Amid the coronavirus lock-down, many of us are locked up at home with little to do, often finding ourselves bored and procrastinating over small tasks.
Having to stay at home with little to look forward to creates a cycle of demotivation. This cycle is continuously reinforced each time we decide not to do something because it is ‘too much effort’.
I have found myself stuck in this cycle; in my first week off school I was waking-up an hour (or so!) later than usual and ignoring essential things to do for school. My to-do list started to grow and soon became unmanageable – around 50 tasks, but none especially onerous.
I had an intervention with myself and set the tasks into a plan where I prioritised them and set time into each day for study, however I also had a dedicated time for admin. After all, I still need to look at UCAS, University courses and entry requirements, and that was going to happen by itself!
I finally manged to finish all of these tasks only a few days ago, however I only did them because I knew soon enough there would be no time left to complete it. There are some ongoing tasks and they’re . . . . well, ongoing.
I probably could have avoided this stressful situation by finding the internal motivation to do things at the first chance. I didn’t, but now I am.
By building up the courage to take on these small tasks, motivation starts to increase because you feel more capable of doing things and you’re spurred on by the fact that you’re actually getting things done. Eventually, taking on enough of these tasks generates a feeling of personal gain each time you complete one, never feeling that anything’s ‘too much effort’. This helps to build momentum and the motivation to take on more complex tasks.
