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“I didn’t workout today because I didn’t FEEL like it.”

“Oh my goodness, I FEEL so tired.  I think I’ll just stay in bed.”

“I won’t network today.  I don’t FEEL like talking to anyone.”

Those pesky feelings.  There are many situations in which they allow us to experience pleasure but we sure can run into some trouble if we allow them to rule our lives.  If I were to live by my feelings only, there would be some days that my kids just didn’t get to school.  If I were to live by just feelings, many times, I might just stay inside and not head out into the great, expanse called our world.  And we always have the option to do that.  But, is it productive?  Is it effective? Does it get us closer to our plans and our goals?

Now, when I talk about feelings, I am not talking about the physical feelings.  Your body really does get tired.  It really does get sick.  It really does get broken sometimes and there is nothing that you can do.  What I am talking about is the mindset.  The feeling of ‘I don’t want to do this right now’ or ‘I’m just not in the mood to do this today.’  Many people allow feeling like this to determine how their days proceed.

We all have those ‘feelings’ from time to time but there are ways of dealing with our ‘feelings’ in order to remain productive.  Here are some of the things I do.

1. Do something immediately
When you don’t feel like completing a project or getting up to do your exercise routine, do something immediately. Make up your mind that you are going to do something towards that project immediately and that immediately combats the feeling. Feelings tend to be progressive. By that I mean that the longer you allow them to ‘feel’, the more powerful they become. If you act immediately against that feeling, you will see that it begins to subside. As a bonus, you will actually be getting something done and moving towards your goal.

2. Write it down
Have you ever seen something that you wrote a few weeks later and thought, “Oh my goodness, who wrote that?” Pens have a funny way of making us see our own fears and sometimes even our silly thoughts. When you don’t feel like doing something. Simply begin to write down what it is that you dont feel like doing, why you don’t feel like doing it. Then, return to suggestion number 1.

3. Speak to someone
“Hey Tina, what’s up? Yeah, I’m just calling you because right now I am committed to getting this project done but I don’t feel like it. I just need to get it out of my head and hear someone tell me to get off my butt and get it done. Can you tell me to get off my butt and get it done?” GET OFF YOUR BUTT AND GET IT DONE – “Thanks Tina”

4. Agree with yourself that you will do it for a certain amount of time.
One powerful way to act and move forward is to simply create agreements. YOur agreement with yourself can be that you will work on this thing for 10 minutes even though you dont feel like it. Then after that 10 minutes, you get to go to sleep. That’s one way that I was able to get my book finished even when I didn’t feel like writing.

5. Create a reward immediately
If you don’t feel like doing it, begin thinking immediately about what might make you feel like doing it or what would motivate you to complete it. Make it a really great reward. Think about the biggest ice cream sundae you can. Then, determine what you can do to get your ice cream sundae. Then do something to get your ice cream sundae.

6. Make a game or a competition
This might only work for me because I’m a competitive person. But, we all like games in one way or another. What can you do to create a game out of it? How many points can you give yourself for your activities that day? What if you got 50 points for getting out of bed on time? What if you got 100 points just for getting started on your activities? Get enough points and then you can do number 5.

Many times, ‘feelings’ are really interpreted as fear. And fear rarely moves you closer to your goal. So, it’s time to get past those ‘feelings’. You can DO it!

What do you do when you don’t FEEL like being productive? Leave your answer in the comments below.

Join the discussion 3 Comments

  • Jill Goldman says:

    Robert, these are great tips! 🙂 I have often done numbers 1,2,4, and 5, but hadn’t thought of numbers 3 and 6. I’m going to give those a try. I wish I had read about calling someone to give a nudge like that yesterday – I really needed a little push. And I’m not sure about giving myself points, but it could work. Thanks!

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