What to do if you lack motivation

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This post was last edited by Thank goodness you're here on 2015-6-12 at 14:33. Procrastination is a global problem for which there is no effective treatment to date. Those who suffer from it often delay doing tasks that need to be completed, either intentionally or unintentionally, and only take action at the last minute when things get urgent. Over time, such procrastination leads to various common symptoms associated with menopause, such as low efficiency, irritability, anxiety, distress, hysteria, and insomnia. The patients also very much want to be cured, but after trying countless methods to no avail, a split emerged among them: some gave up treatment and completely became neurotics, while others continued to dwell in anxiety, hoping for some miracle cure to alleviate their symptoms and allow them to start anew. We’ve all watched racing competitions, where all the drivers need to win in a rally race – they not only have to stay on the right path at all times, but also drive faster than their competitors. Therefore, to address the problem of procrastination, from an intellectual perspective, we propose two well-known approaches: 1. Doing things correctly – A. Mastering effective methods. One of the reasons why many people lack motivation to take action is that, even though they have set goals and directions, they do not possess the right methods, which results in low efficiency in carrying out tasks. The sequence of tasks becomes chaotic and complicated, and thinking becomes unclear, leading to a very weak ability to move things forward. Over time, this leads to procrastination. This situation is caused by a lack of effective methods during the execution process, resulting in slow progress. We will address such issues in the course section on “Methodology and Execution”. B. Another common issue when learning to arrange tasks in sequence and manage time is the tendency to have a distracted mind and scattered thoughts while working. One often thinks about Task B while doing Task A, and thinks about Task C while doing Task B; they check WeChat from time to time or chat on QQ, thereby fragmenting the available time into small pieces. As a result, nothing gets done by the end of the day, leading to extremely low efficiency. There are many time management methods available on the market. One of the more well-known ones is the \"Pomodoro Technique,\" which involves dividing time into separate \"Pomodoro\" intervals; it aims to structure time in blocks rather than in fragmented pieces in order to achieve efficiency. Of course, we don’t intend to promote similar methods, because in time management, there is also the concept of “prioritization”. Of course, this sorting is not based solely on well-known criteria such as urgency and importance; it also follows a strict logical sequence. For example, when I need to solve a problem, the first step is not to immediately come up with a solution, but rather to gather as much information as possible first, conduct a comprehensive analysis, and then propose a solution. By following such steps, redundant work is avoided – although it may seem like there’s an extra step, it actually improves efficiency and organization. This is what we will focus on in our course: \"sequential logic and time management\" to overcome procrastination, as both are essential. C. Learning to say no is important in order to avoid responding to messages at work that do not require an immediate reply; being asked for help frequently is also a major factor that affects efficiency and leads to delays. Knowing how to refuse requests is a basic skill that effective people should possess, yet most people lack this ability. When certain situations affect one’s own interests, it is essential to learn how to refuse, either directly or indirectly. This will be covered in our course “The Communication Quadrant” – on how to say “no”. 2. Do the right thing. A. Being overly self-assured with unrealistic expectations is a common problem among most young people. Those who have just graduated from university and entered the workforce all want to make a big success in big cities. However, after a few years, various realities wear down their ideals, and they waste their time without achieving anything, which leads to a sense of confusion. The reason for this is unclear positioning. When one first enters the workforce, lacking in capabilities, knowledge, skills, and experience, they try to achieve great things immediately instead of focusing on doing well at the tasks within their reach. They often set their sights too high, feeling extremely \"lost,\" and this is what results from unclear \"positioning.\" The so-called “positioning” may seem trivial, but it is actually a matter of strategic significance. Whether it’s a company or an individual, all forms of confusion stem from issues related to positioning. A typical example is Li Ning, which has experienced strategic instability in recent years due to unclear positioning, resulting in a sharp decline in its business performance and confusion among its leadership. It can be said that all confusion arises from an unclear positioning. This is the first issue that our “Three-Dimensional Thinking” course aims to address – how to determine one’s own positioning. I believe that people of all ages need to learn this skill, so that they can know what the right thing for them to do is. B. Reasonableness of goals: To determine whether a goal is reasonable, we can use a decomposition approach. Break the big goal into several smaller goals, and focus on completing each one. The winner is simply the one who manages to achieve each small goal, thereby bringing about a qualitative change in the overall situation. When the goal is unreasonable, even if the large goal is broken down into smaller ones, there will still be considerable pressure when trying to accomplish those smaller goals. This can easily lead to a loss of confidence in long-term goals. This is an unreasonable goal. The ideal state is to have extra energy left after achieving each goal, which creates a sense of triumph. Think. Any decision-making action relies on careful consideration; in other words, thinking is the process of filtering information. When our brains are flooded with information, we need to filter it by selecting the essential and discarding the irrelevant, so as to retain what is true. Evaluation. As a way to summarize, reflect on the entire situation before making a decision. Give yourself a clear position, and make your assessment as objective as possible, avoiding excessive personal preferences. Of course, the evaluation is based on an individual’s capabilities, with an effort to meet the requirements of the subject in question. Through listening, thinking, and evaluating, our decisions gain a certain degree of rationality, which is essential for setting the right goals. C. Never make any excuses – excuses are the enemy of action! In the process of doing things, we encounter setbacks; some people face them head-on, while others look for excuses to back down. No one wants to admit that their limited abilities are the reason for their failure. People come up with excuses such as: \"Things aren’t as good as we thought; I’m not in good physical condition and lack the stamina; there are people interfering,\" etc. These excuses are meant to be shown to others, in order to conceal the truth that their own lack of ability is what caused failure, thus saving face. At the same time, no one wants to admit that they are not capable, so we look for a scapegoat in our minds to channel this sense of sadness and thus reduce the discomfort we feel. It can be said that any excuse serves to justify one’s actions, and the pain of failure is alleviated by the existence of such excuses. Excuses can be found for anything, and those who achieve nothing are the ones with the most excuses. When our own capabilities truly make it impossible to achieve a big goal, we can adjust the goal instead of making excuses. This raises the issue of a correction target, which could lead to further negative consequences; therefore, we must strictly follow the decision-making process before taking action, **which reduces the risks associated with such actions. 10% of people are doing the right things and doing them correctly ； 55% of people are doing the right thing, but not in the right way ； 25% of people are doing things correctly but not the right things ； 10% of people neither do the right things nor do them correctly; they are creating jobs for others and engaging in futile labor. Note: Republished from the Internet