How do you deal with motivation?

[Maril]

Motivation for me is seriously fleeting these days. It's caused me to ponderwonder a bit on it, and I'm curious as to how you guys deal with it when it's not there for you, when you find it lacking in the people you surround yourself with. There's always a hundred things I'd like to do, but I find that when I come across people that are as deflated as a birthday balloon after 2 weeks, it rubs right off on me. I always feel like wanting to try and help/inspire people to roleplay and do things but it's very difficult. Not to be confused with me wanting to force people into it.

I've heard from several places that a lot of people are in a pre-expansion slump, affecting FC's and what not. Is that something you guys can recognize in your own companies?

[K'nahli]

I almost always want to RP, but I often go through these writer's lulls that just makes it extra difficult for me to spew out anything remotely worthy of being read and that demotivates me a lot. If other people around me also appear disinterested then I also feel a little depressed for the fact and become further demotivated.

 

So how do I deal with it? Often times it seems like I don't ;   I just distract myself with other things while hoping for it to pass until it just reaches the point where I am procrastinating it merely out of the worry of stressing myself should I find I am still in such a slump.

[Aaron]

I don't motivate myself,  but I keep it flexible. 

 

If im OOC just fucking around and someone calls me IC or similar. I just hop IC and rp. 

 

If im about to burn out in rp I just make Aaron walk away abruptly like he always does. 

 

Motivation imo shouldn't be something forced, but inspired. . . Or flexible.

[xelliexell]

I think this is something that effects a lot of us from time to time! It can be especially daunting and high-pressure if you lead a guild, because all eyes look to you to provide unconditional content for said guild.

 

When I lose all motivation to do anything with FFXIV, be it RP or PvE, I usually call it "burn out." The flame of whatever inspired me before just isn't there, and I have to pick myself up and dust myself off within a reasonable amount of time, or the entire guild could suffer. Thankfully, I have a super great team of Officers, and we really try to support one another through these inevitable periods of "burn out." We're very open and honest in our Officer room if one of us is approaching (or in) this state of mind, and we really try our best to help each other out: either by picking up the RP slack, or just by posting positive strings of cat memes or discussing customized tea flavors.

 

I think that, overall, I might recommend two things (and I hope they will help!)

 

1.) Don't absorb the negativity! I know it's our human instinct to do this, and if you're in a leadership position a LOT of negativity gets tossed your way. It can feel grueling. Seek out positive things, and/or positive people who will help pick you up again, dust you off, and set you back on your feet. When people fling negativity your way, drop that like a bad habit and keep walking, preferably with swagger. If you need to, disconnect for a while and watch something funny, like a sitcom or stand-up comedian or anime that you like. I tend to watch my "stories" when I'm in a slump, or basically dive into a pile of cat pictures and videos until I forget what human beings even look like.

 

2.) Identify what motivates you. Just like how certain things motivate the characters we play, there are certain things that motivate us, too! I tend to work well when there's a reward at the end. Like if I manage to do Thing A, I'll take a trip to Smoothie King and throw a stupid amount of dollars for a banana and peanut butter smoothie.

 

Or sometimes, I can find inspiration in non-game-related things: like taking a walk outside or visiting somewhere new. Heck, even starting a new anime or video game can jump start those drained RP batteries. Occasionally, reading the work of others also helps, be it in books or posts. A movie I end up liking could also do the trick! Taking a break and just focusing on something else for a bit can pour ideas into your brain, as opposed to taking them out.

 

For me personally, the feeling of accomplishment is also a motivational factor. Producing something that I'm 100% satisfied with helps me build momentum to get back in the saddle again. This usually comes in the form of a post I've been putting off on our forum, or a flier I've been meaning to make, or something. Granted, it's very difficult to get the motivation to even START the thing I'm accomplishing, but I know that if I can just convince myself to get through it, I'll be in a better place. To motivate myself to even begin whatever project, I'll spend some time convincing myself things like "This will only take five minutes, it's not that big of a deal." or "If I can just write three paragraphs, I'll be good." or even just starting a draft/outline without overthinking it. I tend to get snagged up whenever I start to feel overwhelmed with the responsibilities on my plate, which is when I dread doing them.

 

Anyway, that's just my own take on it! Hopefully at least one of those things can be helpful to you, but also feel free to disregard. ^^

[Nebbs]

Well I kind of had it too much with game stuff even though there are things to do. So I am RPing, making myself do that more. And also turning my thoughts to writing some scenarios.

[Kellach Woods]

Right now, my routine is :

 

1) Log in.

2) Get a level or two on a class I haven't 50d yet with Kell.

3) See if anyone I know wants to RP in a place where we can see what we're typing.

4) Log out 'cause number 3 ain't happening anytime soon unless it's planned (aka tomorrow night for me).

5) Play something else for a whole lot longer than I did FFXIV that day.

 

So yeah my motivation is complete garbage right now - Dunno if it's just the RP scene that bores me what with everyone having their plotlines for Heavensward or just my mood in general that's gone to shit, but yeah.

 

I dunno how to deal with it, and quite frankly if it's the second one there's not a lot I CAN do to deal with it. Like, I've allegedly recovered from a major depressive episode that I couldn't recognize because I've always been this way. So it might just be that, and if it is I'll need to accept that it's happening and that there's gonna be a lot more times where I'm completely fucked in the head temporarily.

