Feeling Unmotivated?
8 THINGS TO DO WHEN YOU DON’T FEEL LIKE DOING ANYTHING
Can I be honest with you? I’ve been feeling unmotivated lately. I have spent way too much time staring at a blinking cursor on a blank screen, trying to get some writing done. My to-do list is looking at me disapprovingly, a neat row of boxes ready to tick. I’ve mostly been watching raindrops fall on my window—gently running in little streams.
What do you do when you don’t want to do anything? When your motivation has abandoned you, your energy has disappeared, and you are wasting time staring out the window, what do you do?
There was a time when I would fight my mind and body into submission. Ignoring how I felt, I would force myself to just get it done. Soldiering on. And there are definitely times and circumstances when that is appropriate. Deadlines need to be met, promises kept, and responsibilities honoured.
But that doesn’t apply all the time. Sometimes, we need to listen to our bodies, our minds, and our capacity. Sometimes we need to give ourselves permission to be unproductive.
When you are feeling unmotivated, here are some ideas of things to do.
Are You Suffering from Burnout?
Let’s start with the heavy truth: lack of motivation is one of the warning signs of burnout, and burnout is no joke. If you are struggling to find joy in the things you used to love doing, it may be worth scheduling an appointment with your GP. They may give you a questionnaire to determine how your mental health is going and point you in the right direction for treatment.
If your lack of motivation is a temporary thing you’re feeling today (and not part of a bigger mental health challenge), here are some ideas to help you out of your funk.
Permission to Rest
You don’t have to earn the right to rest. Listen to your body, and when you’re tired, look after yourself and take a break. I love the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19:4–8. When Elijah was having a bad day, running from Jezebel, afraid for his life, God met him under a broom tree. God didn’t give Elijah an encouraging pep talk or send him back to work. No. He sent an angel to give him food and water and then let him sleep.
Sometimes that’s the very best thing we can do for ourselves. Have something nutritious to eat, stay hydrated, and have a nap.
Do you feel guilty when you rest? Here are some Bible passages that might help reframe your thinking.
Do Something Different
Today, I turned off my computer and got out the patchwork quilt I’ve been meaning to finish all year and haven’t. I sewed on three more rows. Now there are piles of little coloured squares of fabric neatly lined up on the other side of my desk. And while working on my quilt may not have been written on my tidy to-do list today, I enjoyed spending some time sewing, and I feel good about moving something forward, even if it isn’t what was on the plan.
Move Your Body
So often, when my brain doesn’t want to get working, moving my body helps. Go for a walk around the block, do some push-ups or jumping jacks. Moving your body helps to reset your mind. I had a writing coach who used to begin each writing session with three minutes of skipping. The physical activity woke up her brain and set her up for a better writing session. If you’ve been sitting down for a while and you begin to feel sluggish, try moving your body and see if it wakes up your brain.
Do a Brain Dump
I learned this when I read David Allen’s book, “Getting Things Done.” It’s an old book now, but it’s been revised and updated. The simple habit of starting my work week by writing a list of everything in my head, big and small, was a game changer for me. And I still do it regularly today. Getting stuff out of your head and written on a piece of paper allows your mind to let it go and creates mental capacity for focused work.
Go Outside
Get some sunshine on your face and some grass under your feet. Find a park with some trees, or sit on a beach. The sights, sounds and scents of nature are restorative. God created this incredible world for us to live in, perfectly designed for our pleasure, and yet, so often we spend the majority of our time protecting ourselves from it. We live in artificial buildings with artificial light, climate control and artificial surfaces. Get outside into the real world and find yourself restored.
Build a Low Energy To-Do List
We all need a secret emergency to-do list, ready to pull out when we don’t have the mental capacity for high-level processing. Our mental energy is a finite resource. Unless we replenish it, we run out. But there are often still things we can do. We all have mundane tasks that we need to do regularly in our jobs and in our homes. It might be photocopying or filing, sorting out the stationery drawer or colour-coding our files. Create a running list and save those tasks for days when you don’t have the energy for other things.
Clean Your Space
A cluttered environment is difficult to work in. Spending a few minutes putting everything away and cleaning our space makes a huge difference to our mental capacity. It can look cute to have a crowded collage of photos on our pin boards or a collection of knickknacks on our desks, but the visual clutter makes it harder for us to focus and think clearly. Only have on your desk the things that are essential for your work, with a few personal touches that make the space lovely. Because you should be able to work in a space that you think is lovely.
Reward Yourself
Sometimes, the rotten jobs just need to get done. I never feel like cleaning the shower or wiping out the fruit and veggie bin in the bottom of the fridge, but I do it anyway because I’m a responsible adult. But every responsible adult likes being treated like a child every now and again. So, motivate yourself with a reward. It’s amazing how a bag of M&Ms or a trip to YoChi will incentivise me to do just about anything.
The rain is still falling outside, and my to-do list still has a few empty boxes. But I’ve sewn a few more rows on my quilt, my office is tidy, and I’ve given myself grace to let that be enough for today. Being unmotivated doesn’t mean you’re failing. Having a rest day isn’t lazy. Sometimes they are just a sign that your soul needs rest more than your list needs ticking.
Jesus never left us to push on alone. Rather, He invites us: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28 NIV). If you’re feeling unmotivated and tired, if the world feels heavy, maybe the best next step isn’t doing more. Maybe it’s sitting at Jesus’ feet for a while.
If you’d like a gentle way to do that, my guided journal Come to Me: An Invitation to Sit at Jesus’ Feet was written for seasons just like this. It gives you everything you need, so even on your slowest days, you can find rest in His presence. Download your copy here.
