We’ve
all experienced the bittersweet feeling that attends the conclusion of a major
project.
On
one hand, you’re elated and relieved to finally have a proverbial monkey off
your back, and proud of your achievement. On the other hand, you may ask
yourself “Now, what?”—or, “How should I get started with this next thing?” Your
first strides in a long race seem like a distant memory at the instant you
cross the finish line, and sometimes, the thought of taking on another complex,
multi-faceted assignment can be overwhelming. You may find it difficult to
focus or apply yourself, and that your progress is slow and laborious.
What
can you do to stay motivated, avoid burnout, and muster your creative and
productive energies for the next big undertaking?
Prioritize
yourself.
When
you become particularly engrossed in a project, you may find it difficult to
tear yourself away from it. But from day to day, constant work can take a toll
on your nutrition and physical fitness—since you may be short on time for food
preparation and exercise. But the paradox of overwork is, by devoting all your
attention to your professional duties and neglecting self-care, you may
eventually lose stamina, experience burnout more quickly, and become more
susceptible to illness.
Pencil
regular breaks and downtime into your busy schedule, and adhere to it. Allow
yourself time for exercise and a healthy diet. Imagine that you are sacrificing
a little bit of productivity now in order to gain significant productivity
later.
In
between big assignments, you may want to allow yourself a more substantial
unwinding period, and get away from your workspace for a while. Within reason,
of course.
Give
yourself things to look forward to, unrelated to your work.
Activities
away from work—like hiking, soccer, mini golf, or skiing, barbecues at the
beach, dinner outings, trips to the movies, and hanging out with friends—are
both pleasurable in themselves, and means of escape from the daily grind. Even
if you love your job, hobbies and extracurricular pursuits can offer relief
from the various pressures and challenges you face every business day, and a
reward of sorts for your efforts. And while you’re involved in something
completely unconnected to your work, an ingenious idea may occur to you...
At the
end of the work day...stop working.
As a
society, we are inundated with electronic gadgets that compete for our
attention. Our expectations of each other seem to have changed too—whereas
decades ago, people were assumed to be “unreachable” at particular times (like
while driving, or out and about), today it is common to assume that no one is
ever out of contact—and therefore, why should a work-related call, e-mail, or
text message have to wait until the morning or the end of the weekend? One
consequence has been a tendency for work time to bleed into leisure time.
It’s
important to establish ground rules, to the extent you can. Make clear to your
colleagues and associates that when you clock out for the day, you’re done.
Unless it’s a genuine emergency, it can wait.
Why is
this important to you?
One
cause of flagging motivation at work is the perception that one’s job, or a
specific aspect thereof, is not really meaningful. When confronted with the daily
tedium of “going through the motions”, many professionals feel disinclined to
exert their best efforts. Instead, they may wile away the hours by indulging in
distractions and diversions at work—like games, online shows, or Facebook.
Of
the many advantages of entrepreneurship, arguably the foremost is the knowledge
that you are your own boss—and thus, you reap the benefits of your own hard
work. Nonetheless, it’s a good idea to set goals for yourself that are both
ambitious and realistic, while remaining mindful of the importance of the task
at hand. If you can’t remember why it’s important, then your best bet is
probably to leave it aside and move on.
