
Ask HN: How do you all deal with lack of motivation? - wintosh
I remember being an extremely motivated and driven individual until 1-2 years ago. Then came a string of personal issues that turned my world upside down(including my realization that my father was a terrible abuser). Now that things are settled, I have a very strong urge to get up and chase my dreams again , however, I find this invisible force just not letting me do anything. I do not feel motivated at all.I wonder if anyone here has been in a similar state and how did he&#x2F;she got out of it?<p>PS: I am a Coder
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Kagerjay
Visionary, Discipline, Reflection, Release

VISIONARY

I don't care what random people think of me, I know what my dreams and
aspirations are. I intend on getting there regardless if people support me or
not. I've been told I couldn't do it many times in my life and that motivates
me even further.

DISCIPLINE

Working out almost everyday forces me to be productive. Motivation is weak and
short-sighted, you need discipline. Discipline in building a passion that you
actually care about. This also means getting something done everyday. I keep a
daily log and sum of my weekly snapshots of things I achieved that week.

I have two military-like disciplinary habits I never ever let go - this is
daily journalling (mental) and workout out (physical). These two disciplines
alone drive every other discipline I've reinforced, including time management,
staying on track, keeping up with friends, etc. The moment I let these 2
habits go is the moment I start losing sight of what matters.

REFLECTION

You need to reflect on things you've achieved, it builds a sense of reward for
the work you put in. This means sharing knowledge, sharing projects, sharing
things you've done only after the fact with others. Whenever I get lost, I
look back in my life and realize I've done way harder things that pushes me to
move forward.

RELEASE

Write down what's holding you back. I'm impatient & stubborn, sometimes I get
really annoyed at incompetent vendors and time-draining clients. I just let it
all out in my daily journalling and sometimes I'll just write things on a
piece of paper over and over again and then shred it to pieces.

Also, when I daily journal, I write exactly what technical challenges I face
everyday. Then I write what 1-3 things I hope to achieve that day, usually its
intuitive, I usually come up with it the same day.

When I get stuck I just write my thoughts down in journal form so I can
analyze the situation a bit better.

~~~
p49k
How did you learn how to journal? There are countless quality resources for
developing a solid workout routine, but I have no idea how to start a journal
and every time I try, I have no idea what to write and there is no structure,
which makes me give up after some time.

~~~
Kagerjay
I went on a long tangent but let me answer your specifically:

I think its important to constantly experiment to see what works for you.
Starting simple is usually best

I would take a moleskin notebook, and just treat 1 page of journalling = 1
day. Start doing this everyday. You'll soon realize how inefficient this is,
and move onto something easier (e.g. a computer) for journalling

But you learned an important lesson on journalling, which is the commitment
and discipline. I still journal this way, specifically my workout training
logs. 3 full days of workout = 1 page in my notebook. E.g. legs/abs _(top of
page)_ , chest/triceps/shoulders _(middle of page)_ , and upperback/biceps
_(top of page)_.

Whenever I think of structure, I usually think of universal ways to organize
things. There's two ways to organize things

\- TIME

\- PLACE

When you journal, or write blog posts, this is always TIME-based organization.
This mean you organize things chronologically

PLACE is when you take notes for some computer science online course. Its
always organized by some folder. You can sort these A-Z, that's also a PLACE
parameter too.

Something that is organized by TIME, cannot also be organized by PLACE on the
same level. You can organize a PLACE _(moleskin notebook)_ for your journal,
and then on a sublevel by TIME _(each chronological page is new day)_

I hope this makes sense

------
CyberFonic
I don't think being a coder has anything to do with your problem. It is common
across all lifestyles.

Personally I had several episodes in my life when even getting out of bed was
far too much bother. Two things worked for me.

1\. Getting out of the house and going for long walks. Sometimes ended up
sitting on some park bench and sobbing for a while. But then a bird would
chirp, a toddler would stumble by or even an insect would buzz. When you hit
rock bottom, there is only one way ... UP!

2\. Writing long rants in a spiral bound notebook. Pages and pages. I called
it my "Bitch Journal". I would go through it from time to time and write over,
scribble, etc. Amazingly it eventually gave me clarity on what was hurting the
most and what I could choose to do about it. Many months later I burnt the
damn book and it was a most cathartic experience.

When I feel down and unmotivated, I remind myself that it is darkest before
dawn.

