Inspirations are not picked easily on the streets. They are sought hard, in spite and despite the raging storms amidst. But also remember, we are only humans who need to relax and have some fun. In this article, I explore the ways on how we can still sing through the storm and fight for our goals.
It’s not always fun when you are on your way to greatness. You’ll find thousands of reasons to be discouraged and give up. Yet, you need to find reasons to keep fighting for what you believe to avoid procrastination. One of the ways you can prevent inaction is by turning challenging tasks into fun activities. You can achieve this in the following ways.
Introduce Music
Only a few things can inspire people more than music. Whoever called music the food of the soul didn’t make a mistake. In the words of Dax, an American-based rapper, music creates wings and builds dreams. Many people take advantage of the soothing effect of music whenever they want to relax. It also helps some people to sleep with ease. However, you can also use it to inject life into a boring activity.
In some situations, you’ll not need the music for a long time. It will only help you to be more active to focus on what you need to do again. Once it has done what you need it to do, you can turn it off again. Avoid random songs to get the best out of the experience. Have a playlist of your favorite songs. Some tunes have the ability to motivate you to focus on what you need to do. Some can even remind you about your dreams. Play those songs when you’re feeling tired and discouraged.
Make Games out of Tasks
Games are exciting and fun, unlike chores. It sounds absurd to mention games and chores in the same breath. Still, you can morph them into the same activity via a little tweak here and there. For example, instead of feeling stressed about the fact that you need to go around to see a number of clients, you can see it as a physical training activity. How about counting the number of steps you took before getting to the house of a client, especially when you are walking there?
You can also use this approach when decluttering your home. You can label three baskets as “give out,” “discard,” and “rearrange.” Put items you want to give out in the first one while the stuff you want to throw away will be in the second basket. The items you want to put in a better place in the home will be in the third container. Moving around the home while putting each item in the proper place can feel more exciting than when it is not structured.
Leverage Punishment
You can give yourself a sidekick by threatening to withdraw a pleasant stimulus from yourself until you have completed a task. Parents use this technique when they tell their kids that they will not be allowed to watch their favorite TV show until they have completed their homework. The child might not like to do the assignment. However, the desire to watch the TV show will drive him or her to find a way to complete it on time.
You can tell yourself that you will not check your favorite page on social media or play games until you have completed a task. If you’re faithful to it, it can drive you to finish various tasks on time. Your subconscious mind wants you to complete what you are doing as soon as possible so that you can have enough time for the fun activity. So, it’ll make you work harder and faster.
Delegate
You don’t always have to do everything by yourself. If you feel that you have someone that will be willing to help out without complaining or feeling cheated, you can ask the person to help you with some things. Your spouse, family members, kids, and friends might be able to help you complete some tasks. Ask them politely to help out.
One of the reasons some people work too hard is that they don’t trust others to carry out a task the same way they would have done it. It’s true in some cases due to experience and expertise. However, delegating enables you to give others the opportunity to learn and grow. You don’t have to leave the task to them and go away. You can supervise them to help them in case they feel stuck somewhere along the line.
Share Burden
You need your friends and families for both the days you are celebrating your success and the difficult times. If there is something you need to do that requires more hands, you should be able to call your friends and family to help you, especially when they have the skills required to help out. This collaboration often comes in handy when planning events. Still, you can use it when handling a project.
For example, if you are writing a book you want to publish, it isn’t a crime to ask a friend to edit it and another person in your circle to design the page cover. It’s not every time that you’ll be able to afford to outsource some tasks you don’t have time to do. Your friends and family can save you a lot of money. Nonetheless, it’s crucial that you seek opportunities to repay the kind gesture. Ensure that you make yourself available when they also need you to help them in their time of need.
Listen to Audiobooks
Listening to audiobooks while doing a tedious task can make things easier and livelier. For example, you can listen to podcasts and audiobooks while doing yard work or housework. You might never be able to create enough time to sit down and listen to some of the best sellers and TED Talks you have always wanted to digest. However, you can kill two birds with a stone by listening to audiobooks while doing something that doesn’t require you to pay attention to written instruction. This approach will not be effective if what you’re doing requires you to think a lot.
Call a Friend
It’s not every time you should call a friend to come and help out with a task. Sometimes, you can ask a friend to come over to have a chat while doing your chores. Of course, it depends on the schedule of the person and the type of task you need to do. It’s also vital that the task isn’t noisy such as vacuuming. This approach can make you complete a tedious task faster than you realize it. The person might even be caring enough to help out to reduce the burden on you.
Change Your Mindset
The way you see a task affects the way you approach it. Your attitudinal disposition to something begins from the way you think before it affects the way you act. So, by changing your perception about a task, you can increase your motivation to do it on time. Do you see your tasks as something you need to do or something you choose to do? When you see your chores as something you must do, you feel powerless and mentally stressed. However, when you see them as something you choose to do, you feel empowered and in charge, which inspires the zeal to get things done as soon as possible.