<p>I wanted to ask the parents here, since parents have a lot more life experience than kids my age, on how to improve my work ethic. There are always books, movies and other content that are worth examining- yet motivation often fails. There is also a sense when work consumes you- life is taken more seriously than it should be; and in the process, much anxiety and fear is caused. What helps you keep it all together and how do you follow through with your plans especially when there’s so much to do and not a lot of time?</p>
<p>You may find that making a list helps. I plan my day the night before, my work schedule, appointments and even the phone calls to people I want to reach out to. As far as getting motivated, I think when you love what you do there is a desire to do it well. It may sound cliche but find your passion and, the motivation will find you.</p>
<p>Hi Pacific! I think your question is a great one to ask! At work, I have always been known as the “hummingbird” - the person that sort of flies from project to project, getting a little done on each at a time, instead of long stretches on each task, and getting more done at the end of the day. The most important part was, instead of the hour-long breaks that are the norm, I would take “micro-breaks” throughout the day - relax, take a walk around the block, check out the news on the Internet, etc. That way, in the cases where the workload is getting pretty high, I was stuck doing work I wasn’t as motivated to do and/or overtime was necessary, I was refreshed and ready for it. </p>
<p>For years, I was the weird one, even got dinged on a performance review once by a boss that did not understand it despite my productivity, now I see articles written about my work style and how younger employees are adopting it (much to the chagrin of some old-school bosses that are set in their ways). Bottom line is - people DO have different work and motivation styles, and good managers use them to their advantage to maximize overall productivity. Try a bunch of different strategies and find out what works best for you, and don’t ever have anything forced upon you that does NOT work for you…</p>
<p>GOOD LUCK!!</p>
<p>The most motivational thing is to do something that genuinely interests you.</p>
<p>Prioritizing. Not all the items on your list are of equal importance or value. When you think about all the things that “need” to be done, it can be overwhelming, guilt and anxiety inducing and, even, paralyzing.</p>
<p>So make a list and assign a value to each item. Decide what has to be done now and what needs to wait. Some big tasks need to be spread over days or weeks, with other important tasks interspersed. If you have a plan for the important things and are making progress, the whole situation feels manageable.</p>
<p>When you face a task that is particularly dreaded, break it into chunks. Then, when the time comes, tell yourself that you only have to the first piece of it now and then you can stop and do more at a later time. Grit your teeth and do that first piece immediately.</p>
<p>What I find is that getting started on hated tasks is the worst part.</p>