Motivation During Times of Uncertainty

The question at hand is, how do we stay motivated during times of uncertainty? The truth is, it’s up to you. Remember, it’s fine NOT to be motivated or proactive for a while. When a crisis hits, it’s important to press pause and take in everything that’s going on, all the small and big changes. 

Uncertainty at work can take the following forms:

• waiting on an important update to finish a project
• working toward an unclear goal
• working in an undefined role
• planning around a big change
• new management

During times of uncertainty, I’ve used the following steps to stay motivated.

• Self-Awareness:
  • Understanding yourself and prioritizing what drives you are the foundations for making sure you feel challenged and fulfilled by your work or career. It can direct you toward the things that will activate your mental wheels and help you to achieve an impact that’s meaningful to you (your purpose). This is turn motivates you to keep moving forward and achieving goals.
• Prioritize the Things You Can Control
  • Being more proactive with your work and your daily schedule is critical to achieving optimal levels of motivation and productivity. Remember, when you’re proactive, you feel more in control, and that leads you to be more thoughtful and creative with your work.
• Boost Your Confidence
  • Confidence helps us to stay motivated. In my opinion, the easiest way to boost confidence is by celebrating victories, big or small. Setting achievable short-term goals and celebrating individual and team goals are simple ways to boost your confidence and remain motivated. This creates a sense of achievement when enthusiasm and optimism start to wane.

Malissa Lewis serves as the Chief of the Loan Repayment Branch in HRSA’s Bureau of Health Workforce (BHW). She leads a team of nineteen analysts who work to strengthen the healthcare workforce and build healthy communities through the administration several workforce loan repayment programs.

Prior to the Loan Repayment Branch, she served as a section chief in the Division’s Scholarship Branch. Malissa has over 11 years of public health experience.

This article first appeared February 23, 2023.

Photo by Tirachard Kumtanom at pexels.com