It doesn’t matter if you’re throwing yourself into a new career path, hobby, or lifestyle change; it’s easy to be passionate when you’re first getting started. The true test will be staying motivated after a period of time has passed and you’ve started to encounter obstacles.

Fan Your Passions

Staying motivated will always be easier if you’re doing something you’re truly passionate about. While you passion won’t prevent you from encountering stumbling blocks, or even mean you’ll never hit a point where you want to quit and do something completely different, you passion will help you overlook the challenges and keep pushing on until things get easier again.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

Find Others Who Share Your Passion

Never, ever underestimate the ability of other people to keep your interest alive. Talking to people who love the same things you do will help you fan your own passion when you get discouraged, which will help you find the motivation needed to keep going when you want to quit. Since you all share a common interest, they will be able to tell you how they dealt with their own motivational issues.  Knowing others have gone through and survived the same issues you’re currently dealing with can make a huge difference in your outlook.

Learn to Take Breaks

You don’t want to walk away from a project and never return, but you also don’t want to force yourself to deal with the same situation for hours on end. When you feel you can’t take any more frustration and that you’re at your wits end, the best thing you can do is take a break.  Some people find that walking away for just five minutes allows them to changer their attitude. Others find a longer break, and sometimes even starting a new project, is the best solution. Learn what works best for you.

Some people find that creating a schedule also helps them stay motivated.

Set Benchmarks

As a society, we’re trained to focus on the long-term goal, the final accomplishment. This can be very detrimental to the motivational process.  No matter where you are in a project, you need to break it into little, manageable steps. By doing this you decrease the chances of getting discouraged at the onset of the project. Each time you meet one of your little goals, you’re going to enjoy a fresh surge of motivation.

Reward Yourself

When you reach one of your goals, no matter how small it might seem, you need to reward your efforts. It’s amazing how motivating a half hour of television, a chapter of a good book, or even a single piece of chocolate can be when you’re struggling to keep yourself motivated.