Do you consider yourself a mover and a shaker? Does your natural sense of inner-drive and tenacity make you focused on what you want in life? Or perhaps a lack of motivation keeps your dreams slightly out of reach.
Remember that you are human, and nobody stays motivated 100 percent of the time. If you are working on a project or your life’s goals, you need some staying power.
These Fifteen Habits Might Point to a Lack of Motivation
Here are fifteen habits that could indicate a lack of motivation and how to fix them.
1. Procrastinating
Does chronic procrastinating stand in the way of accomplishing great things in life? It’s like any other bad habit that needs nipped in the bud and replaced with good habits. You can overcome procrastination with time and self-discipline.
One of the main reasons you may procrastinate is that you look at the big picture, which intimidates you. So, you decide you don’t want to do anything. Instead, break the goal into smaller tasks that are manageable. As you accomplish each mission, you’ll get the confidence to continue until you complete your plan.
2. Does Not Accept Challenges
Boredom is the enemy of success, and it’s an easy trap you can fall into without realizing it. Do you feel a satisfying challenge each day, or do you feel like nothing changes? Perhaps you are afraid to accept a challenge and step out of your comfort zone.
Before you can grow physically, mentally, and spiritually, you need to evaluate your current conditions and attitudes. If you don’t, your life will stagnate, and you’ll never reach success. A person who does not accept challenges can’t grow.
3. Fails to Self-Educate
Learning and education don’t end after you graduate from high school and college. It’s a life-long process that maintains your memory and cognitive functions. When you lack motivation, learning new concepts and different ways to do things may not be as important.
If you want something harmful enough, are you willing to work and study it all you can? What if you’ve always dreamed of owning your own business. How motivated are you to research starting a business from scratch and marketing your skills or products?
When you are determined to educate yourself on the necessary steps to achieve your goals, a lack of motivation won’t be a problem. If it’s learning a new skill or discovering better ways to complete tasks, self-education can give you the empowerment you need. Refuse to be the person who fails to self-educate.
4. Sets Non-specific Goals
Remember when you were in high school, and your parents and teachers asked you what your life goals were? Maybe you had a few specific ideas, but most of your plans were vague since young people have difficulty seeing that far ahead. As an adult, not having a solid plan can result in a lack of motivation and an unsure future.
Brainstorming is an ideal way to list all your goals and clarify them. In comparison, you may be optimistic about what you want in the next five years, the steps you need to take maybe hazy. Break each goal down into small, precise steps, and your path to success will be more apparent.
5. Defeated Posture
Have you ever seen marathon runners poised at the starting line? As they anticipate the whistle, their posture shows that they are confident and determined to win the race. For these athletes, the race is first won in their minds, and it matters how they carry themselves.
What does your posture say about your inner drive? When you have a lack of motivation, your posture has a depressive nature, and your whole body is slumped. Your head low, and you may appear to be moving in slow motion.
Be like the marathon runner and use the posture of a winner. Keep your back straight, shoulders back, and your head up. When you practice good posture, your body feels better, and you feel like doing more. People will also look at you and assume you are a self-confident person who knows what you want.
6. Low Expectations
It must have been a sad person who recommended always to expect the worst, so you can be surprised if the outcome is positive. How can you achieve your goals if you don’t even believe it can be done? If you have low expectations of what you can do, that’s probably what you’ll get.
When you are working on a project or goal, expect the best results. Don’t lower your standards because of fear that you’ll fail. Maintain a positive attitude and see what happens.
7. Feeling Overwhelmed
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when you look at a project as a whole and not in small parts. When you feel frustrated, you often want to throw up your hands and quit. How do you keep focused?
When you’re feeling overwhelmed, stand back for a bit. See how you can break your project into smaller ones and build on each success. It’s okay to ask for help when you need it.
8. No Motivational Habits
What is your motivation style? Are you a thinker or a doer? If you don’t have any motivational habits, you can’t accomplish anything.
Cultivate good motivational habits, like setting goals and follow-through. If you are weak in one area, see how you can work to make it stronger. Consider what you did in the past to finish a project successfully, and you should utilize those skills to make future endeavors a success too.
9. Low Self-Esteem
When you allow negative attitudes to control your mind, it affects your self-esteem. If you don’t believe in yourself, then who will? It’s challenging to motivate yourself to try harder if you lack confidence in your abilities.
Identify self-defeating thoughts, and don’t allow them to crush your esteem. Be your cheerleader, and you must adopt a can-do attitude. You may be surprised at what you can accomplish.
10. Never Taking Responsibility
Are you the kind of person who will never admit blame, even when you know it’s deserved? To be successful, you must take responsibility when you drop the ball. Blaming others for your shortcomings will only hurt you in the long run.
When it comes to your personal goals, the buck stops at your doorstep. Learn to admit mistakes and learn from them. You will get more respect from others and for yourself.
11. Displays a Negative Attitude
Some people are like Eeyore, the sad-sack little donkey from the classic Pooh stories. No matter how good things are going, they will complain anyway. It’s almost like a dark storm cloud that follows them and fills the atmosphere with gloom and doom. Does that sound familiar?
Having a positive outlook is just as easy as being negative. Refuse to let a negative attitude sway you from your goals. Try to keep focused on the positive things you’ve accomplished and build on them.
12. Use Lack of Motivation as a Label
One of the worst excuses for a lack of motivation is to accept it as part of your personality. Are you going to give yourself a negative label and let your dreams fall through your fingers? It’s time to rip off that self-defeating label and bring on a new one.
Instead of accepting failure, hold yourself accountable to accomplish your plans or projects one step at a time. Do you have difficulties staying focused? Have your mate, a trusted friend, or family member be your go-to support.
13. Fear of Failure
Think of all the great American inventors throughout history, like Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Edison, or Alexander Graham Bell. Do you think they got everything right on the first try? What would our world be like if these brilliant minds would have given up because they were afraid of failure?
Do you lack motivation because you are afraid of being labeled a failure? The only true failure would come from not trying at all. Take a lesson from successful people around the world who had their share of failures before realizing their dreams.
14. Unhealthy Lifestyle
When you don’t feel well most of the time, it stands to reason that you would lack motivation. A poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle can wreak havoc on your physical and mental well-being. It can lead to debilitating diseases or contribute to premature death.
If you want the energy and stability to realize your dreams, you need a healthy body. Talk to your primary healthcare provider about a diet and exercise regimen that is best for you. A healthy lifestyle may prolong your life so you can do more of what you’ve always wanted.
15. Lack of Patience
Today’s world is founded on instant gratification. When you go through a fast-food drive-thru, dial your phone, or log onto the Internet, you expect results. Making goals for your future doesn’t work like that.
Have you ever noticed that when you fumble through something to get it done, you never get the results you wanted? Impatience can put a damper on your goals and make you give up in frustration.
Patience is a virtue worth having, especially when it comes to being motivated. Using a timeline for your goals can help you stay focused. Keep in mind that things can always change, and you must be flexible and patient for long-term success.
Final Thoughts on Identifying a Lack of Motivation–and Striving to Overcome the Challenge
When you are determined to succeed, lack of motivation won’t be an issue. People can inspire you to some degree, but you are responsible for your hopes and dreams. Once you identify that keeping on track is an issue, you can address it head-on and overcome it. So stay motivated, work hard, and you will see the results.
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