AUTHOR
FIONA KRIARIS Fiona Kriaris is the Health and Wellness Product Manager for YMCA Victoria , and is a Trained Mindfulness Facilitator through the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Centre . Follow Fiona on Instagram
@ fiona _ kriaris or
connect with Fiona on LinkedIn .
FIVE STEPS TO BOOST YOUR MOTIVATION
Fiona provides her top tips to help you achieve your goals .
When it comes to achieving your personal goals , motivation is vital . Motivation is the key to changing your behaviour , thinking and feeling and is therefore an important aspect for a fulfilling life . As humans , it ’ s normal to have the feeling of motivation come and go – this is a natural occurrence . You may find there are times when you feel highly motivated and other times when it tends to dwindle .
Here are five steps that can help boost your motivation :
STEP 1 Discover your ‘ why statement ’
Your ‘ why statement ’ is the foundation for your motivation and what is important to you . Keep this optimistic and meaningful to you , for example , ‘ I want to feel my best self by increasing my energy so that I can enjoy time with myself , family and friends ’.
STEP 2
Connect to your ‘ why statement ’ with daily initiatives By connecting to your ‘ why statement ’, you can turn your ‘ why ’ into a reality . Make decisions today that you will be thankful for tomorrow by setting daily initiatives . Using the example above as a ‘ why statement ’, the daily initiatives to increase energy may include :
} get to bed by 9:30pm and turn off electronics to have better sleep patterns } drink 1.5 to 2 litres of water per day to stay hydrated } walk 30 minutes to reach 10,000 steps per day .
STEP 3 Remind and forgive yourself
Repetition will give you consistency and enhance your motivation . A reminder about what motivates you can help shift old behaviours , thoughts and feelings and can help solidify your daily initiatives to become your new way of living . However , remember , you are human – so when things don ’ t go according to plan , forgive yourself and move forward .
STEP 4 Celebrate the small wins
Each moment and day is an opportunity to reflect and celebrate your focused effort and attention on you fulfilling your ‘ why statement ’. Acknowledging your success will help keep you on the path of motivation .
STEP 5 Review your ‘ why ’
Lastly , it ’ s important to review your ‘ why statement ’, as this may change and evolve over time . What made sense to you in the past may no longer be a priority . Perhaps you ’ re ready to adopt a new ‘ why ’, with different daily initiatives to suit wherever you are at in your life – and if so , that ’ s okay !
YMCA HEALTHY LIVING MAGAZINE 9