How to achieve your goals: 13 tips for self-motivation
Scientific support: Prof. Dr. Christine Joisten
Eating more healthily, exercising more, losing weight, improving certain blood values or quitting smoking are all worthwhile goals, but are often easier said than done.
How can you not only set yourself a realistic goal, but actually achieve it? How do you deal with setbacks and manage to keep going?
No matter what you are setting out to do, the 13 tips below will to help you stay on the ball and bring you closer to your goal step by step.
Contents
- Set yourself a realistic goal
- Reach the main goal via small interim goals
- Celebrate your successes
- Challenge yourself, but don’t get discouraged
- Plan your activities
- Don’t let setbacks get you down
- Learn to say no
- Don’t be discouraged if you don’t reach your goal as quickly as you had hoped
- Have fun with it
- Everything is easier together
- Sometimes less is more
- How to overcome your inner couch potato again and again
- Ask for help
Tip 1: Set yourself a realistic goal
- Consider what goal you want to achieve. Would you like to lose weight, live more healthily or improve certain blood values?
- Set yourself a realistic goal that you believe you can achieve.
- Make a firm plan as to how you intend to achieve this goal.
- Think about what hurdles you are likely to face – and how you can overcome them.
- Think about who or what could support you, such as friends or a fitness tracker, etc.
Tip 2: Reach the main goal via small interim goals
- Keep your main goal in mind and set yourself additional achievable interim goals.
- A “healthier diet” or “doing more sport” does not happen overnight. However, “one more portion of vegetables a day,” “5 to 10 minutes of walking a day” or “500 to 1,000 steps a day” can be an effective intermediate step towards achieving the larger goal.
Tip 3: Celebrate your successes
- Reward yourself for what you have achieved.
- Whether a big or small success, treat yourself to something like a warm bath after an exercise session, a massage, a trip or anything else that look forward to.
Tip 4: Challenge yourself, but don’t get discouraged
- If sore muscles are demotivating you, then avoid overexerting yourself at the beginning. It is better to increase your training little by little.
- The same applies to giving up or changing habits – it is not always advisable to go from 100 to zero or from zero to 100. Build up slowly.
- Hurdles that are too low can also demotivate us. Create challenges that you want to overcome, but do not completely overwhelm you.
Good to know:
For some people, however, higher intensity training is particularly motivating. Tip: It usually takes about 10 minutes to walk 1,000 steps in everyday life. Take it up a gear and walk 1,000 steps in 6 minutes, which is already equivalent to moderate training.
Tip 5: Plan your activities
- Fix your schedule, for instance “Running on Monday evenings”, and make a note of it on your calendar.
- Do you want to lose weight while focusing on a balanced diet? Plan your meals in advance and go shopping for the whole week, for example.
- If you like to exercise with another person, make plans with a friend or colleague – then you have to stick to it and can’t easily reschedule. You can also look for a sports group.
- Are you practicing restraint? Imagine situations in which you are offered things that you want to give up, such as that second piece of cake at a family celebration, a beer at the regulars’ table or a cigarette during a work break. Think in advance about how you will decline it.
Tip 6: Don’t let setbacks get you down
- You couldn’t resist the potato chips in front of the TV in the evening? You didn’t make it to training because of all the work and to-dos? It happens and an occasional exception to your resolutions is fine. Don’t let setbacks get you off track.
- It only matters that you stick to your big plan and goal.
Tip 7: Learn to say no
- If you repeatedly find yourself in situations where you go overboard, look for the reasons why.
- Think about possible solutions for such situations. Before these situations, make a firm plan of how much you want to eat or how you will politely say “no thank you”, for example. Imagine the situation in detail.
- If you especially eat unhealthy food when you are stressed, prepare healthy snacks and/or try to reduce your stress levels.
Tip 8: Don’t be discouraged if you don’t reach your goal as quickly as you had hoped
- Not losing weight as quickly as you had hoped? You no longer drink alcohol during the week, but still can’t quite manage to say no at the weekend in company? Don’t be discouraged – even small steps in the right direction are a success.
- Be patient with yourself.
- Avoid fixating on rigid numbers: You might see more improvement in your waistline than on the scales. Or you may feel fitter in the morning during the week if you haven’t drunk any alcohol. Changes can manifest themselves in different ways.
Tip 9: Have fun with it
- Seek out activities and measures that you enjoy. There are various ways to reach your goal.
- Not a fan of jogging? Go dancing! You don’t want to be the only one not drinking alcohol during an evening at the bar? Suggest alternative activities.
- Look for recipes, spices and ingredients that are healthy and that you enjoy. Make sure your food looks good too.
Tip 10: Everything is easier together
- Seek out allies: Cook healthier meals together with your partner, friends or family.
- Find like-minded people in online communities and exchange experiences, tips and tricks there.
- Look for a sports club or sports group and exercise together.
Tip 11: Sometimes less is more
- Do you want to exercise more, eat more healthily, relax better and quit smoking all at the same time? Do you feel rushed and overwhelmed? Take a step back and think about which step is the most important in your life right now.
- Ask yourself: Which change best fits into your daily routine at the moment?
- Focus on a single thing that you want to change and put other resolutions on the back burner.
- Once you have established your first change, you can start with another one.
- On average, it takes about 8 weeks to develop a new habit. Allow yourself this time!
Tip 12: How to overcome your inner couch potato again and again
- Were you motivated in the beginning, but lately you just can’t bring yourself to exercise anymore? Find an activity that you really enjoy. Variety can also spark new motivation.
- Listen to music or audio books if you get bored of exercising or cooking alone.
- Outsmart your inner couch potato by taking your sports bag to work and not even coming home before your exercise session.
- Arrange to cook together or go for a walk with friends.
- Prepare several dishes for the next few days at the weekend and freeze them. This saves you time during the week and you don’t have to worry about what you might eat each day.
- Also incorporate exercise into your daily routine by going shopping on foot or cycling to work.
Tip 13: Ask for help
- Do you feel like you are not getting any closer to your goal on your own? Then seek help.
- Talk to your doctor, visit a nutritionist or sports coach or ask your health insurance provider about health courses or online training—to help you quit smoking, for example.
Good resolutions: How to reach your goal
No matter what your personal goal is, with a few tricks and enough planning, you can get closer to it step by step. Avoid taking on too much at once, set yourself a realistic overall goal and define achievable but challenging interim goals.
Plan your activities to approach your goal as well as how you will say no in situations where you are in danger of falling back into old patterns.
Don’t let minor setbacks get you down – the important thing is to not lose sight of the big goal. Whether you’re establishing new habits – such as a balanced diet or more exercise – or giving something up, fun should not be neglected. That way it’s easier to stick with it.
If you don’t see any progress on your own, seek out like-minded people or professional help. Your general practitioner is always a good first port of call to help you.
Sources:
Marquardt, M. et al.: Mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII) improves physical activity and weight loss among stroke survivors over one year. In: Rehabil Psychol, 2017, 62: 580-590
Phillips, L. A. et al.: Intrinsic Rewards Predict Exercise via Behavioral Intentions for Initiators but via Habit Strength for Maintainers. In: Sport Exerc Perform Psychol, 2016, 5: 352-364
Stadler, G. et al.: Intervention effects of information and self-regulation on eating fruits and vegetables over two years. In: Health Psychol, 2010, 29: 274-283
Wansink, B. et al.: When do gain-framed health messages work better than fear appeals? In: Nutr Rev, 2015, 73: 4-11
As of: 07.05.2024
