In today’s post, I’m sharing with you action steps that will lead your life in the direction YOU want it to go. If you don’t know what to do next, if you’re wondering how to stay motivated and achieve your goals, keep reading.
1. Define your goal.
Make your goal specific. What do you want to accomplish and by when?
You’re perfectly capable of achieving everything you set your mind to. Go crazy, dream big. And then dream a bit bigger, because we are talking about YOUR life here. And if you want to get in the best shape ever by summer, if you want to ace your exams, if you want to move to Melbourne – YOU CAN.
You just have to take the right steps to get there.
So write down your biggest goals for this year, this month, or whatever time frame feels best.
Step number 1 to stay motivated is getting clear on your goals. Getting the focus right. Imagine that you’re taking a picture – first, you have to find focus, and then take a picture. Otherwise, the picture won’t turn out how you wanted.
More about defining your goals:
4 Goal-Setting Questions to Set Yourself Up for Success
2. Your why will help you stay motivated.
If you don’t know the reason as to why you want to accomplish something, you’re not going to give your best to achieve it.
Dig deep into your soul and find the reason you’re going to be willing to take action on your ambitions.
Now we’re talking about your FEELINGS. Think about how you would feel once the goal is reached? If you want to get in shape, why do you want to do that? Is it because your body will be stronger? Are you going to feel more energized? Are you going to build confidence?
Find the WHY behind every goal and write it down. Also, you can write down the feelings you’ll have if you DON’T reach that goal, so the next time you feel lazy you can motivate yourself by choosing between feeling proud/ feeling bad about yourself.
Read more on how to stay committed to your goals:
3 Powerful Ways to Stay Committed to Your Goals
3 Ways to Continuously Make Progress on Your Goals
3. Know how you work best.
This one is extremely important and I realized this one only recently. You have to know yourself so that you can work with your strengths and stay motivated to get things done.
If you know that you work better 2 days before the deadline than starting a month earlier, then it’s better for you to start only 2 days before. Yes, you may feel stressed and rushed, but if knowing that it’s the last minute is what makes you work more efficiently – then do it that way.
Or, if you know you work better at night because it’s calmer and no one is distracting you, then don’t try to be an early bird. UNLESS you’re staying up late to watch TV and you waste your time at night, then DO try to become an early bird.
Essentially, what you want to do is work smarter, not harder. So don’t fight yourself and work the way you know is going to get you the best results.
BUT, change what needs to be changed. There are certainly some things you know are demotivating you. You’ll have to change those if you want to achieve the best results. If you find yourself sleeping too much/watching Netflix all the time, those are the things you need to change.
If you want to change your life for the better, you can’t keep being the same person you’ve been. Change everything that is not serving you.
P. S. If you’ve been on your own self-improvement journey and you want to dive deeper, check out my journaling bundle.
The bundle includes guided journaling workshops for building confidence, creating the next-level version of yourself, and setting goals. It’s so powerful to help you dig deeper within yourself and start making a change in your life so that you can reach your goals. Sound good? Then get your bundle on the link here and snag some pretty cool bonuses!
4. Plan smarter.
Ditch the old ways. We are talking about gaining focus and starting living the life you desire. You’ll have to change something to stay motivated.
The first thing is reflecting on the past. Now, I’m not someone who is living in the past but I make sure every Sunday I look at the week that has passed and I review it all. How many times have I exercised and when? 6 times first thing in the morning after having my orange juice. Okay, I’ll keep doing that. How many blog posts have I written? 2. Hmm, I’ll need to change that if I want to be a full-time blogger. Next week I’ll write 4.
See what we’re doing here? Just reviewing to see what works and what doesn’t so the next week we’re ready to reach those goals with improved strategies.
Also, get into the habit of writing a to-do list each night for the day ahead so that when you wake up, you always know you’re priorities for the day.
There’s an amazing journaling workshop specifically about monthly reviewing and goal-setting & planning in the journaling bundle I mentioned above. If you’re serious about achieving your goal and working on your motivation and discipline, you’re going to love that workshop.
5. Act as if & visualize your success.
Act as if you already have achieved your goals.
What would a person that is in great shape act like? Definitely, that person wouldn’t overeat, trained only once a month, etc. Start acting as if you are already who you want to be, living the life you want to live.
Visualize yourself living in your ideal apartment, having an ideal job, having an abundance of money.
Be confident in yourself and have faith in the Universe that everything that you desire, you will have. Visualize how you want your day to go and act as if anything is possible.
You have every right to live the life of your dreams, you just have to take the right steps that will lead you towards it.
6. Be grateful.
Be grateful for what you have now. For all the resources that are helping you to reach your goals. For all the opportunities you have and even for those that are yet to come.
You never know when you’re going to have that one opportunity that will open all the doors for you. You never know when you’ll meet someone that is going to help you achieve your goal. But only by being grateful, you can open yourself to those experiences.
Only by being aware and valuing all the things you already have, you can receive more abundance in your life.
Start your day by listing 3 things you’re grateful for and end your day by being thankful for some positive things that have happened to you throughout the day. It will instantly help you stay motivated and it will improve your mood.
7. Make a decison.
Now is the time to make a decision. Decide that from this moment you’re going to go after the life you want.
If you say ”starting next Monday I’ll…”, then nothing is going to change. If you’re not willing to take action now, what makes you think you’ll want to do it a week from now?
Realize that by procrastinating you’re pushing your goals away. Don’t do that to yourself.
You deserve to live your best life. You deserve to have it all.
Say to yourself that you’re worthy of living the life of your dreams and don’t let anyone stop you. Not even yourself. I encourage you to live the life you want because you absolutely can live the life you want. The choice is yours.
Q: What helps you to stay motivated and get things done? Let us know in the comments!
Until the next time,
Ivana
I like the “decide” part. I think anytime we make the conscious decision to act and not plan and dream, we automatically stop fearing the future and start worrying about the present. When we decide to make concrete daily action steps, its amazing what can accomplish in a day, week, and month. Two straight years of focused daily action can accomplish things that we never would have thought we ever could!
That’s so true, Jake! We need to stop overthinking and start doing if we want to see any results.
I love the “act as if” tip. That’s such a good way to decide what you should and shouldn’t be doing!
And I guess I’ll start reviewing my week on Sundays now. 🙂
Weekly reviews are so beneficial! I’m glad you found something to implement in your life 🙂
This is a fantastic read. I’m terrible at staying motivated as well as figuring out goals. I’m definitely going to come back to this post when I’m stuck with things.
XO Steph
https://littlemissshortstuff.wordpress.com/
Great article! I love acting as if. This one is a serious game changer. When we have desires to become or active they remain dreams until we decide to become the person who can and does achieve these desires. This is an extremely important part of any change or advancement in self!
Indeed 🙂 Glad you liked this post!