In a society where personal achievement defines our success as a person, people often turn to outside sources for motivation and support when it is time to work on personal goals. Motivation books are usually hot sellers, with new titles available regularly. However once you have read a few of these books, you will see a pattern of similar concepts begin to emerge.
The majority of motivation books address the same few concepts, just introducing different ways to apply them to certain circumstances. Finding one book that thoroughly explains these concepts and how they can increase your personal motivation is the best tactic for using these resources to help you achieve your goals. Once you grasp the concepts these books introduce, it can be very simple to apply them to different aspects and issues in your own life.
Setting Personal Goals
Most motivation books stress the importance of setting personal goals. Of course, long term goals are important, but setting short term goals can help you keep your focus while working towards you larger goal. Smaller goals should be easily achievable, allowing you to see regular progress and have a sense of accomplishment.
Achieving a major personal goal should not be the end of your struggle toward personal motivation. For every goal you achieve, broaden your horizons by setting an even higher goal. For instance, if your goal is to get promoted to the next level within your job, is that really where you want to stop? Why not aim even higher, for the top manager position or even to branch out and start your own business within your field. Constantly giving yourself something to work toward can help motivate you to give your goals even more attention.
Reward Yourself
As many motivation books will tell you, reaching a goal will give you a great sense of accomplishment, however there is no reason not to reward yourself for all the hard work and perseverance it took to get to that point. You can decide what you want your reward to be, and then it will give you something to look forward to as you work toward your goal. Everyone has different motivators, so find out what rewards are most interesting to you.
When deciding on rewards for motivation, think about what things you enjoy the most. You may enjoy a Friday night movie, a relaxing bubble bath, or a new novel to read over the weekend. Your reward doesn't have to be expensive, or even cost anything at all. The promise of a fifteen minute coffee break after a marathon work session can sometimes be enough to get you through. Be sure your reward is something you can enjoy, or it completely defeats the purpose of rewarding yourself.
Take a Break
According to lots of motivation books, one of the best ways to get inspired is to walk away for awhile. A little bit of rest and relaxation can be just the pick me up you need to carry on with your tasks. You may find that taking frequent breaks to recharge yourself actually make your productivity increase, both personally and professionally.
If you feel your motivation levels beginning to drop, step away from your task, and take a few minutes to regroup. When you sit back down to work, you may see things in a different light and be able to overcome the mental road block you have hit. Changing tasks for awhile may also be a great help to you when you lose your motivation. Motivation books can give you many more suggestions about how to get your inspiration and motivation back, no matter what your goals.