“I can’t do this,” is a sentence most of us have said at some point in our lives. Whenever we find ourselves in a situation that seems overwhelming and impossible to overcome we can feel frustrated and can’t imagine a solution. We become stuck and don’t know how to move forward.
Finding ourselves in situations like this is a part of life; anyone can feel like this. It is normal. However, what you can do is change how you look at these situations, and how you approach them. A little motivation can go a long way, so I’ve put together a few tips to help…
1. Break it down
Whenever you find yourself faced with something intimidating, it can sometimes become a little overwhelming. In situations such as these, the best thing to do is not to approach the task as a whole, but break it down into as small steps as possible. If necessary, break each step, into even smaller sets of actions, and complete them one at a time.
2. Find your drive
Motivation comes and goes. There are times we need to be much more than motivated. Always remember your reason why; this should inspire you to keep moving forward during the challenging times because you have a clear purpose or goal.
Personally, I love motivational quotes. Always remember that whatever difficulty you find yourself going through right now, someone else has already gone through it. Find sources of good advice. Write them down and read them often.
A visual reminder goes a long way for me; I carry this picture with me when I’m running or hiking. Sometimes, when motivation is low, we just need to remember how far we’ve come already.
3. Remind yourself that everyone fails at some point
The fear of failure often prevents us from trying something new and facing difficult situations. You don’t know if you are good at something if you don’t try it – just remember that even the pros have had their share of failures. It’s normal that you won’t do everything perfect right from the start, but that’s how we learn. By acknowledging the mistakes we make, we can discover what we need to change and improve, and focus our efforts on making the next attempt successful. Nobody’s perfect. We all make mistake, but the trick is to find a lesson in every mistake and move on.
4. Find supporters
Even when you feel like you are alone and there’s no one to help you, there’s always someone around who will support you. If you feel like you just want to give up and give in, talk to those closest to you, your friends and family. They can help you to see problems from a different perspective, help to find solutions and encourage you to keep going.
5. Fake it until you make it
It is always the most difficult to start something especially when you feel like you don’t have the skills to handle it, but you should always try to approach that task as if you can do it. Imposter Syndrome exists! No one feels 100% confident that they can do something, yet the trick is to keep going and eventually you will either fail and learn something from it anyway, or you will get the hang of it and start feeling more confident.
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