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Does anyone have any motivation tips??
(I'm sorry if the title sounded rude)
Basically, I am in grade 9 (a stereotypical good student up until the start of this year) and rn I just have no motivation... to do anything. I still care quite a lot about my grades but when I'm doing assignments or studying everything just feels pointless and I've been really flat lately (thats probably due to the ongoing sleep deprivation), so if anyone has any sort of suggestion on how I could try and motivate my self I would absolutely and completely love to hear it?
Thank you so so much
Comments
I can see that you're having a tough time with motivation which can be frustrating. To help with your sleep, you may choose to reduce screen time, have a warm shower/bath, and maybe make tea (Chamomile with honey helps me feel sleepy). In addition, going for a walk and doing some exercise after school may also help with sleep and increase your energy levels and endorphins.
To increase your motivation, my advice would be to set yourself a time frame to work on your assignments and study. Pick 1 assessment or subject at each study time so you're not burning yourself out. Once you do that, follow through and figure out a rewards system such as getting a piece of chocolate, or a treat from Mcdonalds etc. Find a reward that you think may motivate you to complete your work within that selected time frame. It is easier to set a goal like completing 600 words of your assignment, or 6 pages of your subject notes within that time frame.
So in my experience, I would set myself 2 hours with a 10-minute break every 25-35 minutes, depending on how I was feeling, if I felt good, I wouldn't take a break and would continue working on my assessment. I would reward myself each day with a hot chocolate as a small reward and if I had finished or made large progress on my assignment, I would go out for dinner or do an activity on the weekend to reinforce my hard work, in addition to my small reward. If I did not complete my goal within my daily time frame, I would not reward myself, which wasn't fun lol.
What do you think of this? Do you think positive reinforcement may work for you?
I’m sorry to hear you’re struggling with motivation. Something I learnt that starting will often bring motivation afterwards and that is something I experience. When I’m unmotivated I will start with the easy or fun thing that will most of the time get me going and then I’ll want to do the harder thing. So I can reward myself with an easy point.
I also like to set goals through my work being a uni student this is important for me so I can ensure I get my work done while taking care of myself. So if I have a class Monday I like to have most of it done by Friday so I can spend the weekend relaxing or doing the other class work. Or if I have assignments due, I’ll start with the one due first, once I’ve done that I’ll generally want to move onto the next one.
My next tip is breaking it down so for example I have a 2000 word assignment due next Wednesday, I started by doing notes under each heading and then turning them into sentences. The next thing I will do is go back and write the explanation/description (how it relates to the topic). Breaking it down like this helps me clear my head but also if I am unmotivated it still feels like I am achieving something.
Sleep is definitely important is there anyway you could take a break and take a nap or go to bed earlier/ sleep in once or twice week so you can feel less sleep deprived. If you can get the 8 hours a day but I can understand as a student that’s not always possible.
I hope these help.
Motivation for assignments can be a really hard thing to maintain as there can be so many and you don't get a proper break from them during the school term. It becomes really easy to get burnt out especially if you haven’t been sleeping properly.
As for suggestions for motivation, I find that if I have a set goal and reward myself for reaching that goal I get more done. For example, if I have an assignment to do, I might eat a snack I like after a finish a couple of paragraphs. If I’m really not motivated, I set a timer for 10 minutes and start doing the task. After the 10 minutes I can stop if I want, however most of the time I’ve gotten into it so I continue working.
If there’s a task that you find interesting, you can try to use it to sandwich a task that you find less interesting. For example, starting with the thing you enjoy more, then the thing you enjoy less, and then back to the more enjoyable one.
I hope you find something that works for you. Make sure you look after yourself and take breaks! Your physical, mental, and social health are more important that your grades.
Hey @i_like_barbecue_shapes ,
Firstly, welcome to the community! We are really glad you found us, especially after reading a little bit about what you have been going through. It sounds like you really want to do well with your studies but you can see a link between not sleeping, feeling flat and now losing motivaion. Do you know what might be influencing you losing sleep? That feels like a really important one to get right so some of the other concerns you have can start to improve as well. I'm curious, do you have any tips or tricks that you find can help you get some sleep? We have some great resources on sleep like this one that might give you some tips you haven't tried before. Feeling flat and unmotivated can be really difficult to navigate but I think the fact you have found the community to talk these concerns through is a huge step.
Motivation is a really tricky one and it can very inconveniently dissapear when we need it most! We often talk about losing motivation in the community, particularly around exam blocks or when assessments are due. We have this post you might find helpful as you look for some motivation tips that might work for you.
Let us know how you go and whether any of these look like they may be worth trying out. Also, if you do find that the flat feeling you are experiencing starts to feel any worse, feel free to connect with us about it so we can talk it through wth you.