This is What Helps Us Find Motivation On Hard Days
When everything feels like a lot, these habits, rituals, music and more help us to keep moving forward.
Sometimes (OK, maybe more often than that) life can feel overwhelming. Between the onslaught of negative news, the hustle of daily life and seemingly endless to-do lists, who can be blamed for occasionally wanting to hide under the covers all day? Except few of us can afford to do that.
That’s why we asked The Persistent contributors for the thing they return to again and again when they need a little motivation. Hopefully, one or more of these ideas will help you go from horizontal to vertical the next time you feel like you Just. Can’t. Even.
Recently, after more than a decade of renting, my wife and I decided we're ready to put our money toward buying a house. Saving for the downpayment takes a lot of discipline, but the thought of being able to garden in my hypothetical future backyard or host my brothers for a weekend keeps me motivated.
— Han Goldstein, social media manager
It can be tough to get myself to exercise, so I've come up with a motivator that almost always helps. I call it the 10-minute rule, and the way it works is that I have to do something physical for just 10 minutes. If, after 10 minutes, I'm ready to stop, I let myself stop. What always happens instead is that once I'm up and out and moving, I'm motivated to continue for a full workout. Starting is the hardest part!
— Paula Derrow, features editor
It's not possible to manufacture moments when a conversation leads to a great idea, but I’ve found that one of two things works when I’m in need of inspiration: Either taking a long walk alone and letting my mind wander or getting lost in a meandering conversation with my kids or my friends. Both can lead to pure magic.— Kathleen Davis, executive editor
When things feel dire, I love looking at art, specifically paintings by Pierre Bonnard and John Singer Sargent, as well as street photography by Helen Levitt. I have books featuring the work of all three artists and I sometimes page through them to lift my spirits and remind myself that there’s beauty in the world.
– Stacey Colino, contributing writer
I have terrible ADHD so I use an old-fashioned wind-up kitchen timer to help me stay on task. A version of this trick called The Pomodoro Method has even been proven to help with focus with academic studies.
— Deanna Kizis, contributing writer
In 2009, I started a daily drawing practice and began posting my drawings on social media under the title “Worry of the Day” as a way to deal with my anxiety. I garnered a small but loyal following of people who could relate and the practice really helped me to put things into perspective. Fast forward to now and I still post almost every day, less about worries, more as a daily journal. There are all sorts of benefits, from learning how to be non-judgmental with myself to simply improving my drawing skills. — Kim Murton, contributing illustrator
What's getting me fired up this week: budget cuts to the creative arts at my kids' public school. Are they cutting the sports programs? Nope. They're slashing the music and art programs and teachers. Of course. That motivated me to attend the Board of Education meeting, relay info and petitions to be signed in parent group chats, and reach out to the local news to raise awareness and hopefully drive change.
– Cristina Tudino, contributing writer
I currently crank up Mon Rovia's song Heavy Foot, especially when I’m feeling particularly angry at the state of our country.
— Daniella Zalcman, contributing illustrator
Weirdly, I check in on social media. I follow a mix of writers I admire (like the feminist author Jessica Valenti); activists I look up to like the filmmaker Paola Mendoza; gardeners like Monica Chavez and cooks I aspire to emulate, like Allison Roman. When I see what they're doing to fight the good fight on any given day, I think Why not me?
– Katherine Dykstra, contributing writer
My motivation is my own life hurts and wounds, bubbling up and demanding to be noted, assessed, even healed by the magic that happens when I write about them.
– Meredith Maran, contributing writer
A cup of tea, a good snack, a hot shower, and an‘’80s playlist (I love this British radio station). For me, this combination is an almost fail-proof recipe to re-set and get back at it.
— Josie Cox, founding editor
Let us know what gets you motivated. Send your recommendations to hello@thepersistent.com. We’ll be back with more recommendations next Friday!
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