What is my motivation, Mr. Demille? Get motivated at work
During an interview with David Letterman a few years back, Mr. Letterman was asked how much he loved his job and the interviewer commented on how wonderful it must be to be the host of such a popular late-night TV show. Mr. Letterman responded, paraphrasing, that “after a while it’s a job like any other job.”
If you love your job but find that over time it becomes more difficult to motivate yourself and be as productive as when you started, then you’re perfectly normal. We all have moments when even the most exciting job becomes “just a job” and we wish we were somewhere else. Eventually, new challenges come our way or we find ourselves lucky enough to have the job or career we do, but what do you do when things get tedious at work? How can you motivate yourself to complete the tedious tasks that often annoy you?
Socialize- While socializing can be a huge “time waste” at work, you can turn this around and use it as a motivating force at work. Spend five to ten minutes a couple of times a day socializing with your friends at work as a treat for completing a task you really don’t like. Play “Let’s Make a Deal” with yourself and focus on that most horrible task to complete and then enjoy spending a few minutes chatting with a friend or a cup of coffee and light conversation once the task is complete.
Denying yourself the pleasure of socializing with your friends at work until a task is complete means you’ll have no email, IM chats, or idle talk. If someone walks by your desk, be honest with them and tell them that they are your “invitation” and that you will talk to them once your work is done, but that you made a deal with yourself not to socialize until you’re done. this task.
Time blocks – If you find it difficult to stay motivated for long periods of time, break your day into hour-long blocks. Employees have been proven to be more effective and happier when they work and focus in hour-long blocks of time. Work for an hour, get up and walk around for a few minutes, and then go back to work. You’ll soon find that another hour has passed that you’ve been diligently working on and it’s time for you to stop what you’re doing to take a breather and freshen up.
Using this technique of dividing your day into hourly increments will make you more effective and you’ll find that you’re not as exhausted at the end of the day. You will probably also find that you are more productive even if you stop for a few minutes every hour to recharge your batteries.
Be you, even at work – Personalize your workspace only if your employer allows personal items in the workspace. Images that make you happy or quotes that inspire you can have a tremendous effect on your personal motivation throughout the day. A splash of color, family photos, or vacation photos can lift your mood during stressful or difficult times. Another trick that can keep you motivated throughout your workday is to have pictures or reminders of why you work so hard around you. It could be photos of your children or family pets, or even a brochure for a vacation spot you plan to visit one day.
No matter what motivates you to work, keep a visual reminder handy and keep your eyes on the prize as you work. Little tricks like these to help motivate you and reward yourself for doing even the tasks you really hate will make your job more enjoyable and provide more value to the company you work for. You will find that your stress level decreases as you tackle the problem of how to properly motivate yourself, and your co-workers may also notice that you are more pleasant and easier to work with.
Try some of these motivational techniques and see if you can make your days more productive and less stressful. Share these tips with your friends and let them know what you are trying to do. You very well could be the one to bring motivation and team spirit to your workplace.
By: Erica D.