Managing motivation

My problem is that I am too motivated and have to keep telling myself to rest to make sure that I don't do too much as I can end up feeling really unwell, have a migraine the next day and also be too unwell to do much of anything for days.

Thank you all for your tips/advice and just general insight i will be sure to to try some of them..its nice to know im not alone on this front!

I've got fybromyalgia as well as autism, I seem to get walloped by one or the other, but I did manage a good walk today, now I'm going to make dinner, a Thai red curry and watch Strictly.

I sometimes wonder if all this lack of energy is karma for having been one of those irritating people with to much energy, who could work all day, go out and play until the small hours and then go to my allotment and dig 70ft of potato trenches and come back and cook sunday dinner for all my hungover friends who were still laying about moaning?

TheCatWoman said:

I often have little energy left,

I find this a massive problem. I didn't get up today as I had aches in my shoulders. Ir was after planting lots of bulbs. 

There is a saying that “if you need something done, ask a busy person”. It sounds like a contradiction but can be true.

I have found it easier to maintain long established daily/weekly routines/tasks. If I neglect something it is more difficult to get back in the habit.

By the time I've done all the things I have to do, I often have little energy left, but I always go for a walk, unless the weather's so bad Fearn won't go out. Make sure I've done any laundry, do any shopping that needs doing, cook whatever food needs cooking and sort the chickens out. I pretty much do all that on auto-pilot, it's a rare day when I don't have a load of stuff that needs doing.

I’m another one who likes making lists as it helps keep my attention on what I had needed to do at the point of making the list. When other things that need doing pop into my head, I try to put them out of mind or I put them on a separate list, so I can focus on my main list. I break long tasks down into manageable stages so that something is achievable even if motivation is low. Often starting a task is enough to keep me going, especially if listening to a podcast.

With things I hate doing such as cleaning and general house work, I tell myself I’m going to clean for just 10 minutes. Usually, once I’ve started the task, I end up continuing for an hour or more.

I focus on the basics first: making sure my needs are met (healthy food and sleep). Once those are covered, I use strategies like the ones Lotus shared to tackle high-priority tasks. A big part of self-acceptance for me was realizing that some tasks are just harder for me than for others. Because of that, I always make sure to have relatively easy, quick-to-make foods available so I don't get stuck.

I am a big fan of the 'to do' tick-list - making sure I don't put too many items on on per day. If I have an appointment or visitor, I use that as a motivator - i.e. 'I'll do x before I go to the appointment/see the visitor'. If it's a chore like cleaning the oven, I sit in front of it afterwards with a glass of something or cup of tea and 'admire' what I've done. At the end of the day I praise myself for what I've achieved. If you write tasks down you have a solid record for those times you think, ' oh, I've done nothing' when you've actually achieved a lot. 

I remember one tip someone told me, he said: "imagine how you'd feel after you've done X task".

Another one is motivational music, say this for example (just random from youtube, but "interstellar" tracks are quite motivational for me at least.) or maybe Einaudi-Zimmer directly.

I believe these can sometimes work, for a specific time and task; if one has general lack of motivation I would say this could be a topic to discuss with a psychologist more generally.

I'm in a fortunate situation where I don't need to do anything much I don't want anymore and that means there is a motivation gap for chores and smaller tasks (minor repairs around the house, replacing a broken food processor etc) that I will tend to procrastinate on.

To get around this I make lists as Lotus  recommends so I can keep all my to-do tasks in an easy place. I then prioritise these and once finished just get up and start them. No considering them, no scheduling them and no giving myself excuses to put them off.

If there are dependencies then I'll start on these (eg I need to buy ingredients before baking a birthday cake for someone), if there is a time window for another task (eg the birthday party) then I get all the pre-requisites done in advance by having them at the top of the list and have a reminder (or several) in my diary to keep it in mind.

I find by taking away the chance to procrastinate this way it stops it from happening and makes me feel quite productive. In reality I guess it is just bullying yourself and taking away the choice of procrastinating, but that works for me.

For routine tasks like brushing teeth I just make sure I do this after every meal and coffee - a bit more than most Brits do but oral hygiene is a big thing where I live. When it becomes a routine then it is harder to avoid.

Likewise showers - currently one when I get up, one after the gym and one before bed. All these are part of the routine of the events so it gets way easier.

No motivation required - it is a procedure that it always associated with an event so  becomes automatic (we are creatures of habit after all).

That's what I do anyway.

Getting motivated for something i have an emotional attachment for is a lot easier than for something I don't care about.

This makes a lot of the day to day tasks a bit of a chore.

If possible I listen to an interesting podcast whilst doing things that don't demand my full attention all the time - this helps me at times.

Best wishes

If I haven't decided on something the day before I likely won't do it.

Try not to do too many things in one go, but spread them out.

Lists can help as they show progress, but only if they don't add pressure. Long lists can look too big, so break into smaller ones.

Try to mix good things and bad things so you have rewards and something to look forward to.

Hi and welcome to the community.

I find lists helpful - the process of first thinking about what needs doing and how best to schedule that into the week is useful, then writing it down helps to give motivation. You can use a paper notebook, electronic notebook, spreadsheet, wall planner, whatever works for you.

There is an article about organising and prioritising in the advice and guidance section of this website, which may be helpful:

https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/behaviour/organising-and-prioritising/all-audiences