Motivation to do necessary things *SI*

[Snit]

Hi everyone,

I was wondering what kind of coping with "having no motivation to do things you are responsible for, like for work or study (in my case, marking), and then freaking out when you don't do them" strategies there were out there. I get into the situation of doing pleasant or timewasting things to stop myself SI-ing, then I guilt out over not doing the things that I had to do, and do it anyway. I've tried logical answers, and I even have a big sign in my drawing book (a book of random stuff I do when I'm distracting myself) reminding me to do my work, but I just don't.

So any suggestions? Sorry if this is a timewaster in itself.

S

[nirvana]

hey there... i havn't seen you around, and you seem new, so welcome to bus.

i used to have horrible problems concentrating and forcing myself to work. (part is because of add problems ) but i've found some things that can help me stay motivated and get work done.
break the job down. if something will take you a long time to do, or is difficult, try and pace yourself. break the job down into smaller bits. for example, if i have an essay to write that i know will take me at least two hours, i try and motivate myself to do just a little at a time. try working for twenty minutes, then taking a five or ten minute break to stretch, walk around, relax, and reward yourself for working. see how long you can keep working for, and try and work as long as possible. if you feel yourself starting to lose interest or motivation, then take a break.
you can interrupt one job to do another. i hate math. i can't concentrate when i do it, so instead of sitting down and trying to finish it all at once, i'll make myself do five problems, then do some of my history homework, or a chore i need to get done. then i go back and repeat it.
try not to procrastinate much. i know this is a really hard one. but if i know i have an essay due in a week, i feel like leaving it until the last minute. instead, i make myself do a little bit of research and writing each day, even if it's only for twenty minutes. because by the end of the week, i'll have more than two hours' worth of work done, and i'll only have to check it over and make last minute corrections.
work with someone else. i don't know if you've tried this, but it either works well for a person, or doesn't work at all. i personally need to work with someone else, to keep me concentrated otherwise i stop working. also, if it's a physical task, like filing or something, it's fun to have someone to talk with.
listen to music. unless music distracts you a lot, it can help to have music playing quietly in the background, and it can keep you calm.
don't beat yourself up if you don't finish your work. instead, try and breathe, and figure out why you didn't do the work. did you just run out of time? were you distracted, by what? how can you stop yourself from doing that again?

good luck with everything, and feel free to pm me anytime to talk.
love, tara.

[Snit]

Thanks for the welcome, Tara - I'm a bit of a lurker

That's a really great list. I like the idea of interrupting jobs to do others, I think that could be very useful!

Thanks again,
S