Motivation

Most day it's hard to find a desire to check everything off your mental 'TO DO'  list, or perhaps yours is literal. I've come to enjoy making lists. There's just something about that feeling you get from accomplishing a task (small as it may be) and crossing it out. But that's not the case every day. There are certain things that will always need to get done, no matter what. Cleaning- check; laundry-check; bills-check. Then there are those things that somehow find their way down to the bottom of the list, even though they're more important than the ones up top- working-out; writing; reading. The thing is that you need motivation for some of those things, and that can be lacking even at the best of times.

You could wake up with a big smile on your face, ready to get things going, feeling upbeat and refreshed, and those things will still somehow manage to get pushed aside. I LOVE reading and writing, I can't imagine my life without those two things. But the whole exercise thing, well, that's a little bit more difficult. I'm in pretty good shape, probably the best shape in my life (that doesn't mean that I look like I did in high school, just that I have a lot more stamina), and running is one of those things that I've grown to love, but even on the best days I can find it hard to put on my sports bra, tie up my shoe laces, and get on that treadmill. I don't know what it is, but my body just feels tired thinking about it. Wouldn't it be great if your body got the exercise that it needs just by thinking about it instead of actually doing it? Wishful thinking, I know.

Anyway, my motivation for writing is different. At times I can feel stuck in a rut because I can't figure out that one scene and I feel like if I don't step away that I'll end up ripping my hair out. I also wonder how much writing versus reading I should be doing. I'm a book addict, and you have to be if you want to be a good writer, but when do you push aside one desire over the other? I've found that doing some writing exercises can be very helpful during those times that I lack motivation. Giving my mind a break from one world and stepping into another can be refreshing. The same goes for reading. The beautiful woven words of another author can inspire you to stop being lazy and start typing.

We all need motivation at one time another, and whatever it may be, make sure that it works for you. At the end of the day when you go over that mental or literal 'To Do' list, make sure that it isn't at the bottom and bask in the glory of the accomplishment. And most of all, don't lose the passion you have for those things that bring you happiness, don't stop dreaming the impossible dream, and put everything you have into making that dream come true.