How to Stop Being Lazy and Get Motivated

Sometimes it feels downright impossible to get up and do what you’re “supposed to do” if nothing and no one is forcing you to do it. Whether it’s waking up earlier, going to the gym, learning a new language…It can be tough to stop being lazy and start being productive.

The problem is that you have dreams and goals and things you want to accomplish in your life! And you know none of that is going to happen if you can’t learn how to stop being lazy and procrastinating. The first step toward overcoming your feelings of laziness is to discover why it’s been so hard up til now.

This article will dive into why it’s so hard to get motivated, why we procrastinate, and how we can raise our energy levels to start knocking out important tasks.

Jump To:

• Why is it so hard to stop being lazy?
• What causes a lack of motivation?
• Why do we procrastinate?
• How to stop being lazy
• Final thoughts

Why is it so hard to stop being lazy?

If you feel lazy, the reality is that you’re probably burnt out, unmotivated, or stuck in a rut of bad habits.

Although social media wants us to believe it’s easy, most people go their whole lives without learning how to stop being lazy—or at least what our society calls “lazy.”  

Humans are evolutionarily designed to conserve energy and use the least amount of brain power possible in deciding how to spend our time. Thinking, reasoning, and weighing options are huge calorie-burners for our brains.

“Autopilot” is actually a very clever evolutionary tool that we developed just to conserve brain power when conducting our daily habits like what to eat, when to sleep etc. Burnout is a very real thing. Despite the myth that being unproductive is a sign of laziness, the reality is that most people are trying to knock out there to-do list with no gas in the tank. You can’t pour from an empty cup – you need energy to get started and motivation to keep going. 

What causes a lack of motivation?

There can be many causes of laziness and lack of motivation, from environmental factors and personality traits to health problems and mental fatigue.

Often, laziness stems from negative emotions like low self-esteem or a fear of failure. Lazy people may struggle with negative self-talk that reinforces feelings that they can’t accomplish important tasks. A lack of motivation may also be a symptom of not understanding your “why” for completing a task. We need a huge amount of intrinsic drive to complete lengthy projects and this commitment comes from knowing why the project is important to you in the first place. Lack of sleep can also play a crucial role in sapping your motivation and energy levels. When you don’t get enough sleep, it can feel like moving mountains just to get through the day. 

Since there are so many factors involved in cultivating motivation to get things done, it’s important to be patient with yourself as you make tweaks in your routine to see what has a significant impact. Try not to let the process of discovering how to boost your motivation compound your negative feelings about being productive.

Why do we procrastinate?

Procrastination can be a symptom of the fear of failure, fear of success, perfectionism, or lack of motivation.

It may also be the mind trying to avoid hard work or negative emotions associated with a big project or single task. We rationalize putting it off until the last minute as a way to avoid the fear of failure. As Sir Fowell Buxton, the British politician, once said “The greatest thing to be accomplished is…to conquer yourself.”

When we procrastinate a task and end up completing it at the last second or not at all, it’s easier to rationalize why it didn’t go perfectly. When we don’t procrastinate and we don’t have the excuse of running out of time, we have to admit that we gave it our best shot and, perhaps, our best wasn’t as good as we’d hoped. No matter the root cause of procrastination, it’s often a symptom of fear. 

How to stop being lazy

If we can increase our motivation by raising our energy levels and determining our why, and overcome procrastination by facing our fears head-on, there’s a good chance we’ll stop being lazy. The first step to overcoming laziness is recognizing the causes and being willing to make an action plan. Here are some effective strategies to overcome bouts of laziness.

Set attainable goals

The easiest way to get started on a big project is to break it down into smaller, achievable goals that move you toward the bigger picture. Use the SMART goals framework to make sure you’re setting reasonable goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound). 

