Panache

You have been feeling lazy lately. All the motivation that you thought you had about a certain project has vanished over time and you don’t know what to do anymore.

First, validate your feelings. It is okay to feel lazy at times. And take a break if you need to. But if you have been feeling this for some time now, it is high time to pay attention to it.

Below are some of the reasons why you could be feeling lazy and demotivated.

Dopamine Deficiency.

One of the many reasons for you to feel lazy or demotivated to get up and work is the lack of dopamine in your brain. It is a hormone that gets released in the brain. You need a certain amount of dopamine to do the most basic functions.

However, if you are getting cheap dopamine as in the case of over-consumption of social media, it will give you little comfort. But will not give you enough motivation to get up and work.

Why will your brain push to do hard tasks and get some satisfaction when it’s secreting the required amount of dopamine while you are lying in bed and scrolling through memes on your Instagram account?

That is why it is essential to know which kind of dopamine would you want to rely on. The kind of satisfaction you get after doom scrolling or the kind of satisfaction you get after getting up and making your bed. You also need to think about which one is more sustainable for you.

Also read: Do you feel lazy or demotivated? You can be Dopamine Deficient.

Also read: How to boost dopamine naturally?

Nutritional Deficiency, Bad Diet.

If you are relying too much on sugar and carbs, that could be another reason why you feel so lazy and demotivated all the time. Consuming sugar gives your brain a certain high and thus it does not require you to do anything sustainable to feel productive.

Similarly, nutrition deficiency is another factor why you feel so lazy and do not feel like getting out of bed. Your body needs a sufficient amount of all the nutrition to function effectively.

However, more consumption of sugar and less consumption of other nutrients eventually stops your body from functioning properly. You may feel all right but your body is not ready to function just yet because it does not have the required fuel.

Perfectionism.

You have high expectations of yourself. You are lying on the bed bubbling with ideas only to get up and work on them. You want everything to be perfect and go the way you want. You are highly ambitious but you can’t motivate yourself to start working.

You might fear that it might not go as you want. You start writing your book but leave it in between chapters because it is not coming along the way you thought about it in your head.

These are all signs that you are chasing perfectionism without actually working for it. And that eventually becomes the cause of your laziness and demotivation. You need to change your mindset and know that perfection is an illusion. That is a threshold that you may never achieve.

And even if you want to achieve it you need to start from zero and probably work from there.

Fear of Judgment or Rejection.

What does it matter if they are not going to like my work anyway? What if they don’t like my work at all? They didn’t like the last one, they may not like this time as well. Are these some of the statements that keep on ringing in your brain?

If yes, then these could be the cause why you can’t get and start working and keep procrastinating. Fear of judgment or rejection are some of the subtle signs that keep us away from living our true potential.

As humans, we feel the need to conform ourselves to societal standards. We also want our work and our existence to be constantly validated. But if you are doing something big or are taking the road less taken. You are bound to face some kind of rejection or judgment.

But once you start valuing yourself and your work, you are bound to see things above that and start working without fear. You will realize, it is just holding you back from living your true potential.

Trauma, Negative perception, Low self-esteem, Depression.

Do you know unresolved trauma can also make you lazy and demotivated? You might had a traumatic experience in the past. Since you have gone through that pain, your mind knows that getting out of the current zone can bring more pain to process and thus strategically will keep you there.

It is up to you to resolve that trauma, take that risk, and get out of your comfort zone. The same thing applies to your perception of the world and yourself. Your perception is the lens through which you see the world.

If you have a negative lens towards the world and yourself. It can stop you from going out and severely hinder your potential to fully bloom.

Similarly, if you are clinically depressed, that too can stop you from working. You may feel numb all the time. Initial symptoms of depression are heavily overlooked. But it can result in laziness, numbness, emptiness, anxiousness, and lack of motivation to work.

Also read: How does trauma impact you?

Also read: 10 glaring signs you have intergenerational trauma.

Also read: How to overcome generational trauma?

Burnout and Overwhelm.

All this time we talked about not wanting to work. However, too much work and if you are getting overwhelmed by it can lead to laziness and no motivation.

Burnout is one of the biggest causes of feeling lazy. You need to do something because either it is on your task list or someone asked you to do it. But you don’t feel like doing it because you are overwhelmed by the responsibility of doing it.

Or you are burnt out after doing other tasks don’t have the energy to do anymore. Try to take a break or assess the task at hand before you start doing it. If the task can be broken or delegated, you can do it too.

That will take off the anxiety and overwhelm.

Also read: You can be following your passion and still be burnt out! Want to know how?

Lack of Purpose or Passion.

Lack of purpose could be another reason why you are lazy in completing or even starting a task. You don’t fully understand or comprehend why you should do it. Maybe you know, but you don’t relate to that purpose.

That is why it is important to have a purpose that is personal to you.

Similarly, a lack of passion to do something can also be a major cause of laziness. Like your purpose, your source of passion should also be something that comes from inside.

Find your purpose and your passion that appeals to you and see your laziness disappear.

Toxic Environment or Mental Stress.

One of the major causes of laziness and lack of motivation that often gets overlooked is living in a toxic environment or mental stress.

You can’t go to the gym if you don’t feel comfortable there. You can’t go running on the streets either if they are not safe.

If you face any kind of stress in your work environment, it will heavily influence the quality of your work. And that will manifest in you procrastinating during or before your work, feeling laziness to do anything productive, or feeling no zeal at all.

You need to look deep and understand whether it is the environment that is affecting you or your mental stress that’s stopping you from doing your best work.

Also read: How to manage stress?

Also read: How to identify toxic friendships?

Medical conditions like Thyroid, Diabetes, and Anaemia.

A bad side of having medical conditions like Thyroid, Diabetes, or Anaemia is, it makes you lethargic and takes control over a major portion of your life. You may think your diet, lifestyle, and body changes due to these conditions.

But, your productivity changes drastically due to these and other conditions similar to these. If you have such issues in your body including ADHD, you need to manage your time accordingly.

You need to manage your energy accordingly. You are supposed to work as much as you can when you have high energy. And leave the tasks that do not require your energy or attention as much for later.

Hormonal Imbalance.

Women who suffer from PCOS, PCOD, or menopause suffer from severe hormonal imbalances. Women who are taking contraceptive pills or are on any kind of contraceptive treatment can also suffer from hormonal imbalances that can affect the productivity of the individual.

These hormonal imbalances can be a major cause of your laziness or lack of motivation. Similarly, Andropause and Adrenal fatigue are some of the hormonal conditions that can cause hormonal imbalance among men.

Hence, you need to pay close attention to see if your hormonal imbalances can make your productivity suffer.

Conclusion

Your lack of motivation or laziness could be because of multiple factors or just one. But it is up to you to dive deep and find your reason. You need to get your physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual health checked to know the reason.

Don’t hesitate to consult a medical practitioner about finding your reason. Or if you need any help. Remember, help is always available if you only ask for it.