How to Stay Motivated this Holiday Season

It’s not easy to stay motivated no matter what time of the year it is, but something about wintertime and the holiday season REALLY funk up my groove.

It could be the shorter, colder days, the stress of finals, all the traveling, or something else entirely. 

Either way, I think we could all use that extra little push to get us through this season.

let’s clear the air…

I think people often confuse motivation for discipline, so I was to make one thing clear: motivation is not something you should rely on when trying to reach your goals.  It’s not a light switch you can easily flip on and off.

Motivation comes and goes in waves, so it’s important to make sure that you are capable of pushing yourself to do things that you might not feel motivated to do all the time in order to reach your goals.  It’s all about finding the balance between discipline and motivation!

While motivation isn’t something we should be completely reliant on when striving toward our goals, it sure is nice to have.  Being able to continue that motivation momentum and self-motivate is a great skill to have, so that’s what I’m here to help you with!  

Who’s ready to learn how to stay motivated this holiday season?!

how to stay motivated this holiday season

write down your goals

The simple act of writing your goals down – and sticking them someplace you will see them often – is so powerful!  Reminding yourself of what you’re working toward everyday can be super motivational.  It’s even more motivational if you have a “why” behind your goals, whether that’s to be healthier, smarter, happier, to help others, or to set a great example for others.

If you’re struggling to set goals that work for you, check on my post all about goal setting!

use motivational quotes

I know, I know… it sounds cheesy.  And maybe it is.  But guess what?  If it works, it works.

I’ve loved motivational quotes since before I can remember, and it’s because they can truly be powerful tools for your mind.

Find some of your favorites and print them out, or write them on sticky notes and hang them around your house, apartment, or dorm.  You can even stick them in your planner, on the back of your phone, your laptop, notebooks… or set your favorite quote as a screensaver or a widget on your phone!  The possibilities with motivational quotes are truly endless.

find an accountability partner

For some people (like myself), I prefer to do things on my own because I feel more motivated if I am motivating myself as opposed to having someone else motivate me.  But for others, it can really help to have an accountability partner!

Ask around and see if anyone you already know has similar goals as you and if they would want to work on those with you.

If you can’t find someone you already know, you could use social media to look around and ask others if that’s something they’d be interested in!  Or maybe there’s an online group you could join (Facebook is a great place to look for those).

surround yourself with optimism

This is an extremely simple but not always easy tip on how to stay motivated this holiday season… but it’s CRUCIAL.

If the people you surround yourself with are optimistic and motivated as well, it’s likely to rub off on you!  

Look for the people that you “vibe” with, the people that make you feel so so good, and stick with them. (:

consume motivational content

There are TONS of high-quality motivational books, podcasts, YouTube videos, and more out there!  Check out a few and see which ones you like the most.

Personally, I love reading motivational books, so here are some of my recommendations:

• You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero
• 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do by Amy Morin
• Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis
• Girl, Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis
• Atomic Habits by James Clear

find a playlist that pumps you up

This might be the most fun tip that I give you about how to stay motivated this holiday season…

I don’t know about you, but if I’m not feeling motivated, sometimes just turning on my favorite songs can make a world of difference.  Whether it’s a slow love song, an upbeat hip-hop song, country, or anything else… as long as it gets you fired up, BLAST IT.

Here are my favorite playlists to do just that!

learn to love the discomfort

Your comfort zone is so easy to stay in.  It’s familiar, it’s comfy, it’s everything you need.  But everything you want?  That’s outside of that comfort zone.

All those intimidating goals, all that gutsy work… that’s all going to happen outside the confines of your comfy zone.  It can be scary, and it can be overwhelming at times, but it will be so so worth it.  

So get used to being uncomfortable, learn to love the unknown, because it is only going to make you a better, stronger person.  

don’t overthink it

It can be easy to write down all your goals and set up an extremely detailed plan of how you’re going to get there, but the truth is, your imagined timeline probably isn’t entirely truthful and accurate.

Goals take a lot of commitment, effort, and time to reach.  They’re not something that you can just snap your fingers and there you have it.  

So take it day by day, and don’t try to rush your timeline.  Don’t get so caught up in the how that you forget about the why.

nourish yourself

You can’t reach your goals if you’re not pouring into yourself!

Feed your body, drink that water, journal your brain out, take breaks when needed, create a positive atmosphere for yourself… whatever works for you. 

Finding that balance of nourishing yourself so you can reach your goals can help prevent burn-out, and it just makes you feel better all-around, which is likely to help you stay even more motivated!

I hope these tips for how to stay motivated this holiday season are helpful, and don’t forget you can use these tips ANY time of the year!  I’m cheering you on from behind my computer screen, and I can’t wait to see you reach those goals! (:

If you enjoyed this post, I’d love for you to share it with others so we can all stay motivated!