I don’t know about you, but I often struggle with motivation in my personal life. In the office, I can be like Shiva, handling many tasks at a time and loving it, but once all the lights go off, I’m hardly an ‘active’ person.
I kept wondering why I didn’t have the desire to do anything, besides lie on the couch and watch TV in my free time. To be honest, I still don’t know what the reason is (besides pure laziness). However, it got to a point when I was fed up with looking at pictures of my friends hiking, going to clubs, to the beach, etc. while I was sitting at home, munching on a bag of chips. The sad truth is, life tends to happen around you, whether you want any part of it or not. So I started forcing myself into things. You know how in acting classes/ life coach sessions/ therapy sessions they teach you that if you start repeatedly faking an emotion eventually you’ll believe it yourself? Well, I started faking my desire to socialize, to try new things and to meet new people. It felt odd at times, but I kept smiling and doing it over and over. And BAM! I soon noticed I increasingly drew much more enjoyment from my social interactions. I wanted to try new things. I wanted to go to new and exciting places. My circle of friends started expanding and I was feeling more accepted, more loved. I was feeling unstoppable.
Now, it would be a lie if I said I still don’t have my off days, when I simply don’t want to see anybody or do anything, however, I now accept them as my days for recharging and gathering strength. I know I’ll soon be out there, exploring again.
Today, when I see my friends posting pictures and videos from their adventures, I can’t help but smile, because I’m genuinely happy that they are also out there, living life and enjoying every minute of it.
And to give you that extra push to get up and go, I’ll leave you with some pictures from my biking trip today. A 3 hour off-road ride into the wilderness of Northern England and an amazing way to spend my Sunday! To be honest, it did take me about half an hour to get out of bed and actually go, but I remembered my rule, kicked myself in the butt and I don’t regret it for a second!
So next time a friend invites you to a new club, a concert or a walk in the park, don’t be the couch potato that internally you are dying to be, and force yourself into saying yes. You never know what fun you might be missing.
xo,
Teddy T
Inside Teddy's head 