The truth is, more than half the time we come up with these golden ideas that we swear are magically going to get our whole lives together. We plan everything out to a T, we do it on day one, day two, maybe even day three, and then suddenly… BAM. We’re hit with a creativity, motivation, or even energetic decline. Now we’re off track, the golden idea suddenly feels rusted and fragile, and we no longer have that same momentum pushing us forward.
YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
Since childhood, we’re taught that good behavior or hard work is rewarded. Do the right thing and you get a gold star. Finish your homework and you get to play. Clean your room and maybe you get to go out, but adulthood doesn’t always work like that. Sometimes we can work incredibly hard toward something and still have to wait weeks, months, or even years before we see the reward. And when that immediate reward isn’t there? It can become really easy to lose the plot. So here are five things I personally do when I need to recharge my batteries, rebuild my momentum, and remind myself why I’m moving forward in the first place.
1. Take Breaks & Actually Reward Yourself
Working hard toward your goals is essential to reaching them, but resting enough to continue working toward them is just as important!
Recharging can look a multitude of ways. Maybe it means staying offline for the day, taking a break from your usual responsibilities, or simply giving yourself permission to enjoy a day without a million heavy tasks hanging over your head. But don’t mistake a recharge day for an entire day of bed rotting and doom scrolling.
Try taking a morning walk, even if it’s only ten minutes around your block, and take some time to really just reconnect with your surroundings. Make yourself a cup of coffee and actually sit down to enjoy it while watching an episode of your favorite show or listening to a podcast. Take yourself somewhere you enjoy. Cook something good. Do something that makes you feel like you’re participating in your life instead of escaping from it!
The goal is to give your mind and body room to breathe so you can come back feeling replenished, not even more drained.
2. Dress Up!
When we look our best, we tend to feel our best, and when we feel our best, we can tap into parts of ourselves that remind us of our confidence, creativity, and personal power. Use that to your advantage!
When you’re feeling unmotivated, do your makeup. Put on the outfit you’ve been saving. Style your hair, Wear your favorite fragrance, and Put on your jewelry! Even if you have absolutely nowhere to go, give yourself a reason to show up for yourself. Sometimes motivation doesn’t come before the action and Sometimes you have to create the feeling first and allow the motivation to follow after.
You don’t have to wait until you feel powerful to start acting like the version of yourself who already knows they are. <3
3. Surround Yourself With People Who Are Just as Ambitious as You
YES, your surroundings affect the way you feel, move, think, and grow!
When you constantly surround yourself with people who settle, you also surround yourself with an energy where settling becomes normal. On the other hand, being around people who are creating, learning, trying new things, taking risks, and genuinely excited about their futures can remind you that there is still so much more available to you!
Now, I’m not going to lie to you guys. This is probably one of the hardest tips on this list. Not because everyone around you has to have the exact same ambitions you do, but because this requires you to genuinely reflect on the people you surround yourself with. Sometimes that means questioning connections you’ve become comfortable in. That doesn’t automatically mean cutting everyone off because they aren’t running a business, chasing some giant dream, or moving at your exact pace. Ambition looks different for everyone. But ask yourself “Do the people around me encourage my growth, or do I constantly feel like I have to make myself smaller around them?”
There is a difference. And that leads me directly into number four.
4. You Have to Be Okay With Change
When you start moving toward a goal, you are no longer staying still. You’re building momentum and when you’re moving, your surroundings are naturally going to change. New lessons appear. New people appear, New challenges appear, New rewards, opportunities, experiences, and versions of yourself begin appearing too! All of those things have one common denominator, and that guppies, is change.
If you want something you don’t already have, something about your current reality has to change for you to receive it, and no, it isn’t always going to be the comfortable version of change. Sometimes growth means realizing something doesn’t fit anymore. Sometimes it means being a beginner again or it means leaving behind routines, habits, expectations, or even versions of yourself that once made you feel safe. Even caterpillars have to go through an uncomfortable transformation before they get their wings.
You can’t ask your life to transform while expecting everything around you to remain exactly the same… it’s hard but somethings are worth letting go & believe me, I too personally have a few things that no longer align with me that I’m working towards releasing, you know, we all got something we got to work on :).
5. Remember Not Just Why You Started, but Who You Started For
Maybe you’re trying to better your health, or you’re starting a business venture, or maybe you’re working toward financial independence. Maybe you’re beginning a journey toward becoming more confident, creative, disciplined, or simply happier with the person you see in the mirror. Whatever your goal is, remind yourself who all of that hard work is actually for.
YOU.
Or the people you genuinely love and want to build a better life alongside.
I know it probably sounds easier said than done, but when you remind yourself that all of this work isn’t about proving something to strangers, competing with somebody else, or receiving validation from the outside world, you begin reconnecting with those same emotions that overflowed inside of you when you first decided to make a change. Go back to that version of yourself for a second. Remember what they wanted. Remember what they were tired of and what made them finally say, “Okay, I’m doing something about this.”
That person deserves to see what happens when you keep going. I know we want to reap the rewards for the work we put toward our goals. We want the business to grow. We want the number on the scale to change. We want the opportunity. We want the recognition. We want the money. We want to look in the mirror and finally see the person we imagined becoming.
But let me ask you something.
What if part of the reward is realizing that the hard work didn’t only get you closer to your goal, but also showed you that you were capable of far more than other people and maybe even you , originally believed? Sometimes the reward isn’t only the prize waiting at the finish line. Sometimes it’s the discipline you built getting there. The boundaries you learned to create. The people you met along the way, and even the people you outgrew. The mistakes you survived. The confidence you gained. The version of yourself you had to become to carry everything you once asked for.
So if you’re going through a period where you feel burnt out, drained, creatively empty, or like you’ve become a little stagnant, stop, breathe, and refuel.
It’s okay to take recharge breaks. It’s okay if you aren’t operating at 100% every single day and it’s okay if the plan changes along the way. Just don’t confuse needing rest with needing to give up. Whatever you do, guppies, don’t give up on your goals. Remember why you started, Remember who you started for and remember that sometimes you don’t need another brand new golden idea to change your life, sometimes you just need to polish the one you already had.
I love you guppies, always. 🫂♥️ & remember, you got this!
TOOLS TO WORK ALONGSIDE -