Summer is over, the children are back to school, and those two weeks basking on the beach already seem like a distant memory. If you’re suffering from a post-summer slump and feeling unmotivated by the prospect of work, don’t despair.

We’ve compiled the best back-to-work motivational tips from a selection of experts to help you stop mourning the loss of flip flops and barbecued food, and start looking forward to winter boots, roast turkey and new season success!

1. Set some goals

You might be demotivated by the thought of returning to your job after a wonderful break, but you can take the inspiration gained during your time off to make exciting plans for the future.

Having time to relax and think can help us to see what’s missing from our lives or what we want to achieve – now try turning those into actionable goals.

Shiv Khera, author of ‘You Can Win’ says: “It doesn’t matter what you do today; if you take pride in it, have your eyes fixed on a goal, remain focused and goal-oriented, any hurdle that comes your way will only be your stepping stone to climb to the next level.

“Be focused on goals: short-term, mid-term, long-term, immediate. Most people have no goals in life. They only have dreams. Less than 3% of the people in the world have goals. How will you reach a destination that you don’t have?“

So, whether it’s learning a new skill or simply saving up for your next holiday, setting some structured targets can help you find your motivation to start working towards them.

Related: A SMART guide to goal setting for event planners

2. Track (and celebrate) small achievements

While reaching goals will skyrocket your motivation, you might find working towards them becomes a slog. The trick, according to New York Times best-selling business author Grant Cardone is to continually track progress.

In his audio book ‘100 Ways To Stay Motivated’, Grant says you should make a point of tracking everything you find valuable.

So for example, if blogging is important to you, record how many posts you’re writing on a weekly basis, calculate how many words you write or how many comments you receive.

Making a log of granular progress enables you to see how you’re doing and challenges you to consistently outdo yourself.

3. Exercise your ‘motivation’ muscles

Staying motivated takes well..er… motivation. Top ranked motivational writer Shawn Anderson says you have to put effort into having the right attitude and this includes scheduling time for a daily intake of positive and inspiring content (like the Eventbrite blog!)

“The key to staying motivated is to never stop working at staying motivated,” he says. “Just like exercising the other muscles of our body, our motivation and attitude muscles need to be developed and fine-tuned, too.

“I feed my ‘motivational potential’ starting immediately in the morning, and I hold myself accountable to continuing to do so throughout the day.

“Every day I schedule time to read or listen to empowering material. Every day I take the time to exercise, breathe deeply, and plan my diet. Living a motivated life starts with doing the motivational prep work it takes to get there.”

Related: 10 TED talks to inspire you and your events

4. Turn mundane tasks into new challenges

Even if we’re happy in our careers overall, we all have elements of our jobs we find tedious. When we have too many of these mundane tasks and not enough of the ones we enjoy, work motivation can take a hit.

Daniel Pink, author of the book ‘Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us’, suggests trying to turn those tasks into a new challenge by simply changing their circumstances.

For example, when Pink has a writing project similar to one he’s done countless times in the past, he might challenge himself by doing a speed drill to see how quickly he can get it done.

Next time you’re asked to do something you don’t really want to do, you can try adding some creative flair to the task, finding a way to do it differently or better than before. You can also find motivation for seemingly dull tasks by thinking about the purpose of your work. How important is it for the successful operation of your company? How many people are relying on you?

“When people know why they are doing something, they tend to do it better and with a little more zeal,” says Pink.

5. Be grateful

When your alarm goes off at silly-o’clock in the morning and you drag yourself out of bed for your first week back at work you might not be feeling particularly ‘lucky’. However, a quick and simple mental exercise can help wake up your positivity.

Life coach and business strategist Tony Robbins says he starts every day by focusing on three things that make him feel grateful.

“I do three and a half minutes of pure gratitude about three things. I pick one of those three to be simple… the wind on my face, my children’s faces, anything.”

According to Robbins, the reason he starts with gratitude is because of its ability to overpower the emotions that threaten our positivity.

“The two emotions that mess us up the most are fear and anger, and you can’t be grateful and fearful simultaneously. They don’t go together,” he says. “And you can’t be angry and grateful simultaneously.”

Starting the day with gratitude for the life you have leaves you primed to have a positive day.

Related: 9 Negative thoughts holding back you and your events

6. Adopt a ‘growth mindset’

According to Professor Carol Dweck at Stanford University, many of us have a ‘fixed mindset’ about our abilities that limits our professional and personal growth.

On the other hand, some people have what she calls a ‘growth mindset,’ which is the belief that we can improve our ability through learning and practice.

It’s why, she says, we should praise children not for ‘being clever’ but for putting in a great effort.
When we believe that effort and growth are the true measure of what we’re worth, we’re more willing to take on new challenges in the hope they’ll provide opportunities for growth.

It also makes us more resilient to negative feedback and ‘failure,’ simply by being able to view unsuccessful endeavours as valuable practise instead.

Adopting a growth mindset will give you the confidence to take on new projects or accept increased responsibility, making work more interesting and more motivating. It can work for your personal ambitions too, like finally signing up to that art class you’ve wanted to join for ages!

Conclusion

It’s always sad when summer comes to an end and holidays are over, but finding something to work towards can give you renewed purpose. Start now and you can end the year on a high, ready to welcome in 2017 with a big high five!

Enjoyed this? Check out these 6 Daily Habits That Will Radically Improve Your Day, Your Mood and Your Events.