5 Strategies to Find Motivation When You’re Drained

Given my process for writing this post this week, this topic seemed rather fitting. For some reason, I have been struggling to find the motivation to do most of my usual tasks this week (practicing, writing, and composing). Thankfully, however, my will to work out and do my triathlon training has remained as strong as ever. Even though I may give the impression online that I’m always ready to go and begin the next project, piece, or workout, I have my moments. There are days when I struggle to get myself out of bed or I need to convince myself to get my workouts and practicing sessions started.

It’s a natural part of life to have low motivation or energy to do things. Sometimes it’s your body’s way of telling you that something’s off, and other times it’s your mind making loopholes to justify your subconscious desires. In the case of the latter, it is important to find ways to get around these mental blocks and start anyways. Since these two areas are where my motivation wavers the most, I’m going to focus on examples of finding motivation to get moving and practicing, but these tips should be transferrable to other aspects of your life.

(Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional nor do I seek to give medical advice. Please consider speaking with your primary care physician or licensed therapist before making any significant changes to your life.)

1. The 5-minute Rule

If I get out of bed and just don’t want to do anything, I tell myself to just do the activity for 5 minutes. Typically, the hardest part of exercising is just starting. By making myself do 5 minutes of an exercise, I often end up just completing the entire workout because I overcame the mental hurdle of starting. If after 5 minutes I am still miserable, I call it a day. For practicing, I have a similar rule. If I run through my quick warm up, weekly etude, and/or solo piece and still have no drive to get anything productive done, I will call it a day for the horn and will spend time mentally practicing by looking over my music.

2. Rewards and Treats

Rewards and treats are both very enticing motivators. Rewards are treats that you get for completing a specific behavior whereas treats are things you get/do just because you want to. While they work, it is important to be mindful that your reward/treat doesn’t sabotage your goals. For example, treating yourself to a slice of cake after a workout is a poor decision as this indulgence will undo the work you did. Healthy treats and rewards should be somewhat related to the behavior at hand. Some rewards and treats I have used for exercising are buying new workout programs, more exercise equipment, or new running shoes. For practicing, I tend to be more creative by using exercising or meeting up with a friend as a reward/treat. In this situation, I tell myself that I cannot do the activity I want to do until I have completed a set amount of time (see the section on rules for more on this). Be sure that your motivation to complete an activity does not always become dependent on the reward—ideally, the reward for making a better habit or getting work done should be the habit or work itself!

3. Postponing

Even though I work out first thing in the morning when my mind is fresh, there are times at which I just can’t. I often will tell myself to get some other work done first and see if I have the energy to move later. Often times, after sitting at the computer for an hour, I want to do anything that will get me up and moving. Next time you are struggling to find motivation in the moment, complete something else and promise that you will come back to the other task. Be careful, however, that you aren’t just procrastinating. While a small difference, there is a difference between postponing and procrastinating. Postponing is still productive—you are still actively planning on completing the postponed task, and you are using the time to do something else that needs to get done. Procrastinating on the other hand is fake productivity—you have no true plans to get back to the task you’re pushing off, and you fill the time with anything you can think of rather than something else on the to-do list. Postpone! Don’t be me and procrastinate!

4. Inspiration

Sometimes I just need a pep-talk from an external source to get myself going. I can usually accomplish this with a quick Google search to find inspirational stories or recordings. If I’m struggling to go on a run, a search on the benefits of running will be enough to make me reconsider it. If I’m struggling to practice, scrolling through Instagram and to see the inspiring recordings of my colleagues usually helps me to get my act together enough to begin. Another thing that is sometimes helpful is finding your past work to see the progress you have made. This could be through old photos of yourself, memories of how hard an exercise used to be for you, writing samples, or recordings from years ago. Just seeing how far you have come can often make you realize how far you can go if you continue.

5. Rules

This is similar to treats and rewards, and it is the opposite postponing. Setting rules or conditions around specific behaviors is a brilliant strategy of negative reinforcement. It involves only allowing yourself to do a more desirable activity after the first one is done. For example, I will not allow myself to have a cup of coffee until I have gone on a walk. This ensures that I walk because I really want the coffee. If for some reason the coffee wasn’t enough to make me walk, there is probably an underlying issue that is causing such an extreme lack of motivation. For practicing and writing, this often looks like practicing or writing for an hour in order to hang out with a friend later that day. If I want to hang out with a friend, I must put effort into my work, and if I can’t put in the effort, I can’t hang out with anyone. Setting these rules takes a lot of discipline, but if you can enact them, they are incredibly effective motivators.

Signs Your Lack of Motivation Is Something More

There are, however, times that your body is speaking to you to say something’s off. Some subtle signs of this include:

1. Consistently lacking motivation several days in a row

2. Chronic pain

3. Muscle soreness that is debilitating during normal movements

4. Fatigue and constant exhaustion

5. Changes in appetite and the consequent sudden weight loss or gain

These are signs of overreaching that can lead to overtraining or burnout. Overtraining and burnout are the two different stages post-exhaustion—when your body can not properly function due to high stress. Overtraining occurs with too much exercise-related stress, and burnout tends to occur in response to work-related or general stress. While you might not have fallen into a state of true burnout or overtraining, these signs are your body’s way of warning you before it is too late. It is important to rest and take breaks sometimes. You must take care of yourself to ensure that you are functioning to your best ability. If you are noticing signs of burnout or overtraining, please see a medical professional to determine next steps as it may be something serious.

Well, I am astounded that I had the motivation to write this article after the week I’ve had! I used the 5-minute principle to get going, and that has clearly worked as you are reading this now. If you have any other additional motivation strategies, please let me know in the comments!

I am preparing for my Master’s recital in the next few weeks (April 9 at 7EST!), and my posts may be a bit more sporadic. I will aim to have something at least biweekly to help inspire you to live a more happy, healthy, and meaningful life.