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The importance of self-motivation

21 March 2017 Career Advice
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Keeping yourself motivated is a key skill

 

Part of the role of a manager is to keep the organisation’s workforce motivated through clear communication and regular evaluation, rewarding hard work and success, as well as developing personnel who have skills gaps.

Generally speaking most of us have a fairly clear idea as to what our role is at work, and if we are doing well or if we are not quite coping. To help us achieve we’re often motivated by those around us simply by being aware as to how well they are doing and naturally doing our best to keep up.

But there will be times when these things will be missing when we don’t have a clear idea of what we’re supposed to be doing, or when there is a lack of group drive from colleagues around us. Keeping oneself motivated in these situations is essential to maintaining a successful career, building a business or generally keeping up with the monotony of every day working.

Here are some tips on how to do it:
 

Get in early

Getting to work on time is a given, but if you get in a little earlier than strictly required, you can often find that this makes things easier as the day goes on. You will for one thing not feel rushed and be able to clearly evaluate what needs to be done, and you’ll be ahead of the curve when the day starts. It will also mean that you are less likely to have to stay late, which is always a bonus.
 

Short and long term goals

Setting yourself clear goals in both the short and the long term is key. Your boss may have already given you these, but it’s still important to translate these into every day tasks.

When you get in, draw up a to do list. Don’t be over-ambitious, as you won’t be able to finish all your set tasks and this can leave you feeling demoralised at the end of the day, but do be ambitious – you’ll feel satisfied once you’ve ticked everything off your list and there won’t be a hint of guilt as you shut down your computer.

Doing this day to day not only helps you keep tabs on what you’ve done, but ensures that you feel satisfied with yourself over the weeks and months.

Setting clear long term goals is equally important, maybe the goals that you have been given need further refinement into practical work over a period of time.

Ensure you have clear aims in mind for the week, month and quarter, and you’ll most likely achieve them. Fail to do this and you won’t be able to evaluate your performance, which can mean that you find it hard to account for your efforts in appraisals. The best part is that if you have a good idea as to your achievements over the year, you can easily make a good case for a pay rise or promotion.
 

Be organised

Making plans is a key part of this, but there are other elements to being organised. First of all you should commit to doing everything you undertake properly. This means that whatever it is, from a presentation deck to a report or even an office social event, you should set out to do it with everything in hand and as it should be.

If you don’t make a habit of cutting corners or leaving things half done, this keeps you psychologically prepared for any unforeseen circumstances that might arise, or new tasks that you might not be quite so used to or well prepared for.

Overall, this will mean that you learn new skills faster and more often, enhancing your career over time. It may seem petty, but this should extend to even the smallest of things, like keeping your desk tidy and managing your email inbox, calendar and contacts list – it all adds up and if you have the right tools to hand this will make life easier in the long run. Every little thing you neglect will in turn make bigger tasks that little harder.

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