Lacking the motivation to do things is such a sticky situation to be in, one that is so frustrating when all you want to do is just be good in whatever it is you want or have to do. As a someone who's been studying for almost 16 years now, I have been demotivated to perform academic tasks (or just tasks in general) to the point that I can almost consider myself in a burnout phase wherein I feel emotionally, physically, and mentally exhausted to go on with my everyday life due to excessive and prolonged stress. 

I am no expert in this topic, so I suggest reading more about burnout prevention and treatment here. However, I do have some tips and insights to share about how I try to overcome extensive periods of demotivation, so I can avoid reaching burnout point.

 1. Acceptance 

This is obviously the first step because you can never really address anything good or bad if you don't acknowledge it. Time is fleeting, and the more you deny something that is actually happening, the more energy you spend wasting the opportunity to enjoy or overcome it. For me, I just tell myself that I'm in a lot of stress of lately, so I need to do something about it. It's as simple as that.

 2. Relaxation 

Okay. You may be wondering whether it is a better idea to relax so early on in the process than to save it for the end. People often say, "Save the best for the last." But, hear me out. When I know that I'm already stressed, I feel the need to instantly act on it by canceling out the stress with a calming medium. I do this by going out, watching my favorite movies, eating my favorite foods, and playing mobile games with Cyrill and my siblings. It is okay to rest once in a while, but once you know that you're already fully rested (or maybe even just enough), you have to proceed immediately to the next step. Otherwise, you're gonna be relaxing forever. Needless to say, you're not gonna be able to do anything else, which is not the point of this at all. 😂

 3. Inspiration 

Getting inspiration is like getting fuel for a car. You need something to make the engine, your brain, work as it should. I get inspiration everywhere. But when it comes to studying, I like watching my favorite student vlogger, Izzy Mollicone, because I relate to her in the sense that I study A LOT as well. If I'm not mistaken, I take 32-34 units every semester which is quite a handful especially when compared to the 15-22 units that my best friends take in their universities. 😢 Anyway, you'll know that you're already inspired or "fueled up" when you're finally getting the drive to create or do something. When this happens, immediately get on it so as to not waste any more time.

 4. More Inspiration 

Usually at the time when you're already hard at work and you're ready to check off things from your to-do list, you get into a minor setback, and you think that you're back to square one all over again. This is when you need the strongest inspiration you could gather up. Maybe think about why you're doing everything in the first place. What's your goal? What's gonna make you feeling happy and successful in the near future? Personally, I think about my parents and how they have always been supporting me (and my siblings) to the extent where they usually leave barely anything for themselves. I thrive in that guilt and willingness to give back to them by doing what is expected of me and possibly even more.

 5. Faith 

If nothing (or everything) goes to plan, don't forget to pray about it. This is the last step I do, usually when I've already done my work or when I'm ready to just trust God on His plans. I talk to Him and ask Him to prepare me for anything else that He has in store for me.

The truth is, we can never get rid of stress. I learned that from Understanding the Self class last semester. 😂 Whether you act positively or negatively on everything handed to you is entirely up to you, so make the most off of it.

“Don't let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.” ― A Cinderella Story