Now that the end of the year is near and new year resolutions are common, it’s a good idea to discuss one of the major issues many people struggle it: slowly abandoning the projects they are started with a big motivation and energy.

So this happens when you are heavily motivated in starting a new project, putting in many hours, but after the first couple of weeks (or days!), the motivation starts to slowly vanish, and the project fades into the oblivion.

It’s very common in the new year with weight loss goals or even business projects or hobbies among others.

The first few days/weeks are great and filled with excitement, then the excitement dies and the project with it.

You can handle this issue with three major strategies:

1) You do the work without motivation and energy.

Let’s face it, motivation fades away. No one will be heavily motivated everyday without fail. Regardless of how much you like and want something, there will come a time when you don’t feel that sparkle to do what you need to do.

Yet, these things need to be done.

One problem is when you think of the work as an optional thing. Something that you can either do or not do. Then you rationalize reasons as to why you can not do those thing, and eventually you drop the project.

Think of a farmer, or any “earthly worker”. If they don’t do the work, they wouldn’t eat. If they don’t feed the animals, the animals die. If they don’t take care of the crops, the crops die.

Therefore, not doing the work is not an option. Regardless if this raining or snowing, if the farmer was sick or depressed, the cows have got to eat and have got be milked! There’s no two ways about it.

If you still consider these tasks in your mind as optional, then, when motivation disappears – and it will -, it’s very easy to drop whatever you are doing.

2) You can sustain the motivation of the goal.

Recalling the end goal and keeping it in mind, particularly when you are struggling with low motivation can be effective if you energize the goal inside of you.

You recognize your low energy and low motivation and generate this extra power by energizing the goal you want to achieve. This in turn gives you the spark you need to do what needs to be done.

Some high performers thrive just on doing this alone. When they feel the motivation fading, they simply remind themselves of what they want to achieve and continue to do what needs to be done.

3) You really love the daily work

Opposing the last strategy, most people can start a project without considering what they have to actually do on a daily basis. You want to lose weight and you imagine a fitter you, more muscular, less fat… yet you forget the daily grind at the gym and the food restriction you need to do.

Those are the actual tasks that you need to do. So if you enjoy them – or learn to enjoy them – your end result will be a lot easier.

If you really love to write about fish, and you are already doing it even without being involved in a bigger project, then you know that you can easily sustain a project that involves you writing about fish on a daily basis.

So if you love the actual work you are doing on a daily basis and you have proven to yourself that you can easily do it without any external motivation, then it’s certainly a good prediction for keeping the motivation.

The major problem is that you’ll surely need to do other tasks other than writing about fish. Most likely you’ll need to handle different tasks not related to it (like administrative, marketing, accounting, etc), that are crucial to the success of the project.

And for that, an extra motivation and Will will surely be needed. Either way, it’s already a good prediction for the success of the project if you can easily do the main task with pleasure since it’s self-reinforcing inside of you.

To develop the Inner power inside of yourself and be able to start – and finish – any project, take a look at the 10 Steps to Inner Power training.