How to stay motivated
Becoming unemployed can easily throw a person into a deep depression or induce extreme anxiety. It’s so easy to feel like there’s no point in getting out of bed, or that you’re worthless or unwanted. I know during this pandemic there are many of us who are unemployed, furloughed, or changing careers. We have the weights of the world on our shoulders: we are struggling to pay the bills, are lacking the personal connection we need, and are dealing with hopelessness. 😟
I decided to change careers pre-pandemic (check out my blog post about that whole experience…) and have technically been “unemployed” now for almost 8 months. Instead of falling into depression, I have taken this (hopefully)🙏 once in a lifetime opportunity to better myself! Check out these tips for keeping motivated and positive during a dark and challenging time.
DISCLAIMER: This process may not work for some people- I’m a bit OCD and a lot of people may just not be wired the same way I am… Hoping you will at least be able to take away some positivity in the end!
STEP # 1:
- Routine! I know you’ve heard it before, but this really is vital.
Set your alarm even if you don’t feel like there’s a reason.
Make your bed, work out/take a walk, take a shower and wear whatever makes you feel ready to conquer the day!
- Eat a healthy breakfast to give you the clarity and energy to be productive.
Don’t forget the coffee creamer! Best part of my day!
- Once your morning routine is finished, allow yourself up to 30 minutes to be stressed. Think of everything you are stressed about and write it down. Once it’s on paper, you don’t need to worry about it anymore. It will become part of your to-do list eventually and you will be able to check it off and be done with it instead of dreading it.
STEP # 2: Learn what kind of life you want from yourself:
- Discover what exactly you need to feel productive and fulfilled. If you can’t think of anything, pick a new hobby! Dive into something that you really enjoy.
For me it’s music- I give myself vocal and piano goals and projects to work on. I really enjoy it and it makes me feel fulfilled!
For you, it could be learning something new- crocheting, learning a new language, art projects, whatever you’ve been wanting to do!
- Brainstorm what areas of your life you aren’t happy with and decide what you can do to improve.
For me, I wanted to work on things like my anxiety, and my relationships with friends and family. This really could be anything! Once you decide what you’d like to work on, figure out HOW you’re going to do so. Look into books or podcasts that may help in that specific area.
STEP #3: Make a list for your day!
As I said earlier, some would say I have OCD — I like to plan out every hour of my day. My husband thinks I’m a little crazy, but it works for me! 😆 In order to not be staring at the screen for hours, I would complete cycles that included work, reading a bit from my book, practicing music, and cleaning. It was fun to be able to check off every item, which made me feel so productive. It helped with my anxiety because I had everything I was worried about down on paper, so I knew I wouldn’t forget about anything. And I felt fulfilled! Sneaking in music breaks throughout the day really gave me things to look forward to and were a nice reprieve from the hard work. I aimed to do this same schedule every day, Monday- Friday and gave myself the weekends off. Here is the general layout of the spreadsheet I would use. I would fill in the tasks depending on what I needed to get done each day.
It’s ok to fail!
I wish I could tell you that I spent every day of unemployment waking up at 6:45 am and working this meticulous schedule with no worry, anxiety, or low moments. But we are human- and it’s ok!
If you wake up one morning and are exhausted, it’s ok to snooze- maybe your body needs it! Like I said before, this may be the one period in your life that you will actually be able to hit the snooze button and there will be no real repercussions.
Having a hard day is totally normal! If you need to snuggle up with your blanket and a pint of ice cream once in a while- don’t be hard on yourself.
After some trial and error, I found this system made me feel productive, fulfilled, and that I was enjoying(as much as possible…) a dark period of unemployment. Hopefully, you can implement a few of these ideas in your life and use this time to figure out what it is you need in order to love yourself and love your life. You will get through this and will hopefully be better because of it!
