Staying Motivated

Staying Motivated - Tips and Strategies

• Do you give up on schoolwork too easily?
• Do you think negative thoughts about yourself and your abilities? 
• Are you frustrated in your classes or unhappy with your grades?
• Would you like to feel more confident about yourself and more optimistic about your future?

If you answered yes to any of the above, it's important you find ways to feel more positive about your abilities and school.

Changing the way you feel about your academic abilities or the importance of your education involves making changes in both your thinking and behavior.

HAVE A POSITIVE ATTITUDE

• Believe in yourself - Recognize the talents and abilities you have and believe you can succeed!
• Surround yourself with positive people - Choose people who support and encourage you!
• Move with positive energy - Stand tall, walk with confidence and purpose and SMILE! If you act positive, you just may find that you feel more positive.

PLAN FOR SUCCESS

• Set goals - Goals give you direction. They help you decide where you want to go and what you need to do. Have a list of both short-term and long-term goals. 
• Focus on your strengths - Your future lies in your strengths. Identify your talents and strengths and look for ways to nurture and develop them.
• Positive Self Talk - Replace "I'm terrible at math" with "I'm smart. I can do this." Changing how you think will change how you feel and how you act!

MOTIVATION TIPS

• Visualize - Visualize your success! Close your eyes and imagine that you're taking a test in a difficult course. See yourself answering the questions correctly and getting the grade you want. 
• Use motivating "self notes" - Write motivating words, ideas and/or quotes on sticky notes. Put these notes on your mirror, computer or anywhere you're likely to see them.
• Expect to work hard - Learning should be challenging and you should expect it to be difficult at times. Just know that you can rise to the challenge!
• Take care of your mind and body - Get plenty of sleep, eat healthy foods, get regular exercise and find healthy ways to deal with stress.
• Turn failures into successes - When something doesn't go well, try to learn from the experience. As Henry Ford said, "Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently."

DON'T GIVE UP!

These very successful people faced failure and doubt, but they refused to give up:

• Michael Jordan was cut from the high school varsity basketball team his sophomore year.
• Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because he had "no good ideas."
• Raised in extreme poverty, Oprah Winfrey didn't own a pair of shoes until she was six. She is now a billionaire.
• Thomas Edison once had a teacher who told him that he was too stupid to learn anything.
• Steven Spielberg, an Academy Award winning director, was rejected by USC's film school three times. 
• J.K. Rowling was living on welfare before she wrote the Harry Potter Series. 
• Winston Churchill failed the sixth grade.

"If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astonish ourselves." Thomas Edison

Information taken from: Study Tips and Strategies InfoGuide, Woodburn Press