Self belief is boosted by motivation, and motivation is about understanding what makes you want to succeed, and finding ways to keep yourself focused on your goals. Find out more…
What motivates you? Maybe it’s success, money, or the satisfaction of doing or learning something new. Different things motivate us at different times! It’s important to find out what works for you, so you can always find that extra spark in yourself to get things done in the best way you can.
Why do I need to be motivated?
Motivation is that little spark in you that gets you started and keeps you going. It can be about everyday tasks like cleaning your room. It can be about getting a certain grade in your exam, or passing your probation at work. You might need to stay motivated to do more than one thing at once. Without motivation, you might find yourself not achieving the things you want, or not knowing what you want to achieve!
What other skills do I need?
Knowing what motivates you is a good first step. What other Young Professional skills help you push onwards and achieve your goals?
Setting realistic goals: First things first! Set yourself realistic targets. You could be brimming with motivation but deciding you will be able to run a marathon in a week or go from entry level to CEO in a month will be a real stretch for anyone.
Self management: You are going to need to be organised. You’ve probably got a lot going on – and you want to achieve all of it, right? Set time aside to complete each part of your goals.
Self belief: Motivation is a big part of self belief. You’ll find the going easier if you also call on your other two self belief skills, resilience and having a positive attitude, too. You will come up against barriers and on some occasions you’ll have to start right back at the beginning (but wiser and more aware of ways to deal with the challenges ahead). Your resilience skills will come in handy to keep you going!
Having a positive attitude is also often overlooked. It’s all well and good achieving things, but if you have whinged to everyone along the way it will really take the shine out of your success! It’s like those bands that get bitter because they achieved fame after ten years of grinding, and can’t believe another cool band achieved fame overnight. Don’t get bitter – respect your own journey! Setting realistic targets in the first place will help with this.
Communication: You’ll need to ask for and give feedback along the way, if you are trying to improve the quality of your work to get a better grade or gain a promotion you are going to need to know how you are improving and what you can do better.
You might use your problem solving and team work skills too as you set out to achieve your goals.
How can I stay motivated?
Get it right from the start: I know we said it earlier, but making sure you have set achievable goals in the first place is the first step to staying motivated. Setting yourself unacheivable goals will very quickly demotivate you – which is the opposite of what you want.
Celebrate all the wins: Break up big tasks into little ones and reward yourself. Let’s call them mini-motivation moments. Choose your reward and make sure you stick to your set tasks.
Keep track of what you’ve learned: It is easy to forget how far you have come, so keep a success folder and make sure you that you are recognising your new skills.
Put it into practice: If you have been learning something new, why not ask to do a presentation or write a ‘how to’ guide at work, school or college on what you have learned? If you were motivated to learn a new hobby or language, join a club or book a trip. The long term gains of achieving what you set out to do will help you keep motivated when a new task comes along.
Ask for help: Staying motivated isn’t about having to achieve everything by yourself. As a Young Professional who is growing in confidence, you know when you need help and take the initiative to ask for it.
Realistic motivational challenge:
- Think of a new goal (it can be anything from improving your grades to presenting to a group of people or going somewhere you always dreamed of visiting).
- Set yourself some good (SMART) goals.
- Keep track of your achievement.
