Maintaining Motivation QUEST

Motivation is the process that initiates and maintains our behaviour. It is our reason for doing something to meet our needs and is often linked to a goal. We may be motivated by internal factors or external factors, or sometimes we might be motivated by a combination of these to achieve a goal.

When it comes to study it is important to understand these factors in relation to establishing our goals and maintaining motivation. These factors can be helpful to understand more about what your goal is and why you are working towards it.

Having an understanding of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can be helpful when we are thinking of setting a goal. These types of motivation can be influenced by both internal and external factors.

Intrinsic motivation is the desire you have to try new things, explore your capacity, gain knowledge and meet challenges. Overall it is driven by enjoyment, interest and fulfilment in the activity.

Extrinsic motivation comes from influences that are external such as achieving rewards, such as good grades, or recognition. It is separate to the process of doing an activity but can motivate you to engage in the activity.

While you may think that one of these motivations is better than the other that is not the case. Sure we want to enjoy things that we are doing but if we only focus on enjoyment or interest, then we run the risk of not achieving goals that would bring us fulfilment. This is because intrinsic motivation is often not goal oriented. Think of the following example;

If you want to be a nurse you may be intrinsically motivated to help people but in order to get you degree and be able to practice as a nurse you have to pass a course that involves a lot of maths. You don’t like maths! However passing the course will let you to reach your goal.

However we can use intrinsic motivation to help us achieve a goal. Often we will be most successful if we use a combination of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. This is because intrinsic motivation promotes autonomy and is more long-term, whereas extrinsic motivation is often not sustainable for longer periods of time.

Video: The School of Life - The Problem With Over-achievement

Sometimes it can be hard to maintain motivation to achieve a goal. This is because we may have rules or assumptions about the way the world should work that are not in keeping with achieving a goal.

For example we may be pleasure seeking, thinking that “life’s too short to study maths” or we might be worry that others will judge you if you make a mistake. Often these rules and assumptions come up when we are working towards achieving a goal and they make us feel uncomfortable. In order to make the feeling go away we may do something that distracts us from the feeling and sometimes this involves procrastination. Check out this link if you want to learn more about how to manage your procrastination.

If we want to maintain motivation instead of engaging in procrastination it can be helpful to know what are rules and assumptions are about a task and this is why understanding our motivation is important.

If you have identified an unhelpful rule or assumption then it can be helpful to work on challenging these and developing alternative ways of thinking and learning how to tolerate any discomfort that comes up.

While understanding what motivates you can be really helpful in maintaining your motivation, there are also some things that you can do to help you stay motivated for longer.

Organise your study space

If possible, it is great to have a specific area dedicated to study. Tidying your study area, as well as getting some new stationary and supplies, is a great way to ease yourself back into study mode and motivate yourself to study. When using your study space, make sure that distractions are removed or limited. Phones, media and emails are designed to grab and keep out attention. Take control of your devices so that you manage them, rather than have your devices control you.

• Use blocking apps such as Offtime (free for Andriod), Flipd (iOS and Android), or Self Control (Mac), to set time periods where you cannot access specific apps or websites on your phone or computer
• Utilise “do not disturb” mode on emails and/or calls
• Turn off notifications
• Disconnect from internet if not needed (e.g., when writing), or use an app such as FocusWriter or Manuskript to create a full screen environment which blocks out distractions
• Put your phone in another room

Know your best time

There is no “best” time of day to study. We each have our own most preferred time to study. Some people find that they are most productive of a morning, while others find they get more work done in the afternoon or evening. It is important take note of when you find yourself being most productive and then use to stay motivated.

Look after yourself

Getting enough sleep and engaging in physical activity is crucial to motivation. It keeps our energy levels up and our ability to cope improves. Sometimes when we have a lot on our plate it can be harder to get to sleep and these tips may help. Another thing to keep in mind is that even though as a student it can seem expensive to eat well, the University offers support to keep you motivated to look after your nutrition with Free Food Friday and even a sustainable student cookbook.

Video: Staying Motivated (3 minutes)

While looking after yourself involves meeting our basic needs, such as getting enough sleep, engaging in physical activity and eating a balanced diet, self-care encompasses any activity to nourish our mental, emotional and physical health. Check out this link to find out more about self-care.

Webinars and courses:

The University of Newcastle's Counselling and Psychological Services offers webinars on 'Breaking Free from Procrastination'. Find out more on the website.

Mindfulness for Wellbeing and Peak Performance – This is 4-week program designed to learn mindfulness techniques to reduce stress and improve work or study performance.

Coping with Stress – This free 4-lesson course is based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy techniques that are clinically proven to reduce anxiety.

More Videos

Video: The Power of Motivation (12 minutes)

Video: Keep Going (2 minutes)

Online Resources:

• The University of Newcastle Counselling tipsheet on Memory and Study Tips provides information about improving your functioning to get great results.
• ReachOut has some great tips on getting and staying motivated.

Apps:

• Be Focused helps you to get things done by breaking down tasks into separate intervals with short breaks. It’s an effective way to retain focus and motivation.
• Done: A Simple Habit Tracker helps you keep track of and achieve your goals by tracking progress and motivating you with winning streaks!
• Recharge provides assistance with developing a routine to optimise your functioning.
• Habit-Bull: Daily Goal Tracker helps you compartmentalise your goals to focus on success.

• University of Newcastle After-hours support line – talk to a counsellor outside of office hours (5pm-9am Mon-Fri and 24hrs weekends and public holidays. Ph: 1300 653 007 or SMS: 0488 884 165
• See a Counsellor or Wellbeing Advisor – online counselling or face to face counselling available

UPDATED MARCH 2022

Contact: onlinecounselling@newcastle.edu.au