We all have a lack of self motivation at times. Even an experienced educator like me suffer from this too. We can learn a hundred ways to improve our lives, but then hesitate to act. Something less important catches our attention, or we just don’t feel like doing what we need to do. Even a person who is normally highly motivated can sometimes have a hard time getting started on an important task.

Is there a solution? There are probably dozens of them. Below are six of the best self motivation techniques that consistently work for me when used. Try them all, but if you find even one or two here that work for you, you’ll be on your way to success.

1. Talk to get motivated
   • One of my favourite ways to create energy and motivation is to talk. Once I talk to my students about the stuff I am going to teach, I’m out of my slump and back studying. What if you have no one around you to talk to? You can talk to yourself! Say aloud, “What is the highest value stuff I can do now?” Talking actually stimulate your body and release energy. If you find out that you are lazing on the sofa for too long, not knowing what to do next, start talking to yourself. Trust me, it really helps.
2. Stimulate your desire
   • Think about the rewards you can achieve when you have reached your goals. Find ways to stimulate your desires. Usually, students find themselves unmotivated to study because they do not know why they are studying for. But when I talk to As-producing students, I found out that they are very clear of their goals. A young boy I asked said he wanted to enter a medicine course because his dream is to invent a cure for cancer. There is another girl I asked who said she studied very hard because she want to get a scholarship and lessen her parents’ financial burden. Her father is an odd-job labourer while her mother has to clean dishes to make ends meet. Her younger brother has some medical conditions and need medical attention. Hence, it really stimulates her to get good results and lessen her parents’ burden. Whoa! No wonder they score As consistently.
3. Stimulate your pain
   • The way to stimulate is to imagine any bad consequences that may occur if you don’t do what you need to do. It is like when finally stop hitting that snooze button on the alarm, and get up because you know you will be late for school. Think of what is going to happen if you don’t revise your work during your school holidays, you are going to suffer when school reopens!
4. Find a true interest
   • If you have no interest in what you are doing, it might mean you need to do something else. If it’s just a task you dislike, but it needs to be done, relate it clearly in your mind to the greater goal. Some students don’t like to study, but they don’t have a motivation problem when they know they have to study to get into a medicine course.
5. Boost your energy
   • Coffee may help for a while, if caffeine doesn’t create other problems for you. Exercising and sleeping well help too. But the best way I used to boost my energy level is still to unleash my humour being. It is to have a sense of humour about everything. It can be lame, as long as it cracks you up into laughter, a good laugh can overcome that feeling of being overwhelmed that sucks away self motivation.
6. Take small steps
   • I’ve found if I commit to raking up one bag of leaves, I soon want to finish all the yard work. Taking any small step towards your goals is a great self motivation technique. To make this even easier, break larger goals down into small steps.

Motivation techniques really do work, but don’t ask me how to get motivated to use them. Since you are reading this post, I guess you are motivated enough to take effective actions to change you and your child’s life positively

Can also be read at Study Grandmaster’s Blog