Exhaustion isn’t something that happens just as a result of tiredness. Exhaustion hits us hard when we do too little of what we love.
Read that again.
Exhaustion hits us hard when we do too little of what we love.
Exhaustion can lead us to feel demotivated, burnt out and generally lacking focus. We can find ourselves not enjoying things the way we used too and generally having a sense of ‘going through the motions’. People often describe feeling physically present but not mentally or psychologically there. Drifting at times – and often finding it easier to say no then yes.
A lack of motivation is hard. It can leave you feeling deflated, without a sense of purpose or focus. It can feel hard work to do the most basic things – from getting ready in the morning to going for a walk. Let alone the more challenging and difficult things.
Being in a demotivated place makes it hard to put into place the things that make use feel good. Like exercise, time with friends, down time, yoga, reading, hot baths – whatever it may be. Its different for everyone. Yet it is these things that are so important for recharging and feeling good. Without those things however we begin to burn out, get exhausted and then feel de motivated.
It’s a vicious cycle and one that can go round and round if we are not careful.
They key then – is to consistently fill our own cup. Sounds simple right? But actually, it isn’t that easy.
In a world where people have busy jobs, families, commitments, financial pressure, run busy households etc – it is hard to carve our the quality time for ourselves. The quality time that we all value and need. It can end up coming right down the bottom of the list. When really it should come right at the top.
So we need to be realistic about how much time we can dedicate to ourselves and to what we need to feel good. It’s unlikely that it can be hours and hours. But it is certainly possible to carve out half an hour or even an hour a day – just for you and for all that you need to feel good.
How about factoring in half an hour a day to walk?
What about half an hour in the bath?
Could you fit in a 45 minute spin class?
Maybe you could do an hour’s yoga class?
Perhaps you could read for half an hour?
Or even watch an episode of your favorite series?
How does that all sound?
When you break it down like that – it isn’t too much or impossible. The challenge is implementing it and getting into a regular routine with it all.
If you look at your week and write everything that you do down, perhaps you can then carve out windows of time just for you? Little ones every day, or even every other if it feels too much daily to start with.
You will be amazed at the difference you feel when you take care of yourself. You will notice such a rise in motivation and you will feel so much better in yourself with higher energy levels.
The more take care of you the better you feel. The more energy you have and the more motivated you are. It all goes hand in hand. So if your feeling deflated, if your lacking in energy or generally demotivated – perhaps you need to look at what your actually doing for yourself. The chances are you’re not doing anywhere near enough of what you love.
After all – it all begins with you.