New member - how do you motivate at work

[Changingmyworld]

Hello all.  I am struggling at the moment.  I have a management role and need to keep self motivated and moving.  I can't though and end up in front of the TV all day.  How do you all keep going and getting things done?  What methods work?  I don't know where to start.

[Ru-bee]

Hi @Changingmyworld and welcome to the forums

It sounds like you are maybe working from home? It can be a real challenge adjusting to this and I know my first ever WFH role was very unstructured and I really struggled with motivation and the temptation of the TV, or a random cleaning task...maybe rearranging the room any other task that popped into my head.

Things that helped me were:

- Having a nice setup that I used only for work. Making sure that it was comfortable and a nice place to sit by keeping it neat.

- Writing myself a to-do list for the day, breaking the day down into more bite-sized chunks that I could tick off as I went

- Using the pomodoro method of having regular short breaks so that I know a break is coming soon which helped me to stay on task for the meantime 

It can also help to think about what's drawing you to the TV in the first place? Is it from overwhelm, is it seeking stimulation and not wanting to be bored, is it from a lack of interest and engagement in your job, maybe a lack of energy?

[Changingmyworld]

@Ru-bee thank you.  I am hybrid, it isn't new but as I am so overwhelmed at the moment and feel like such a failure as a person I think it is my way of hiding.  

I will try to focus on these steps though and see how I go.  

[Ru-bee]

You're certainly not alone in struggling with this @Changingmyworld 

I know in that first job I worked from home I became overwhelmed and got embarrassed when I got behind on my work and felt stressed that my boss would find out that I wasn't being productive which stopped me from reaching out to them to work out a solution. Then that overwhelm made me want to avoid work more. 

Again, just breaking things down into smaller steps was good for me and when I was really struggling to start, setting a time just for 5 minutes and telling myself I could stop once the timer ended helped take some pressure off and I usually found that once the time was up I was feeling okay to keep working.

[Changingmyworld]

Thank you!

[Asgard]

Hi @Changingmyworld 

Nice to meet you, I was having the same problems during the Covid period.  Everything that @Ru-bee mentioned is spot on.  Another thing I used to do was arrange weekly Teams meetings with my team, so we could catch up and just generally have a chat.  I also made sure that I arranged 1 on 1 Teams meetings aswell, so in that way my day had a some change to it, my team also appreciated me catching  up with them as an individual and as a group.  So do as much as possible to change up your day.   Take care...........Asgard

[Changingmyworld]

Thank you.

[tyme]

Awww @Changingmyworld ,

We only just finished a live chat on Balancing Mental Health and Work. I'm so sorry you missed it! Peer Group Chat // Balancing Mental Health and Work // Thursday 8th August 2024, 7-8:30PM AEST 

Feel free to ask any questions in that thread I've attached re work and mental health.

Know for sure you are not alone!