Whether you’re a college student, someone trying to get through school, an office worker overloaded with projects, or just someone looking for their passion in life or a new topic to get their teeth into, there are a whole load of different barriers and struggles to overcome. The biggest of these? Dealing with negative energy and discouragement, and losing motivation in what you’re doing. You can start your project, essay, next best-selling novel, or anything else with the greatest of intentions and all the enthusiasm in the world… but as soon as that negativity starts to sink in, it can be incredibly difficult to claw it back.
There’s no shortage of tips and tricks out there for fighting discouragement, but all too many of them slip into cliche or seem to be focused primarily on team members in corporate offices, looking to increase their motivation to hitting those next big sales targets. In this article, we’re going to be focusing on people just like you: everyday men, women, and students looking for ways to stay focused, maintain their motivation and keep the encouragement they need to carry on with the task at hand.
What Happens When We Get Discouraged?
In order to fully understand how to avoid and tackle discouragement, it’s probably a good idea to first think about what actually happens when discouragement sets in and takes over our minds and motivation. We all know that feeling: that sinking sensation when the energy seems to sap out of us, and we struggle even lift a finger to write out one more word… let alone the remainder of an essay or thesis. Why does this happen? And what’s going on?
Most of the time, this sensation is due to a couple of different factors. The most common of these is tiredness and exhaustion when it comes to the task we’re trying to complete. Sometimes, it feels like we’ve been trying to complete a task since forever… and it can be challenging to keep that finishing line in sight. The other most common cause of discouragement? A lack of self-belief and esteem. As soon as the slightest niggling doubt of our own abilities gets into our minds, it can be tough to pull back and regain our belief in our ability to carry on. These two causes: one physical, one psychological, can be utterly devastating when it comes to all kinds of work, and school or college work most of all.
Let’s now focus on five simple tips to ensure that discouragement is kept at bay and that we’re able to cross those finish lines with our heads held high.
1. Getting Adequate Sleep
Sleep is amazing. When we sleep, we’re recharging our batteries, ridding ourselves of negative energy, and re-ordering our thought processes – and all without having to lift a finger! Often, discouragement and feeling incapable of carrying on with a task come down to little more than being overtired or from burning the candle at both ends. Make sure you’re getting adequate sleep, and if it all gets too much, try having a nap to re-energize your efforts.
2. Try Bringing Positive Energy Into Your Life
When we’re discouraged from a task, we often find ourselves hearing a little voice in our heads telling us that we’re incapable of doing anything properly, that we’ll never finish that piece of coursework, that we’re useless, lazy, or stupid. If this sounds familiar, you need to take action, and fast… and you need to start focusing on being more positive and imbuing your efforts with real positive energy.
Different people handle this in different ways. Many students, for example, find that yoga and meditation are both great ways of tackling negative energy and intrusive thoughts. Others make great use of anxiety apps – special apps to get you to breathe properly, and focus on positivity for a few short (but oh-so-powerful) minutes. Others still use positive affirmations to bring their thoughts back in line with the positivity they need. Experiment with as many as you wish, and find the solution that works best for you!
3. Check Your Diet
Our bodies are complex machines, and the food and drink we put into them are extremely significant when it comes to our productivity, our mood, and our ability to focus. There have been countless studies on young children and their diets when it comes to their ability to stay motivated on schoolwork but the same principals can be applied to adults struggling with encouragement issues. Eggs and whole grains top most of the lists of fantastic foods for boosting your mood, and cutting down on junk food and alcohol consumption is basically a given for health, happiness, and motivation in all aspects of life.
4. Get a Professional to Lighten the Load
If your sense of discouragement comes from being overloaded with school work, essays, colleges theses or similar, it can be incredibly hard to overcome these battles on your own. Luckily, there are certain trusted services out there which can lighten the load, and take the strain of some of those written assignments off your hands. An essay helper at EssayPro, for example, will be able to write some of your college work for you and give you the time and space you need to regain your motivation on other areas of your work or personal life.
5. Cut Down on Procrastination
We all procrastinate from time to time – that’s just a part of modern life that cannot be completely avoided. From watching endless videos on YouTube to catching up with your favorite Instagrammers, wasting time online has become such a huge part of everyday life, it can sometimes be difficult to keep sight of just how harmful it can be.
If you find yourself struggling with discouragement, it might be worthwhile keeping tabs on just how much procrastination you’re indulging in – it might be the key to boosting your productivity, and helping you stay on top of your work before falling into a slump of negativity and feelings of hopelessness. There are loads of brilliant anti-procrastination apps out there which target your focus and productivity. Check them out today, and see the difference they can make!
There you go: five top tips for tackling discouragement and maintaining your focus for the best possible results. Give them a try, and experience first-hand how they can positively influence your approach.
About the Author:
Jilian Woods is a freelance journalist and a contributing writer having more than two years of writing experience. As a writer, she sees her purpose in producing and sharing relevant content with people who are willing to expand their knowledge base and learn something new for themselves. Apart from her day job, you may find Jilian engaged in volunteering or doing yoga.
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