It’s easy to lose your motivation when challenged.

Don’t give up, says our elder. You’ve got to conquer your fears to get out of that funk.

Dear EWC:

Hi, the thing I need advice on is motivation. Whenever something gets to me or starts to feel impossible it almost instantly demotivates me. Earlier today I woke up and my first thoughts were about this challenge a gaming company was doing. I was coming up with ideas, became instantly motivated, and knew I could win. I started plotting more and more and it was going well.

After playing the game going for short clips, I started to notice it was a little hard to get them. I know with time and effort I’ll be just as good so I kept going for it, still motivated and having a fun time. Then, I started to watch others’ submissions. Some of these people have been grinding for months, weeks, even years, and are way better than me.

I have what it takes, but for some reason just knowing that others are more experienced makes me unmotivated. I want to win it so badly, but certain things I do get in the way of it. I just need the advice to get on the right track.

Papa-Smokey replies:

Working on challenging projects can be difficult since it requires maximum mental effort, which can be mentally exhausting. For these types of efforts, I try to push myself and find it very satisfying when I’ve completed them. In your situation, I would suggest that you feel good about yourself as you work through tough problems with a sense of satisfaction that you have completed a tough mental challenge. If you are ready to give up in the middle of a problem, try to overcome that by recognizing that you have conquered these types of problems previously and the sense of satisfaction that it brings.

You should not worry about competing with others since there will always be others who are better than you in completing these tasks just as you are better than many others. The key is to give it your maximum effort.
I hope these suggestions are helpful. Good luck!

Career
#464261