------
arkj
These are tough days bro but hold on to any thread that keeps some spark
going. A few things that helped me

* do only things that truly made you feel good even if you don’t find joy in it now.

* take up work that is relatively easy for you so you keep seeing some progress.

* don’t carry others burden

* lower expectations from others and yourself for sometime

* let your yes be yes and no be no

* if you are finding it hard to focus see a doc and convince him to give you some modafinil. Please promise yourself that you wont become an addict. (I pretended to have adhd and the doc prescribed me retalin, i am alergic to modafinil). This may not be good advice but it helped me not to loose my job back then. Now I have found my way to the otherside and I am grateful to that doc and that drug.

* find joy in simple things. Make sure to notice the trees around you.

* believe that you will find your inspiration again and you will.

Hope you find help.

------
blacksoil
I had struggled with such problem as well. These are how I got out:

1\. Coming up with internal dreams. This is something internal that when I
thought about, I'm convinced I'd like to accomplish it. Ideally this is
something whose cause you truly believe in, instead of just short-term
impulses. To distinguish the two is pretty easy. Impulses have short lives
while dreams last long. Even when you try to forget it, at times you'd still
think about your dreams.

2\. Make plans. When I got motivations from step 1 above, I don't code or
execute right away. Instead, I create plan and list out what's needed to
accomplish it. I know this isn't the most fun thing to do, especially when
you're very excited about something, but I can't thank enough the plans I
made.

3\. Create schedule. I force myself to spend 4 hours of productive coding
every day. No matter how I feel, I have to spend at least 4 hours. Whenever I
feel very unmotivated, I simply work like a robot following to the plans
created earlier, regardless of my feelings. I always reminded myself that back
when I was working in a company, I would do things I didn't like due to the
sense of responsibility anyway, so why would I make excuses now?
Interestingly, often I ended up spending more than the obligatory 4 hours
because I ended up being very motivated after I forced myself to just do it.

4\. Exercise, stay healthy, and keep a balanced life. This is often
overlooked, but this is very important. One can't just work tirelessly like a
robot. It's much more sustainable when everything is balanced. It's like once
you take enough vacation, you feel like going back to work and when you
actually do, you're much more productive

~~~
koliber
Great list. I would put #4 at #1. Your body is where "you" happen. If it is
unhealthy, it becomes harder to do things in general.

~~~
akuji1993
Since switching to a more healthy lifestyle, doubling or trippling the amount
of exercise (walking, bicycling) I do, I feel 100x better than before and can
do much better work every day. I also am able to stand up at 8am instead of
10am, just because my body is just so much fitter and ready to take on the
day.

I can't emphasize this enough, take care of your body and the mind will
follow.

------
ALee
Change your setting either with people or places. You're likely sitting at
home or always on your computer doing the same thing. That's not helping
anyone. If you change your setting it'll also change you personally. I echo
everything else related to sleep, exercise, and diet, but besides that just go
meet people or work out of different places. It'll work odd wonders because
biologically you're predisposed that way.

------
PeOe
You got used to being unmotivated. As others mentioned before, you need a bit
of discipline. But discipline alone is not the point. I would recommend using
productivity techniques. Checklists might be to easy but getting things done
or eat that frog are great methods. At the beginning it´s hard, but as you
constantly use them, it will become a habit. And, for me, it´s a great feeling
and boosts my motivation when I see what I have already finished or when I´m
able to set one task to "done". I personally use getting things done and it
really helps to stay focused, you can also use "time blocking" to concentrate
on your tasks or to make sure you got time to do nothing at all.

If you need more info about all the methods, have a look at our blog, there
are articles about many possibilities to boost productivity and enhance your
motivation: [https://zenkit.com/en/blog](https://zenkit.com/en/blog)

------
sigi45
Something I started a month ago and works better than thougt:

Planning the week ahead.

Often I get home and don't wanna do anything suddenly. When I plan it, I come
home with something specific.

Also I proactively think about people/friends I haven't seen for a while and
ask them out to do stuff.

Strange thing proactively planning a week ahead, checking out events, movies,
etc.

------
mr_t
What helps me most is to focus on the steps. This invisible force you describe
is nothing that prevents you from doing anything (based on my experience, I
can't know how you perceive it), but a step you want to skip, but are not able
to.

