There has been some devastating news that hit close to home recently, and this not only shook the entire community, but shook many people around the world. You may have heard about the Oakland warehouse fire that happened last week that resulted in 36 deaths. According to SFGate, “Ghost Ship” an artist collective warehouse erupted into flames on December 2 around 11:30pm. It happened during a party that was being held there. The warehouse as described were cluttered full of furniture and art— a fire hazard, as many of those items were wooden. Partygoers were trapped on the second floor of the building, as the makeshift wood-pallet stairs disintegrated in the fire. 36 people died that night. Though I don’t personally know anybody who was a part of that tragedy, I can’t help but feel extremely devastated as I read through articles, and hear stories of the victims that perished. I can’t imagine what the families are dealing with, as I myself cannot focus on anything else but to think about this event. Especially now during the last two weeks of school, it’s hard to focus on something as trivial as finals when there are families who have lost their loved ones. But what happened motivated me to write a post about how to stay motivated during difficult times. I mean, we all have problems from time to time. Big or small, sometimes it’s hard to ignore it. And this definitely doesn’t help when we also have other important things on our mind (like deadlines). Deal with it in a way that is right for youWhenever a difficult situation arises, I tend to deal with it by distracting myself with a ton of work so that I don’t have time to think about it. But this obviously won’t work for everybody. Everyone deals with things differently, and it’s not up to anybody else to decide how to deal with a situation except you. Life happens. And unfortunately it’s going to happen during the most inconvenient times sometimes. Nobody has the right formula as to how to fix it in the best way, only you know that for yourself. So whether you want to cry about it, or distract yourself with other things, make sure it feels right to you. Allow yourself time to deal with the problemHaving said that, it’s important to have some time to deal with the problem. You can avoid it all you want but just know that it will eventually arise at a later time again if not dealt with. I always set some time to meditate on the issue and when I’m done, I usually feel more at ease about it. Let yourself have the time to deal with the problem, and then when that’s done with move on to your next priority. Remember that if you don’t deal with it, the problem will come up in a different context later on. Talk to somebody & get support from othersFind somebody you trust, and just talk to them. Sharing thoughts and concerns with one another can help make the situation much easier to handle. Support one another as needed and you can quickly move forward. Find an outlet to express your thoughts and feelingsScream into your pillow, meditate, go for a walk… find a healthy way to express your thoughts so that you don’t bottle up your feelings. I like to journal, so whenever an issue is holding me down, I make sure to write it down. I find that it’s extremely therapeutic when I write, and as soon as I’m done, I feel much better and can look at the situation in a different perspective. Again, by setting aside that time to deal with the problem will get you through it much quicker. The idea is not to entirely fix the problem or even get rid of it, but being able to deal with things in a healthy way so you will recover as quickly as possible. Everyone deals with problems everyday, and if people let problems take over we would be living in a very negative frequency. So next time if something is bothering you, just know that it’s okay to be upset and take a breather, as long as you are able to bounce back from it. Click here to donate to the Oakland Fire Relief Fund.
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Slumps… When was the last time you were in a slump? For me, I am most prone to getting into a slump after long breaks. The last slump I was in was after the summer break. When I went back to school, I had an extremely hard time getting back into that routine because I just didn’t feel motivated. Also with a lot of self-doubt and negative thoughts, my mind just felt defeated. I didn’t want to do anything, and didn’t feel like doing anything. I found that it’s not really in my control whenever it comes. It’s not like I feel unmotivated on purpose, but now that I’ve gotten over it, I wanted to share with you ways that helped me get out of my slump. So how to get out of a slump? Put yourself out there and be surrounded by productive peopleReach out to people. Email random strangers on LinkedIn and ask them for coffee. Pick their brains and ask about their creative processes. The idea is to surround yourself with others so that you can be inspired to pick yourself up. Whenever I’m in a slump, I like to write emails and set appointments with people. This extends from my network to also my friends and colleagues. When I know that I have an appointment with someone, I feel a sense of purpose which sets me on track again and lets me look forward to something. Do something that makes you uncomfortable, the fear will wake you upScaring yourself is a huge confidence booster, I kid you not. Have you noticed that when you take risks, you have that sense of adrenaline and it just makes you want to keep moving? I noticed that when I do something that makes me uncomfortable — even little things like wearing a bold shade of lipstick, it gives me such a boost of confidence that I feel like I can do anything. And having confidence that you can do things will motivate you. Celebrate Small Successes (Which will lead to big results)When I’m in a slump, it seems like everything is incredibly difficult. Drafting an email to someone seems like such a chore and simple things just take forever to do… even waking up in the morning is hard. I noticed that if you celebrate small tasks throughout the day, you will feel that success and build yourself up for bigger things. Reward yourself for waking up without hitting snooze, or squeezing in those 5 minutes of exercise. It doesn’t matter how small the feat is, at least you did it! Turn negative thoughts into positiveThis is a huge one for me, because I tend to have a lot of negative thoughts when I’m in a slump. Your thoughts really shape you and your mentality, and always being overwhelmed with negativity can do you no good. A trick that I’ve done is whenever I think of something negative, I immediately try to counteract that thought with something positive. For example, when I think that I’m not good enough for something, I immediately think of 3 good qualities about myself and why I am good enough. With the right mindset, you will start to gain your momentum back again! Always start small, and work your way up. You'll forget that you've ever been in a rut! Check out my previous post about the Science of Motivation!
It seems like all we do is work. We spend a lot of time perfecting our personas to our bosses and professors that we rarely have time to think about the things that truly matter to us. We are hard workers. No doubt. There are 24 hours in a day, yet we spend most of those hours thinking about how we can impress the people who don’t really matter in our lives. Maybe we should think about the best approaches to getting our work done, and to the best of our ability, so we don’t waste any more time.
Here are three videos that has great insights on human behaviors and actions so you can become more efficient in your work and then spend that extra time doing things that matter The Science of Motivation
Video Credit: AsapSCIENCE; youtube.com
Sometimes being motivated can be the hardest part when it comes to being productive. How can we do something without having the motivation to do it? This video explains the idea of motivation and what drives us to be more motivated. Rewards and anticipating obstacles is the way to having that motivation, even if it is all mental.
Check out more of AsapSCIENCE videos here. Nigel Marsh: How to Make Work-Life Balance Work
Video Credit: Nigel Marsh; youtube.com
If you asked me, doing it all seems almost impossible. You want to succeed at your job, but you also want to have a life. Well, Nigel Marsh has the answer to having that ideal balance. You design your life the way you want it to. And the key to that balance is to start small.
Check out more Ted Talk videos on productivity here. How to Study Smarter, Not Harder - From How We Learn by Benedict Carey
Video Credit: Benedict Carey; youtube.com
Many people think that being consistent and having that “ideal work environment” is the most effective when trying to get something done. Well, according to this video, if you want to get something done you have to switch up your routine!
Get Benedict Carey’s book, “How we Learn” here. So before you decide that work has taken over your entire life, maybe re-evaluate your habits and you will see that the time is there, you just have to be able to manage it efficiently. Did you like my selection of videos this week? Check back again for more posts like this in the future! |
AuthorFull-time advertising student. Part-time freelance designer.. Always busy. Archives
December 2016
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