Wellbeing Tip – How to increase your motivation and lift your mood

 

When you finish work and are asked “How was your day?”, what is the tone of your response … does any of the following statement strike a chord?

“Urgh, it was okay, but I didn’t manage to speak to so-and-so, or complete the task I was working on, or even touch on anything other than the really urgent items on my to-do list.”

These may all be valid reflections, but they all focus on what is still outstanding for the future, and the negative, rather than celebrating the progress you made that day.

Ruminating on the areas where we have not made progress can make us feel like we are in a rut and we can become overwhelmed by feelings of under-achievement and thoughts of what we still have to do.  Research has shown that we are less productive, creative, and motivated when we are in a negative mood than a positive one.

So, what’s the solution?

Wellbeing Tip

Think of how you feel when you are praised for piece of work you completed or an idea you suggested, or a friend pays you a compliment over a dish you cooked for them.  Does it make you feel good and motivated to do more?

With many of us working remotely and currently unable to cook for friends, we can re-create this boost to our wellbeing and motivation ourselves by noticing and celebrating our small daily successes.

When you are finishing up at the end of each day, instead of ruminating on what you haven’t achieved, ask yourself, “what are the small wins that I have accomplished today?”

Noticing these small progressions, and pausing for a moment to celebrate them, will have the effect of increasing your satisfaction which will not only help your engagement and happiness but also motivate you to achieve further progress tomorrow.  And, as we all know, small seeds can grow into large trees!

Many other wellbeing tips are available on our website – please have a browse to find some that work for you

 

This tip appeared in our Autumn newsletter, if you would like future editions of our quarterly workplace wellbeing newsletter to be sent directly to your inbox, you can sign up here.