You mentioned you have a strong urge to get up since everything is settled.
Maybe this could be the invisible force?

You think (based on general believe how things should be done) that you need
to get up since everything is fine, because that's what people do, right?
Things are settled and you want to chase your dreams, thus this is what you
need to do now, right? What else should you do?

You may stress yourself subconsciously which puts you in a vicious circle. If
that could be the case, do something you enjoy, instead of chasing something.

But again, this is based on my experience, so I share my view, not telling you
what the right thing is. I can't know.

------
defnotadog
I find that the harder I try to force myself to code, the worse it gets. I
like to try some other creative task that can get the juices going and then
come back to coding when I have a really great idea. Obviously in a working
environment this doesn't always work.

What _else_ do you find really motivating? Could be writing or painting or
making youtube videos. It doesn't really matter as long as you're starting to
engage creative muscles that you haven't flexed in a while.

------
ha470
I’ve often found that lack of motivation is a symptom of some other problem.
Often the direction you think you need to motivate yourself toward isn’t the
right direction, or sometimes there is a lot of FUD that’s blocking natural
motivation from shining through. We’re inherently curious and excited
creatures, so if you can find a way or area where that curiosity and
excitement shines and unleash it without stress/worry, it flows naturally.

Byron Katie’s work has been really helpful here for me to weed through +
dismantle whatever is causing FUD that blocks motivation.
[http://thework.com/en](http://thework.com/en)

------
slipwalker
that seems to be a recurrent problem in the software industry, my suggestion
here is to check "discipline beats motivation" (
[http://iheartintelligence.com/2016/11/17/discipline-beats-
mo...](http://iheartintelligence.com/2016/11/17/discipline-beats-motivation/)
).

You don't need motivation, just discipline to build habits... everywhere will
be a challenge if you lean on motivation.

( i also struggle a lot forcing myself to build discipline... )

------
michaelsacks
Exercise.

You don't have to run marathons. Start with 30 min walks every morning.
(Outside helps). Work your way up to moderate exercise that gets your heart
rate up.

It's amazing the difference it will make.

------
jotjotzzz
I recommend (and already mentioned) journaling. In the journal, I visualize
attaining the goal or write about ways to keep going.

Watch, listen or read stuff that motivates and uplifts you. And keep on doing
it every day.

Try to motivate yourself every day and find what works. This quote sums up
what motivation is, it is not something that is only done once:

"People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing -
that's why we recommend it daily." \- Zig Ziglar

------
cannabisceo
I take care of sleep, exercise, and diet. Then weekly sessions in therapy. I
honestly don't believe you can be well adjusted without sleeping 8 hours,
exercising 3-5 times per week, and trying your best to eat right.

If you think you're going to have a perspective shift without taking care of
the basics...I doubt it. Take care of these fundamentals first. Then circle
back in a month if you're still having issues.

------
tboyd47
Even though you think you're ready, you may still need some down time. Find
some way to disconnect completely from your daily responsibilities for a
weekend or even a whole week to sleep, eat, and reflect.

If down time isn't working for you, you may need to start permanently removing
or changing unpleasant things in your life. This can take a lot of creativity
and out-of-the-box thinking and therapy can help here.

------
kerrsclyde
Work with others.

Find likeminded individuals who can help you get to where you want to go. It's
really difficult to generate significant traction on your own.

Doesn't have to be massive, I train once a week with a coach and some other
folks and this motivates me to go to the gym for the six other days of the
week.

My wife motivates me to do the best for my family. In my hobby I have others
who rely on me.

------
flscts
Noopept + caffeine at the beginning of every day, but this isn't golden
bullet. So when I am totally unmotivated, this means I have to entertain
myself. To do so I read popscience book like Randall Munroe's "What if" or
watch sci fi movie. Also meeting with people who you can exchange coding
experience and ideas is also great motivator.

------
gorpomon
Get into therapy my friend, it will help in all aspects of life. It's not just
for people who have mental illness or severe trauma. It's for all of us who
have life experience that is unprocessed. I think it would be valuable for you
if you went in to explore the roots of what interests you and what your
underlying motivations are.

------
floatingatoll
Zinc supplements. It turned out I was seratonin and dopamine deficient due to
multiple (6) genetic defects in my liver’s zinc uptake genes, so whenever I
was under duress, I’d run out of neurotransmitters and be unable to produce
more.

~~~
copperx
How did you find out about these defects? Did you get a genetic test? And how
much zinc do you take to compensate? Is it a mega dose?