(Related: How To Set And Accomplish Big, Powerful Goals)

Let go of perfectionism

Perfectionism can be a crippling drive to move through life without making any mistakes. This fear of doing anything less than perfectly can lead to stagnancy which can look a lot like laziness. Aim for “good enough” on first drafts and focus on iterative improvement from there. This is a great way to relieve some of the pressure of doing things perfectly or not at all and can help you push through the mental block of getting started. 

Figure out your “why”

Dig deep to uncover your core motivations for taking on projects or doing hard things. How will completing the task change your life? How will accomplishing this thing improve your well-being? A strong personal “why” will help you get through even your lowest motivation days. 

(Related: What’s Your “Why”? How to Craft a Strong Personal Why Statement (with examples))

Tune out others’ criticism

Harsh criticism, especially from family members and close friends, can plant seeds of self-doubt. Try to tune out negative voices and turn inward for your motivation. Once you’ve discovered your personal “why”, discussed above, you will have an infinite pool of intrinsic motivation to draw from.

Make better nutritional choices

Fast food fills you with empty calories that drain energy. Try to prioritize nutrient-rich foods to fuel your body and mind optimally. We underestimate how much our diet can affect our energy levels, mood, and brain function, but what we put into our bodies plays a huge role in every other aspect of life. It’s also important to drink enough water and avoid over-doing caffeine and sugar!

Don’t drink too much alcohol

While a drink may temporarily relieve stress, too much alcohol disrupts sleep patterns and can lead to fatigue and anxiety the following day. When you don’t feel like yourself and your fears are compounded by “hangxiety,” it becomes much harder to stop being lazy.

(Related: 10 Unexpected Benefits of Cutting Out Alcohol That Surprised Me)

Change your negative self-talk

Negative self-talk can be a huge barrier to doing hard things. The worst thing you can do to your motivation is allow the voice in your head to talk smack to you all day long. Try to notice your self-talk and reframe your inner criticisms to be more productive. For example,  “I’m too lazy” becomes “I’m working on building better habits.”

(Related: Rewire Your Brain and Change Your Negative Self-Talk (4 Simple Steps))

Practice the 5-second rule

When you feel lazy about doing an important task, try counting backwards from 5 before taking the next action step. Count 5-4-3-2-1 and then physically move before your brain’s prefrontal cortex can consider another option. This simple technique was developed by Mel Robbins to overcome her own laziness and has helped millions of people to become more productive. It’s simple, but it works!

Prioritize sleep

In his book Deep Work, Cal Newport calls sleep the “foundation” to deep work, or the ability to single-mindedly focus on one task for an extended time. Prioritize sleep by setting up a bedtime and morning routine, going to sleep and waking up around the same time every day, and doing your best to get 7-9 hours of sleep every night. 

Prioritize exercise

Even a short walk can help re-energize you. If you can take a short break every day to get regular exercise, you’ll be amazed how much it improves your mood and increases your energy levels. If you have a hard time getting out the door to exercise, consider enlisting an accountability partner! A daily workout routine can help maximize energy levels, mental health & productivity.

Build cues into your routine to switch gears

This tip comes from James Clear in his book Atomic Habits. The idea is to stack good habits over time and use your natural transition points as a cue that it’s time to start a certain habit. For example, every time you finish brushing your teeth in the morning, it can become a cue that it’s time to put on your workout clothes to go for a run. Over time, you can stack cues and new habits to create a more productive daily routine.

Final Thoughts

The best thing you can do to overcome laziness is to start small, but start today. Beating laziness takes commitment, but yields big rewards for your health, happiness, and success. Learning how to become less lazy and more productive is just the result of cultivating more energy and building up habits over time.  Try to view lazy periods as a call to action to re-examine your long-term goals and re-commit to smart habits. Don’t make things harder on yourself than they need to be! Do things you enjoy to stoke your energy, figure out your “why’s,” and stack your habits over time. Procrastination will become a thing of the past and nothing will be able to stop you from reaching your goals!

(Check out this article for more tips on Self-Discipline)

Back to Top