The one thing in life that is constant is change. And do you know what changes daily? Your motivation and drive.
Drive is not any easy thing to control by any means, and it’s different for every person! So how do we try to balance the motivation you’re feeling in your everyday tasks?
Personally, I like to write out a list of things that need to get done each day. I include EVERYTHING – from making my bed, feeding my crazy household of dogs to working on my latest design project and prepping for dinner. I suggest this be a first step to help motivate yourself too, especially when it comes to the world of the fast and furious: communications and design.
As a new designer at Grapevine Communications, I’m starting new projects for a variety of clients. And like most artist types, I am VISUAL. (Hence my love for capitalization and emphasis on words like these.) That’s why the feeling of crossing off that first item on your list is incomparable. Isn’t it so rewarding? That’s one less thing you need to do – the list is already visually shorter. I find that it also challenges you to get more things crossed off. And before you know it, you have your priorities straight and you’re ready to embrace the creativity in your day and take on anything.
But maybe you’re already a list-making machine and just get anxiety about looming tasks. My approach is to tackle the less time-consuming projects first. Accomplish the logo design or magazine ad revisions first and get them crossed of your list. All of a sudden, your small tasks are done at this point and you’re just left with that final project. I find that this sort of “functional procrastination” works well in building your confidence and motivation to finally take on that big project. Plus, it frees up your time to truly focus and tap into that creative energy needed to push through. And now with a kickstarted drive, that fresh branding book due end of day can be signed, sealed, and delivered.
Make lists as a daily challenge for yourself. I promise you will see a change in how you function. And not too long after, you’ll see a difference in your motivation and productivity altogether. So when that list or your life constantly changes, you now have a better hold of that drive.