~~~
floatingatoll
I read a lot of scientific papers, then determined the common trace mineral
supporting dopamine and seratonin production, then identified my genetic
variations from societal norms with respect to zinc uptake and processing in
various liver and brain pathways using those papers to narrow down with
locations to check.

I already had genetic data available. Commercial tests would not have revealed
an issue, as my variants have neither been proven benign nor harmful, and the
unproven [1] correlations to autism are not yet included in testing. I was not
certain when I bought the first pack of zinc cough drops whether they would
affect me, but the only downside was temporary magnesium deficiency, which I’m
already used to perceiving and treating.

I vary consumption of sublingual tablets based on whether I desire more
metallic taste in my mouth or not, which I sometimes do. I vary my intake to
include magnesium and copper-assisted zinc now and then. I prefer the
dissolving tablets one at a time over a period of time so that I can develop a
natural dislike for their metallic taste once I’ve consumed enough, but the
same dislike develops using zinc-honey cough drops. I rarely use capsules
(primarily for the copper variant) as they do not have a taste linkage for me
to calibrate against.

Please seek professional medical advice. Increasing your zinc intake can have
detrimental effects on your copper and magnesium levels, leading to bodywide
soreness and/or death.

[1] Unproven due to only a couple papers published to date; no conflicting
opinions existed, and no comprehensive analysis of autistic people has yet
been performed.

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dsfyu404ed
Getting a deposit notification from my bank every other Friday works for me.

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tmaly
I would highly recommend the 5 minute journal used in combination with the
Pomodoro technique. The former will help you with the vision and the latter
will help you with any procrastination.

------
mwerty
I changed my goal to something more immediate - getting out of the funk and
focused all my attention on that. The obstacle is the way.

------
time-traveler
This is what depression is like.

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dontJudge
inertia. Easier to keep movement going than to start it.

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dosy
First, echoing what others say, and channeling Marcus Aurelius,

You have identified your obstacle: "this invisible force"

Now penetrate into it with your mind / feelings, discover what it truly is, in
essence. What is it, in and of itself? Sit quietly, relax, clear your mind and
think. How do you feel? What is this force? Keep penetrating into it more
deeply until you see it clearly enough for your purpose.

Once you understand your exact situation with a useful amount of clarity, and
connect with your feelings, I believe you will know exactly what to do and
have the non-mixed-feeling motivation to do it.

That's the thesis. Now for the antithesis.

What if the following is true:

What if the dreams you had chased before, were to some extent formed as a
response to, or to protect you from, or to compensate for, whatever happened
to you. And now that you have dealt with and vanquished this issue in your
life you have the following bipartite situation:

\- On the one hand, you are still motivated by what you have trained yourself
to be motivated by for so long. And,

\- On the other hand, having killed the original motivation that gave rise to
it, you have removed the impetus to do it.

Now what can you do in this situation?

I believe you already know. But here is what I think. You are at a crossroads.
You can re-examine your values and motivations and see if what was once
important, still is. You can recommit to, or now redefine your purpose. You
may find that you end up deepening your commitment, or that you free yourself
from what once drove you, and make way for the new purpose / motivation to
enter your life.

Finally, for the curve-ball. What if this invisible force is just your
intuition / the matrix / the signal line / a deep feeling trying to make its
way to you and give you an important message about something in your life?
What if it is nothing you expect but will be, once you open yourself to its
message, completely surprising and very useful for you?

Okay, so it could be 1, a mix, or all of these things. Or something else
entirely. You've got the thesis, antithesis (and curve ball for good measure),
you make your own synthesis and solve your own problem / meet your own
opportunity. Hope this helped you and anyone else watching. Have a great day
y'all.

------
madeuptempacct
I have the freedom to kill myself anytime I want, so if I am not doing that, I
might as well do something "useful."

Also, it's not like being bored isn't boring, so might as well do something,
even if it's equally boring.

PS: All the mundane stuff everyone else mentioned is a bare minimum for sure -
do exercise, do plan things to do, do eat correctly and get enough sleep, etc.

~~~
whatsstolat
This comes across as reductive. There is truth here but some sensitivity
wouldn't go amiss.

