“What you resist, persists” – Carl G. Jung
Mid-year is the time of the year I find myself needing a boost. In the beginning of the year, we’re still buzzing with energy from our holidays and ready to get to conquering the year. Towards the end of the year, you realize you only have so much time left to get yourself into gear before the holidays roll around again and we start fresh with a new year. That leaves us with mid-year equidistant from both the January-New-Year motivation and the OMG-it’s-almost-December shock.
The mid-year slump hits me hard creatively. I set out at the beginning of the year with big plans for my blog and a full editorial calendar. My ideas flow easily and the motivation to get to work is there. But as the month’s pass, I slide down into a rut. The ideas dry up a bit and my drive slows to snails’ pace. I’m no longer so sure about all the things I had planned and believed in. Self-doubt sets in.
It’s not the best of feelings. But in my experience, it’s best to go with it and honor these low energy times. Embrace your ups and downs and make the most of both.
You might find this is the perfect time for you to re-evaluate all that you’ve been working on since January. Revisit the goals you set at the beginning of the year and decide if the strategy you set out to achieve those goals is really working for you. It could also be time to take a small break from what you’ve been up to and try some new stuff. That can be very invigorating and will definitely help you get your groove back. Take your low energy stints as a time for you to relax and recoup, to gather your thoughts, and to get back on track or set forth in a new direction.
If like me, you need a bit of a boost mid-year there are a couple of ways you can make the most of this time without fighting it.
Shake Up Your Routine
If you always drink coffee in the morning with a slice of toast and walk to work the same route, bust out of that routine and try something new. Drink tea and have some fruit for breakfast. Eat at different places, cook new recipes, try new ingredients. Walk to work on a different route or ride a bike instead. Whatever comfortable habits you’ve created all year long shake them up with alternatives. You don’t have to give anything up permanently just try out a new daily routine.
Try A Different Exercise Regimen
Whatever your current exercise regimen is try something different. If you’ve been doing hardcore cross-fit try something lighter like yoga or walking. And vice versa, if you’ve been doing a lighter exercise like yoga, try a box fit class or karate. As I said before, you’re not looking to make permanent changes here. You can go back to or keep doing whatever you’ve been doing to date just throw in something completely different to juxtapose your normal exercise regimen.
Change Up Your Reading
If you’ve been reading mostly from a certain genre, topic or viewpoint try something totally different for a while. This is a great way to get the juices flowing and find some new inspiration. Read what you wouldn’t normally read, bring out those long and/or difficult reads you’ve put off for so long. Read the opposite viewpoint of what you would normally read. Challenge yourself to new reading through different topics and authors.
Go Somewhere New
Pack a weekend bag and hit the road to spend some time somewhere local you’ve not been before. If you have the means and the time, travel somewhere more distant you’ve always wanted to go. Keeping it local has its advantages, though. You’ll get to experience something new close to home and connect with new people who are in your community or geographic vicinity. Get a refreshed perception of what’s around you and those living there. You may find renewed inspiration and joy for where you are.
Get Creative
If you have a creative hobby like photography or painting, go out and do more of that. Also, try new creative hobbies. If you don’t have one, now is the time to find one. Creative hobbies are important breaks from your normal grind and give you the freedom to think and express yourself in different ways. It can be as simple as drawing instead of writing. The important thing here is that you do something creative, you don’t have to be good at it.
Do Nothing
Yip, do nothing. Sometimes that’s just what you need. Don’t feel guilty for spending a bit of time doing nothing. Go into the garden and just sit. Go where you feel comfortable and just be. I’m not suggesting you use the time to allow your mind to run amuck working you up into an anxious mess – none of that. Just be, don’t think about the past or the future. Just enjoy this moment of peace doing nothing.
Try one or all of these. It’s completely up to you. Whatever you do, though, don’t be disheartened by times of low energy. Be gentle with yourself and don’t feel bad for taking the time you need to get back some of that joie de vivre. Life is cyclical – there are ups and downs. It’s what you do with those times that makes all the difference.
How do you give yourself a boost when you feel less motivated?
Verity, I love you article! I can relate, seems like I’ve stumbled upon this roadblock right now. I was working quite hard during the first half of the year, and now I feel a bit exhausted and uncertain how much strength is left in me, and what I should focus on for the 2nd half of this year.
I think you may get a boost by meeting your good old friends you haven’t seen for a while. It may be really refreshing.
Thank you, Alex! Yes, I completely agree with you! Seeing old friends will definitely be refreshing and there’s the added bonus of them having known you for so long that they can remind you of your bigger picture which might help with making decisions for the second half of the year. Best of luck for the rest of the year, Alex.
Great tips! I like to sit outside and just observe the natural rhythms around me. I also like to practice gratitude. Stop worrying so much about what isn’t there and just sit for a while with what I do have.
Thanks Abby, I also find nature is the best place for me to recoup. I have been a bit of a worrier in my life but after reading The Power of Now I realised how much I was affecting my life for the worse by worrying about what isn’t there so this is a big one for me which, again, nature helps with. Thanks for reading!
Awesome list, I especially agree with “Go Somewhere New” because I personally love spontaneous adventures and can vouch for how renewing they can be.
On top of that, finding daily motivators and surrounding yourself by them is a great way to stay on track throughout the months. Imagine everyday being like a new years resolution day? That’s what I strive for, and I suggest many should to! (Including you Verity) :)
Thanks Dustyn, that’s a great idea! I will definitely give that a go. I especially like that it could be a creative endeavour also! :D
Hi Verity, I’m the opposite to you.
Usually, my slow time was in early of the year and right now I’m feeling so motivated and driven to do things. :)
And I love your tips here. Sometimes when I feel down or no motivation to work, I will just do nothing and relax. And after that, I will feel better and able to focus on the work again. Cheers.
Hi Shawn, I’m glad you’re on your up cycle right now. I guess it would be a bit of a low energy world if everybody needed their boost mid-year :D I completely agree with you about doing nothing to get motivated…sometimes you’ve just got to do nothing to make room for that something. Thanks for reading!
It is really hard to push your goals toward the end of the year. Thank you for this helpful tips to help keep the momentum going towards our end result.
You’re welcome, Sophia. Thanks for reading and I hope it helps!
Hi Verity, thanks for basically writing a blog on what I was thinking! Mid-year is tough for me too, because it’s about when I start realizing that I might need to readjust some of my goals and really start in on some projects if I want to finish them on schedule (or, near schedule!). Thanks for the tips on how to do so!
My pleasure, Eddie. Thanks for reading and best of luck with your goals and projects for the rest of the year!