Strategies for Maintaining Long-Term Motivation
We all know what it feels like to experience excitement and passion for a new goal. We're so eager to jump in, get started right away, and make a difference. But we also know how easy it is for that passion to lose its magic over time. The novelty wears off and the reality of hard work sets in.
In this post, you'll find strategies to help keep your motivation going strong for long-term success! From breaking up your goals into manageable chunks, to rewarding yourself along the way with positive reinforcement - these tips will help you stay energized throughout any major undertaking.
In my work with clients across many different fields, I've found that long-term success is really all about maintaining motivation. Sure, you'll need to set goals and make plans, but it's your drive to keep going that will really determine your ultimate results.
As a coach, I often see clients start out with a great deal of motivation – maybe they're eager to improve their health, or reduce stress in their life. But as the weeks go by and they still aren't seeing the changes they want in their weight or stress levels, their motivation starts fading away a little bit at a time.
Then, gradually, it starts to slip away completely. Until suddenly the new goals and ambitions are left to sit in a dusty corner of their mind.
And this is how most people end up quitting their goals rather than consolidating them into a bigger plan, so they can keep motivated all the way through.
These people figure that they simply can't stick with it for the long haul. They've set themselves up for failure instead of success by letting motivation slip away into disinterest and then boredom!
This has got to stop! If you can hold onto your motivation by keeping your eyes on your ultimate goal, you'll be able to make real progress no matter what challenges you encounter along the way.
Here are some strategies that I've found quite effective in keeping long-term motivation strong.
You need to break your goals into small, manageable pieces. When you're first starting out, your goal may seem so HUGE that you can't even make it out of the driveway! But the reality is that most of us solve our problems by breaking them down into smaller parts (remember calculus?).
So as with any other project, devote just a few minutes each day to envision your overall goal. Your ultimate goal may be to lose 25 pounds and get into the best shape of your life in a month. But what does that look like? What small steps will you take a day-to-day basis to make that happen?
When you can answer those questions clearly, everything else will seem much easier to accomplish.
You need to reward yourself along the way, so you don't burn out. If you're like most people I've worked with, your motivation will start fading after your first few months on a new health program or overwork project. And if you don't re-engage your drive in a positive way soon enough, you may simply set the goal aside and ignore it for months at a time!
So make sure that you reward yourself for your progress after each small victory. And find ways to keep your passion for your goal hot throughout all the ups and downs.
For example, have you ever heard someone say "I'm only motivated until I hit my first road block"?
Well, that's how I felt about my health goals too! I would stay motivated for months on end, but then go through a period where I'd give up entirely because there was just way too much hard work involved.
But one day, I simply decided that I didn't have to let this happen. If I wanted to see my goals to the finish line, I was going to have to find ways to keep myself motivated – even in the face of challenges.
That's when I started rewarding myself along the way for every little victory. I already wrote about what rewards work best in this post about Health and Fitness Rewards , but here are a few other ideas:
- Reward yourself with some new workout clothes after you've met your exercise goal for 3 weeks straight (t-shirts, leggings, hats, etc).
- Reward yourself with a movie or TV show when you've reached your 5-mile walking goal for the week.
- Reward yourself with some "me" time after you meet your weekly weight loss goal.
- Reward yourself with a massage or facial when you've met most of your exercise goals for the week.
This helps keep that motivation burning strong all the way to the finish line. And it's not just about exercise either! Many of my clients have found that rewarding themselves by buying new clothes, going out to dinner, and getting pedicures helps them stay motivated to work out at home as well.
The key to all of these strategies is to make sure you're rewarding yourself in a positive way. I've seen many people resort to rewarding themselves with food or shopping sprees – and then being frustrated by the fact that this doesn't help them stay motivated.
This is why it's important to try out different rewards and see what works best for you, so you can get back on track more quickly when life gets in the way of your plans!
You need to remember why you started on your goals. When I first started my weight-loss journey 6 years ago, I thought I'd be able to lose all that weight in a few months and then be done with it forever.
Conclusion:
Creating a plan where you can see the steps you're taking to reach your goal, and rewarding yourself along the way, are just two of many ways to keep long-term motivation strong.
This will allow you to reach any of your goals with better results and without giving up too soon.
In fact, even when it seems like you've hit a dead end in reaching your goals, remember this one key fact:
You have more time than you think. It might not feel like it right now, but we all have an infinite amount of time to accomplish our lifelong goals, as long as we're willing to stay positive about them.
And once you know that you've got more time than you think . . .