How To Get Motivated When You're Just Not Feeling It

We've all been there, right?
The to do list has been written, you know what you should be doing, but all the inspirational quotes on Pinterest & Instagram combined just aren't enough to inspire you into actually getting stuff done.
The struggle is real.

I scored a four day week this week thanks to a post-half term inset day, which made me totally joyful on Monday, but on Tuesday I was really struggling to get back into any sort of productive mode. The fog continued into Wednesday & made me a bit of an anxious Annie because the things to do vs time to do them equations were getting more and more unbalanced!

I can't lie, I toyed with making a sofa nest & writing the week off; but deep down I knew that'd only make next week an even bigger mountain to climb, so at 2pm yesterday, I took control and made a plan. Today has been SO much more productive and I'm feeling much happier and calmer.
So what did I do? Let me tell you...


1. I wrote a new list. Well, I wrote an edited list. My current to do list is two full pages in my bullet journal, and with the best will in the world, it's not all getting done in a day and just looking at it can be a bit overwhelming. SO, I picked out the priorities & wrote a list for today with the five of the most important to dos, which I knew time-wise were realistically doable in a day.

2. I wrote myself a note.
It said: 'Dear Leslieanne - think how good you'll feel when these are all done! P.S. DO NOT make coffee until you have ticked off at least 2 things.' Simple, but it turned out to be surprisingly effective - and the tough love of not making coffee as soon as I got back from the school run put me in a MUCH better head down and get on with it frame of mind (plus saved me loads of time since we all know that coffee sipping goes hand in hand with Insta scrolling.)

3. I went outside, which was a good thing in itself since it was sunny & I'm pretty sure I'm solar powered, but moreso because I went to the supermarket & bought a massive almond croissant and a lindor chocolate egg. The croissant to motivate myself into getting up this morning (worked a charm, it was delicious), and the chocolate as a reward for completing the five item mini list.

Writing this blog post is item no.5 on my mini list & by my reckoning, I should have a good half hour once I'm finished to chill out with my book & eat my chocolate egg before I need to pick shorty up from school.

Technically of course, I could use that half hour to crack on with something else on the big list, but I'm sticking to the plan in the hopes that it'll make me more likely to crack on again tomorrow. (Plus of course that half an hour a day is important too - as I wrote about here.)

All in all, I'm pretty proud of myself today.
I mean my proper to do list is still ridiculous and there's still a lot of catching up to do from the half term motivation hangover, but seeing a few things crossed off has definitely given me a much needed boost and a tiny bit of light at the end of the tunnel.

I've picked out 7 more jobs for tomorrow (tiny upscale, baby steps!), and of course the impending weekend is a pretty great motivator anyway, so I'm reasonably confident.

So, if you're lacking motivation or feeling overwhelmed by your list, my advice is to be nice to yourself, break it down into smaller chunks and work on each day as it comes; one at a time.
Be realistic about what's achievable in the time you have available each day and be kind to yourself when you smash whatever smaller goals you set.

Good Luck!



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