How to Get Motivated When You’re Depressed, Defeated, and Done
Because “just try harder” has clearly solved everything so far.
Everyone’s searching “how to get motivated” like it’s a switch someone else can flip for them. Here’s the Unfuckable truth.
Motivation isn’t a lightning bolt. It’s not a sunrise montage with inspirational music. It’s a discipline you build when you feel like absolute nothing. The “manifest your dreams” crowd wants you to believe you need the perfect mindset to start. Wrong. You need to start to get the mindset. Waiting to feel motivated is like waiting to be hungry to cook. Sometimes you eat because it’s time, not because you’re ravenous.
Here’s the satirical truth: The productivity bros on LinkedIn posting their 4 AM ice baths and “crushing it” updates are just as broken as you. They’re just performing functionality for an audience.
Meanwhile, you’re at 9 PM eating off-brand cereal for dinner because you forgot to eat and now you’re too tired to chew properly. They’re optimizing. You’re surviving. And honestly? Surviving is a flex they don’t teach in business school.
I built a cultural empire from $20 in my son’s living room. Not because I felt motivated. Because I had no other choice. Motivation showed up on day 43, not day 1. Day 1 was just panic with better lighting. Day 10 was crying while learning Midjourney. Day 30 was wondering if this was all stupid. Then somewhere around day 43, I looked up and had 100 words and a podcast and people actually listening. The motivation came from the motion, not the other way around.
The self-help books want you to visualize your success and align your chakras. I say visualize your rent being late and align your ass with a chair. Do the thing. The feelings catch up. They always do. You don’t need to feel like it. You need to feel like not doing it is worse.
The Unfuckable 5 (Eccentric Edition):
1. The 5-Minute Lie. Tell yourself you only have to do 5 minutes. You can stop after. You won’t. Starting is the hard part. Momentum does the rest.
2. Motivation follows action, not the other way around. Move first. Feelings catch up. Like a dog chasing a car — the car doesn’t wait for the dog to feel ready.
3. Lower your standards by 50%. “Work out” becomes “put on gym shoes.” “Write” becomes “open document.” The streak matters more than the quality. Perfection is procrastination in a costume.
4. Accountability partner or public shame. Tell one person your goal. Or post it. Fear of embarrassment is a valid motivator. Use what you have.
5. Track streaks, not results. 3 days in a row is the win. Not how good it was. Not how you felt. Just that you showed up. Consistency compounds faster than intensity.
Today’s Fuckcabulary Word is Fucktivate
Fucktivate — Fuck + Motivate = The act of starting a task while internally screaming “I don’t want to do this,” until the task itself becomes the motivation.
The Daily Fuckcabulary — presented by Unfuckable, Inc.
©️Hawsé Sumi