Coming back to work or school after the holiday season can be a little frustrating for everyone. When your alarm rings at 7 am and you can’t stay in bed anymore, when you realize that you need to follow up on emails you received during the holidays, or when you look at the pile of paper works that you need to catch up on, it’s easy to feel a little discouraged. Staying motivated during this time of the year can be difficult, that’s why we’ve pulled together some useful tips to help you overcome these post-holiday frustrations.
Get the Ball Rolling
It’s overwhelming to look at a mountain of work you need to catch up on, and when feeling overwhelmed, people often tend to neglect and postpone. In order to make this process easier and less painful for you, start with something small. Ideally, start with the task most relative to the purpose you are following. Keep in mind that you need to pick things up step by step and complete your long term goal in the end, whether your goal is to accomplish a certain amount of quota at work, finish a certain number of projects for school, or meet your own job search timeline.
You can start with one single task, and warm your brain up from there. For example, if you are following your own job search goal, you can start with writing cover letter for a specific position you had your eyes on. When the task you assigned for yourself is that easy, you have no reason to postpone. And once you get started, you’ll feel more motivated checking off tasks form your list. Start with easy task and slowly increase your workload, until your brain is at full power again.
Clarify Your Goals
When you don’t have a clear and driving purpose, it’s easier to feel unmotivated. When you want to slack off, remind yourself of why you are here and what you are doing your work for. A clear and purposeful goal will make you want to get some work done. If you can’t help but wishing that you could take the week off, keep in mind that what you are doing now is changing your life in a meaningful way.
Really think about what kind of lifestyle you intend to pursue, what career goals you aim to accomplish, and know that each step you take now is leading you closer to the finish line. Remember, We’re all driven by goals, or desires sometimes. What we are thirst for is what keeps us going. Tap into this, and find a reason to get yourself moving.
Step away from distractions
If you are still thinking about the pina colada you had at the beach, the TV show you binge watched with your friends, or the new high heels you bought on boxing day, do not reach to your phone because texting your friends, looking at your vacation photos, or browsing online is not going to get your work done!
When you feel unmotivated (or lazy), you have the urge to start chatting or browsing for things that entertain you. Well, stop. Try to stay away from things that distract your, that include your smartphone, your laptop, or the novel you read half way through. If you are in a work environment, only keep close the device that you need, and finish your daily to-do list before chatting with coworkers; if you are in a school environment, focus on what your instructor is saying, and take informative notes; if you are in a home-office environment, dress properly, keep away all your snacks, and unlink your wifi if possible, especially if you are trying to write something.
As the largest career college in Canada with 50 campuses across the country, Academy of Learning College attributes the growth in our success to identifying the gap between the formal education available and the realities of the working world. We fulfill the needs of learners by developing customized programs for each student, while meeting the requirements for convenient and effective training at an affordable cost.