For most of us 2021 started off in lockdown…again. It can be frustrating trying to keep up with changing rules. Shifting work schedules, school and social time.
Are you getting tired of telling yourself that this will all be over soon? Finding it difficult to motivate yourself to get anything done?
You may feel a sense of why bother.
We are here for you! No matter what this year brings, we are going to help motivate you and keep your paddle arm in top shape!
Daily Motivation Techniques
Set yourself simple daily goals. Make sure they’re achievable, but offer some challenge. If you wake up and decide to attempt your first tour de stade, without training – you’re aiming too high. Try instead with the goal of taking the stairs.
When you achieve this daily goal, offer yourself a reward. It can be big or little. So long as it makes you feel accomplished and smile.
Be sure to vary your daily motivations. Otherwise they will begin feeling like a chore instead of an accomplishment.
They don’t always have to be physical either. Draw something, make music, compliment others. A daily motivation is personal.
Accomplishing small things keeps your spirits up. They provide you with a sense of reason.
Weekly and Monthly accomplishments
Think big. Maybe go for that tour de stade, finish that novel you’ve been putting off.
Setting long-term motivations gives you something to look forward to. Something to work at over the course of a week or month.
Break down your big idea into small digestible chunks (daily motivations, perhaps). If a project seems overwhelming, you won’t be inspired to start it.
If you want to create a four-tier wedding cake, but have never baked, start with a cupcake. Then a cake, then two cakes.
Then hit the gym, you’ve just eaten two cakes.
Jot down milestones along the way. Write them somewhere you can see. A white board, calendar, a post-it note on the fridge. Look at it and feel proud that you’re getting there, that you’re working towards something epic.
Share it with the world
Be accountable, tell someone what you’re working towards. Sometimes saying it out loud makes it real. Maybe you will inspire someone to think about their own goals and how to work toward them.
If you can (or are comfortable doing so), share your progress over your social media channels. Your friends and family (and DBC of course) will love to cheer you on.
Sharing it, even a text message to your best friend, gives you the drive to keep going. You want to show them something bigger, better. Something you’re proud of.
Use Failure to your advantage
Failure can really derail you. Here’s what you need to remember, failure is a valuable lesson. It offers us the opportunity to reflect on what went wrong and how to get it right.
I’ll share a story about baking Montreal bagels. I sweat, swore and made a colossal mess only to have under baked bagels. I bought a special pan for them, still undercooked. Frustrated, I thought about what I was doing wrong. I re-read the recipe, checked my equipment, all fine.
I never thought that I should check that my oven was holding the right temperature. It wasn’t.
Failure is frustrating, use it to your benefit. Use it and master your motivations!