How many times have you set a goal for yourself and then lost the motivation to continue before you actually achieve the goal? When it comes to meeting goals that you set for yourself to improve yourself or make a change in your life, motivation is half the battle. If you are not consistently and continuously inspired to put in the time and effort it takes to better yourself and your situation, seeing your plans through to completion becomes almost impossible.

One of the biggest killers of achievement is a lack of motivation. This is because maintaining motivation past the initial idea stage can be extremely difficult. However, there are ways to actively keep yourself motivated and on track with your goals so that you can actually achieve everything you set out to.

1. Form a Habit

How many habits do you have right now? You probably have plenty of habits, whether they’re bad habits like smoking or minor rituals like going to the same coffee shop every Sunday morning. Humans are habitual creatures by nature. Unfortunately, many of the habits we tend to form are negative ones, like procrastinating or slacking off on our projects or workout plans.

A great way to keep yourself motivated while trying to achieve a goal is to form habits that help you make progress. Every day, force yourself to spend a short amount of time working toward your goal. After a week or two, you’ll realize that your day doesn’t seem complete unless you’ve actively worked on an activity that launches you closer to your end goal.

2. Exercise

Even if your goal has nothing to do with exercise, incorporating a workout into your daily routine has a big and positive impact on your motivation. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins. These natural endorphins help you feel more energetic and more willing to put in the effort it takes to accomplish your goals.

Plus, the act of working out itself automatically helps you feel more productive and on top of things. This feeling is addictive and helps you stay in a motivated mood all day long. Try to workout in the morning so that you can reap the motivation-enhancing benefits for the rest of the day. Or, if you like to be productive at night, plan your exercise for the evening.

3. Find Inspiration

When you’re just starting out working toward a new goal, the end game can seem impossibly far away. A great way to stay motivated is to find material that continuously inspires you to keep working toward what you really want.

If you’re trying to lose weight or get in better shape, keep pictures of your ideal body at the front of your camera roll. Write inspirational quotes on your bathroom mirror or scroll through Pinterest to find some new ones every day. Whatever it is that inspires you, make sure that this inspiration is within reach for you on a regular basis so that you’re constantly reminded of why you want to remain motivated in the first place.

4. Split It Up

Splitting up a larger task into smaller, more easily achievable chunks is one of the best ways to stay motivated. Every time you complete one of these smaller chunks, you’ll feel accomplished and you’ll be one step closer to achieving your goal.

The feeling you get when you finish a chunk of your task will make you want to do more so that you maintain that positive feeling. You’ll end up being a lot more productive without feeling sluggish or like you’re dragging yourself through your tasks.

5. Don’t Take On Too Much

If you have $1000 in credit card debt and set a goal to pay it all off, don’t work three overtime shifts every week so that you can get rid of all of your debt in a month. It can be very tempting to set ridiculous deadlines and time frames for yourself so that you reach your goal as quickly as possible.

However, setting realistic goals and pacing yourself when it comes to completing them is key to actually achieving these goals. Otherwise, your motivation will fizzle and you’ll get that awful burned out feeling.

6. Have a Back-Up Plan

It’s important to have a plan for what you’ll do when your motivation wavers, as it inevitably will. Write a list of all the reasons your goal is important to you; keep it in your bedside drawer and look at it every time you’re feeling uninspired. Create a set of positive affirmations to repeat to yourself when you’re feeling like you can’t put in any more effort. Plan something, anything, that you know will help get you back on track when your motivation betrays you.

7. Forgive Yourself

There will be days when you will not be able to force yourself out of your cozy bed to go on a run when your alarm rings at six in the morning. Sometimes, you’ll spend all day in your pajamas and realize that you never made it to the coffee shop to work on your novel-in-progress.

You’re human, not a robot. Even if you set great goals and do everything in your power to help yourself stay motivated to achieve them, there will be setbacks. The worst thing you can do is let these setbacks throw you off course. Accept them, forgive yourself for them, and try again tomorrow.

Motivation is vital for success, but it isn’t easy to develop or maintain. Use the tips in this post to make simple alterations to your goal game plan to make sure you follow through with a smile on your face.