Motivation

I'm easily demotivated. In fact, I'm surprised I haven't yet given up on the idea of becoming a published writer. Writing is a horribly difficult profession, and from what I'm told it doesn't get any easier. The thing that keeps me going is that, despite the hyperactive imagination I'm somewhat notirious for, the one thing I can't imagine is not writing. I've never given up writing, and I can't imagine doing so completely. Even when I was depressed and had lost all sense of creativity, I kept a diary. Writing is my life, I can't not do it.

It's not going to pay the bills though, not yet anyway, and now Nans has a job I somehow feel even more under pressure to get one myself. And I can so imagine not going out to work at a till all day for the rest of my life. Easy. I can even imagine never doing it at all. A nice, cosy vision, with me sitting at my desk, happily typing away at yet another story.

I can also imagine sending off CV after CV and recieving more and more rejection letters, seeing them pile up, and my unemployment stretching out from months to years, and me getting more and more depressed and hopeless that I'll ever be able to get a day job, anywhere. I imagine this quite a lot, involuntarily of course, and it's enough for me to give up even writing the letters, never mind printing them off and sending them out.

I'm not the only one experiencing the vicious circle of demotivation right now. The trick is to find ways to motivate yourself, and there are plenty of those on our dear interwebs. I highly recommend this list of motivational songs to get you going. If that doesn't work (or if you only like metal) try reading a few motivational quotes. It's important also to follow a few ground rules:

- Send at least one job application a day. That way you keep the pace down without giving up.
- If you have some dream job you can't do straight away, such as writing, practise that in the morning, and job-hunt in the afternoon. It's near-impossible to be creative after a day of rejection. This way you'll have done at least something productive before lunchtime.
- Take good care of yourself. Go to bed early and get enough sleep. If money's tight and fruit 'n' veg are too expensive, replace them with daily multivit tabs. Go veggie for a while if you can't afford meat - eggs, cheese and soya products are often cheaper (esp. bean curd bought in Asian shops). Vitamine deficiencies will tire you out, which won't help you look for a job.
- Go out every day, even if it's freezing. Getting out of the house and stretching your legs is important for your mental as well as physical well-being. I'm off to do the shopping once I've finished this.
- Don't let yourself fall into the "I'm useless" mode of thinking. We've all been there before, and most of us manage to pull ourselves out - there's no reason you shouldn't be able to do the same.
- Cultivate your sense of humour. If you find yourself getting depressed, look for something funny on the net. Demotivational posters are an excellent source of mirth.

They say the economic crisis will last until the end of 2010. I'm not going to get my librarian job this year or next. But you can't stay in the house moping all that time, and neither can I, so we may as well make the best of it. I wish you the best of luck.

TO THE JOBMOBILE!!!