No matter what you do for a living, overcoming obstacles and accomplishing various challenges is always the key to success. As an entrepreneur, employee or a blogger, you tend to slack down and feel defeated whenever your hard work doesn’t pay off. Little disappointments here and there can be very destructive. If you let it be that way, self-pity, insecurities, excuses will then drag you away from your success without you even realizing it.
The bad news is that you cannot avoid setbacks or obstacles in your life because like almost everyone else in this world, you’ve got a job which is not perfect. There are times you will need to go through the rough challenge and do things which you dislike. However, the good news here is that you can take action and stay motivated by following the recommended tips listed below:
1) Watch inspiring videos
It is very inspiring to watch how the other people struggle, confront and conquer their fear, and ultimately achieve great success in life. It is truly amazing to watch how these people (some born with defects, some suffer from mental illness) turn impossible into a miracle.
I believe inspiration is just like happiness, they are both contagious. When you watch the others work so hard to make a difference in their life and in other people life, you will suddenly have all the motivation you need to confront your current obstacles and break through it. This is because when you compare the hardship you are facing with what they have went through, the hardship you’re currently enduring will shrink drastically until so small as if it has disappeared.
You can utilize YouTube to find many inspiring videos. For example, some of the most inspiring videos I recommend are Nick Vujicic, Derek Redmond, and Team Hoyt. Just search for these titles and it will bring up more inspiring videos to enlighten your day.
This video is one of the seeds of inspiration for me.
Warning: Try to Watch Without Crying =)
It never fails to remind me about one thing: When You Don’t Give Up, You Cannot Fail
2) Make it Fun
Motivation will come back if you make it an interesting task to do. One of the ways to make things fun is to use a new approach to complete it. For example you realized it is hard to stay motivated when it comes to keep fit. Then perhaps you can try to work out in the gym instead of jogging which you have been doing over the weeks. Or perhaps you can walk around in the mall looking at things you like since walking is considered as an exercise too. If you feel bored studying, then you can try listening to your favorite music while studying, group study, or imagine you are the teacher and you are teaching a student. Unleash your creativity and ask yourself “How can I make it a fun thing to do?” Remember, there is no right or wrong as long as it doesn’t go overboard.
3) Set a Reward for Yourself
Set a tempting reward for yourself and enjoy the reward every time you reach the target milestone. It’s like putting a carrot in front of the donkey, putting a reward in front of you makes you keep moving. I’m not saying you are a donkey though, please don’t be too sensitive =) Whenever you slowed down, just visualize you have accomplished the task and you’re enjoying the reward you prepared for yourself. It will trigger your urge to taste the reward, make it even stronger and you will end up only working harder than before. Just be careful, don’t taste your reward until you accomplish the required task. I know how tempting the carrot is, but try not to take a bite until you finish your task, or else it would be meaningless.
4) Challenge your friend.
I personally like to do this a lot because it helps to turn the most boring task in the world into a fun and addictive game just in seconds. What you need to do is very simple. Just set a goal, and lay out some basic rules, and then see who will achieve that goal first among you and your friends. Make sure there is a reward for the winner, and of course, a punishment for the loser. After all it is a challenge. Believe or not, no matter how boring your task is, it will become a very fun thing to do when you and your friend are fighting to put the punishment on each other. Be serious with the task and have fun when someone got the punishment.
5) Keep a past record of achievement.
If you have done something continuously for the pass weeks, then you will have to record it down in your special little journal. Yes, I said it’s special because it is going to be a book of record of your own.
Have you ever played any games which the game mode is repetitious? These games on smart phones or Ipads are often so simple, repetitive, yet they are highly addictive. People find it addictive because they can’t stop challenging themselves for a new high score. If you have ever played fruit ninja and get addicted to it, then you would definitely understand what I mean. Yes, it’s all about chopping the fruits but it is so addictive because humans like to see themselves progress to a higher level.
What you need to do is very simple; treat your task like a game. Set different levels with your decided yardstick, and then see how far you can achieve. For example, you run as an exercise. For level 1, you need to run 1km; for level 2, you need to run 1.3km, so on and so forth. You will then get addicted to it because now it is not just a task to you anymore. It has become a challenge game. You can then get addicted to the task and have all the fun while doing it.
In conclusion, you can take various actions to stay motivated in doing inevitable or boring tasks by watching inspiring videos, using a new approach, rewarding oneself after accomplishing the task, and make things become fun to do. I personally use all of them based on the situation and the nature of the task, and I like tip no4 challenge your friend the most. I hope these tips will help you to stay motivated in the things you do too.
P.S. No matter how tough your current challenges are, you should never give up. If things do not happen as expected, it means that you might be pushing yourself against the flow of the tide. Reallocate your position, fine tune your strategy, and look at the current failure at least one degree different from your original standpoint is always the best way to beat all challenges in life.
Last but not least, I wish you all succeed in your life. All the best =)
Some Quotes about Challenge which might inspire you:
“When we least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change; at such a moment, there is no point in pretending that nothing has happened or in saying that we are not yet ready. The challenge will not wait. Life does not look back. A week is more than enough time for us to decide whether or not to accept our destiny.”
-Paulo Coelho, The Devil and Miss Prym
“The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.”
-Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture
“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.”
― Helen Keller, The Open Door
“Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labor does the body.”
― Lucius Annaeus Seneca
“Being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional.”
― Roger Crawford
“Sometimes the darkest challenges, the most difficult lessons, hold the greates gems of light.”
― Barbara Marciniak, Family of Light: Pleiadian Tales and Lessons in Living
What Else?
Let me know which tip you like the most =)
Also, I bet some of you have better ways to make big challenges a fun thing to do. So, do not forget to share them in the comment box yeah
If you enjoyed this article, please subscribe to our newsletter.
Get daily inspiration, please like our Facebook Page
[author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]http://inspirationboost.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/ds-profile-pic3.png[/author_image] [author_info]Darren Chow writes at www.InspirationBoost.com. He truly believes that positivity is contagious, so does your smile. Thus, he founded Inspiration Boost with a core vision: to spread inspiration to as many people as possible. [/author_info] [/author]