10-point rewards, and 20-point rewards, and I use a chart in the back of my blog planner to track them. Figuring out smaller steps you need to achieve to do the work and then rewarding yourself for it is a great motivator, especially when working towards Charlotte Tilbury makeup.

Find an organization system.

I recently fell head over heels for planning and the planning community. My planning Instagram gets more love than my one these days, and I’m always hunting for ways to get and stay organized.

Right now, I use an Erin Condren Life Planner as my home, and blog planner and a Webster’s Pages Color Crush personal planner as a health and wellness planner with spots for financial tracking and blog post ideas.

This helps me schedule time for writing and blog-related work and keeps me on task. It isn’t foolproof, as I can easily ignore all the plans I’ve made (and I have!), but it’s a step in the right direction.

Know when to stop…

Sometimes, even with all these tips and ideas, you can’t finish the work. And that’s okay. Some days, I’m just not feeling it, and I know that pushing past it will only produce mediocre results, and I’m not a fan of publishing anything that I don’t stand behind 1000%.

So I take some time off, assess my mental and physical health, and do something I enjoy instead. I’m a huge advocate of self-care – taking a break and loving yourself will always make you a better and more productive version of yourself.

And when to keep going.

On the flip side, some days, you have to dig deep and find that spark. It’s really hard figuring out which day is which, but I’ve learned that not quitting too early and giving it a real try is the best way to figure out whether it’s a day you have to keep pushing through or a day where you should just call it a night.

I’ve done some of my best work by digging my heels into the ground, making tea, and pushing until something great happens.

Ask for help.

This one is the hardest one for me as I am super independent, but my partner is right next to me as I write this. I asked him on his way over to visit me to make sure I wrote at least two blog posts before he left to head home, and he delivered. Having an accountability partner can make a difference when you need to do the work; all you need is a little push in the right direction.

I saw this online yesterday, and it sums up my entire post in one quick sentence: “Be strong enough to stand alone, smart enough to know when you need help, and brave enough to ask for it.” I like to think that I can do all three things, and I know you are as well. Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.

How do you stay motivated when doing anything, but the work sounds like a great idea? Let me know in the comments below.

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