Throughout the winter months, there are some clear deviations in weather conditions that you experience. Darker evenings, less sunlight and freezing temperatures are just a few of the contrasting effects.
Typically, around this time of year, motivation seems to dip and the productivity of your goals and overall purpose seems to drop drastically.
Have you ever felt like you cannot get yourself up for anything during cold and dark days? Well, in this blog we’re going to give you some tips to stay motivated in the winter. Read on to learn more!
Why Does Motivation Dip In The Winter?
To put it plainly and simply, motivation will dip in the winter due to all of the weather conditions that we listed above. The darker nights and colder temperatures will make you naturally want to keep yourself warmer in the comfort of your own home.
Not only that but often people will experience seasonal affective disorder (SAD) which decreases mood when the season changes. This downfall in mood from the season commonly damages your motivation to want to do anything.
The thought of going to the gym or working on a new business, for example, may seem like too much work at times – due to you wanting to just lay comfortably in your home. Here at Move, we can experience these signs and have done them for years in the past.
However, us having time to research this topic and with seasonal depression being a real disorder, we want to pass down our knowledge and tips on what you can do to help prevent even a slight dip in mood or behaviour. Although this still may occur at certain times, these tips will help you take small actionable steps towards you conquering your lack of motivation.
It is not always a disorder that will cause this though. For example, in the winter, your body will not be on show as much, so you will give yourself the freedom to eat whatever you want. This stumble in discipline can then lead to other habits being damaged such as your business. You may then get lazy with some of your operations around your business and you will see a dip in performance too.
So, how do we combat these sudden urges to stay on track with our goals throughout every season… especially in winter? Carry on reading to learn our exclusive tips!
MOVE’s Tips to Stay Motivated During Winter
Like any successful path in your life – motivation levels may not be linear. There could be lots of ups and downs along the journey. Conversely, if you’re taking a step forward each day to improve this part of your life – you will see massive improvements over time.
Whether this is in sports, training/ fitness/ exercise, business or just overall life in general – we want to help you dispose of the winter blues and help you become an expert in your field (year-round).
Let’s take a look at our favourite motivational tips and advice for how to stay motivated in winter:
Team-Building Exercises
Of course, with the weather being almost impossible to go outside in due to the temperatures in the UK, indoor team-building exercises/ activities will be essential for keeping a smooth-running, happy business.
We have certainly noticed acting upon these activities in our mastermind groups with the multiple amounts of businesses we work with – is certainly reaping the benefits in terms of their mood and performance.
Whether this is gathering your team and completing a fun, high-intensity workout together, partaking in a Jenga game or even just sitting down and making a quiz to complete as a team.
All these building blocks not only help with employee relationships but will create purpose and strength among your team members.
Exercise/ Outside Activities
Although the weather may be unbearable at times, it is still good to get out on the days when the weather isn’t as bad as usual. Walking, running, riding and to stay active in general should play a key role in your ‘time schedule’ throughout the day.
Joining a gym so you can stay warm, yet still complete some form of exercise for your health will be paramount. Feeling good is essential.
Consequently, the dopamine and endorphins released in completion to exercise (even if you don’t want to do it) will make you feel better than you did before the activity.
No matter if you want to do low-intensity, medium-intensity or high-intensity workouts – every form of exercise will bring you 1% closer to staying more motivated during the winter time.
Special Events
Giving your staff (and yourself!) something to look forward to at the end of the week or month is another tip that we use here at MOVE to keep everyone motivated and staying on track with their responsibilities.
Simply put, working 24/7 is just not possible. Having breaks and events to enjoy yourself can be just what you need to refresh and recharge your batteries in order to go again.
Therefore, having special events like meals, social networking events, etc can be a great way to take your focus away from the workplace and just enjoy yourself.
People are most productive when they are happy and the excitement of something coming up (especially in winter) will remind your staff each day that they’re closer to this special day.
Conclusion
After delving into how you can stay motivated during this time of year, you now have a wide range of tips to take into your daily life.
Setting up team-building activities, getting outdoors/ exercising and scheduling a special date in the calendar are some of the key components to a happy and more productive workplace.
Even if you’re just self-motivating, these are possible to complete. Being open-minded in scenarios like this and challenging yourself to do something different to change your habits will lead to a happier and healthier life.
Let us know how these tips help you down the road and we’ll be more than happy to support you on your journey!
Mark is a multi-award winner in business networking and relationship building. He is passionate about coaching and mentoring business owners and professionals through 1-1 & group coaching, team performance workshops and group mastermind sessions.