There are lots of different ways that you can improve motivation in all aspects of your life. I would suggest that perhaps the most effective and measurable way is to set goals for both long-term and short term achievement. It is also important that you have a support network around you to help you and encourage you to achieve these goals (they must have some understanding of what you are trying to achieve in order to do this effectively).

An example of this is that I train for rowing every morning and evening, before and after work and all morning at the weekends. It can get pretty tough especially in winter when everything is freezing and you are always training in the dark. People often ask me – what keeps you motivated? (I often ask myself the question too!). So here is a quick list of what I think are the most important factors:

University trial eights racing on the tideway

1. I love the sport – If you don’t enjoy it then what is the point! Ok - when it’s dark and miserable in the winter or when we have endless gym sessions and experience a hell of a lot of pain or when you lose a race you should have won - then it is far from enjoyable. However, I love all my teammates and coaches, I love racing and the sense of achievement when you race well after a lot of preparation, I like having a constant goal and I love winning.
   

   Me (front-right) and some of my team representing England last summer.

2. I have a massive support network – coaches and teammates with common goals. It is also really nice when family and friends are supportive of what you are trying to achieve.
3. I want to win – this is where it starts to get interesting as firstly you want to beat your crewmates into the best boat. And then you want to make sure that as a crew you win against other teams.
4. There are continuous goals/aims. You have to set realistic goals about all aspects of your training e.g. if you are lifting 50kg on weights then in the next couple of weeks you may aim to lift 52.5kg, but you may aim that by next year you can lift 60kg. It’s the same on the water, you may be ranked 10^th and want to beat the person ranked 9^th in the next race, however you may aim to be ranked in the top 4 by the end of the season. You don’t want to miss any sessions as this would hinder you progression toward these goals and this is what keeps you going day after day. Take a look at this Canadian rowing motivational video for inspiration.

I hope this has given some insight as to how you can motivate yourself towards achieving the best you can in whatever aspect of your life. Setting goals, enjoying what you do, being competitive and letting other people support you and help you.