[Telluride]

I've been in a slump like this for a few weeks now.

 

It's not that I don't want to do ANYTHING. I am trying to get a couple of alts leveled, keep amassing poetics to maximize my Ilvl before the expansion, and keep up little private RP sessions here and there.

 

But the things I think I OUGHT to be enthusiastic about - the Bard thing, songcrafting, writing up the three journal/story entries I've been meaning to write, helping to stir up some community RP - those things, I can't seem to force myself to do, even though time hasn't been a factor.

 

I'm still affected, but I got a few sparks in the right direction by catching new movies, trying new places and things to do in RL. Plus, the deadline pressure for the weekend's RP events has helped a little.

 

I think Maia has the right of it, and I agree with her thoughts, though there's one thing I can add:

 

I think SUCCESS can also lead to burnout. I've accomplished a LOT of the things I wanted Nathan to be able to do since January, and I still am awed by how well, for example, the Singing Telegram project worked. Sometimes, I imagine, we just need a Shiny New Project to turn Maintenance in Motivation.

[Cliodhna Eoghan]

honestly i've noticed that i need more encouragement in some end game stuff. (like finishing my crafting classes and other stuff) i've lately been passing it over for more rp which is really nice, particularly the fc rp i've been doing x3 buuut i still feel like i'm nowhere near ready for the expansion >n<;

[Aduu Avagnar]

I'm happy where I am for the expansion, all my classes are max level, yeah sure my PLD isn't geared out (due to sub downtimes etc) but that doesn't matter to me as much.

 

However, my motivation dips generally in accordance with my depression. If I'm going through a low period I am just not up to doing much it shows, and I tend to just scroll tumblr for cat pics and funnies.

 

However, with a month to go (less for me, get in EA!) it's picking back up as I my hype for this is actually helping me get out of my slump

[allgivenover]

Don't wait for or hang around with people who aren't really interested in roleplaying. It's alright for interest to wane now and then, after all no one activity can keep you entertained all the time, so it's ok for RP interest to wax and wane in cycles.

 

But if your circle loses all interest and it starts to rub off on you, move on.

[Gone.]

For me it's less my own motivation that I have to worry about and more the motivation of my roleplay partners. It's exceedingly rare that I'm ever able to hold onto someone for more than a few months; sometimes I'm lucky if I even get more than 1-2 sessions before either I or my characters are misjudged and subsequently dropped. Never really gets easier, either, especially not when there's a lull in a game's respective community as there is right now.

 

Honestly, if you're burnt out on the game itself by this point and lack in a circle of friends to begin with, it's probably time for a short break. Things always seem to turn around after a month or two, you know?

[Delilah Scythewood]

I know those feels all too well lately. As of late I've found that it's best to take a few minutes to sit there with some nice music and think to yourself: "What do I want to do today? What do I not feel like doing the most?" Make a personal check list. Then try and see who is on the same page. Whisper someone you've never really talked too before! You might be surprised.

 

Pre-expac slump and RL have been hitting me hard and a lot of other people I know as well. It'll pick up hard core once HW releases but for now I'm riding it out.

[Miko Shiroi]

Being the fickle writer that I am, motivation slumps are also quite the predicament for me. Oftentimes I don't force myself to RP if I can sense that I'm going to have a tough time with it. However, if I'm seriously determined to interact more with a character, I usually try turning to drawing said character and listening to songs that remind me of them. There's a lot to be said about drawing inspiration from outside sources.

 

As far as motivating others around you (and in your FC goes), I'm not sure that's entirely possible. Whether it's the pre-expansion slump or whether they're all just kinda bummed in general, I'm sure they'll all come around eventually. If anything, the release of the expansion will have them back and kicking with even more umph!

[Kurt S.]

Ehh I guess the fatigue of getting four separate characters to i120 and realizing none of them are even close to it. It's that demoralizing thing that's just putting me in a slump and it is kind of making me really just RP on appointment, like it's only with people can /tell for a session and take a small break. Like I don't actively reach out to be brushed aside as enthusiastically as I always do. 

 

Granted, no one's approached me with anything recently, cept for maybe Clio and the timing was sort of awful, so I'm not 100% on that.

 

Anyway, I'll be honest when I say I have like next to no motivation to gear anyone except Keil because my au ra is riding on it. That is my motivation, my soon to be au ra. 

 

I have no idea how to inspire people other than putting myself on their idle selves and dragging them out of the Quicksand. That's if they're IC to begin with. You know, like give some fresh idea, drag in some strangers. Involve people and stuff. It doesn't have to be a serious plot too, just some random shenanigans might work, because the serious stuff might just take more planning and coordination and that might run counter to the whole motivate thing....depends on the people I guess. 

 

Make some 'GET TO ISHGARD' plan so even if your company gives no shits about Ishgard just in case someone wants to go up their they have some blanket reason to utilize. RP it out, say they're in it for the supposed gil that's being shoveled out to adventurers culling the Dravanian population or maybe you're into raw material supply maybe some Dravanian scales to use for some random armorer. 

 

I'll shaddup with the ideas and ranting now.

[Clover]

It's simple to me. In my personal RPs, of others aren't motivated, then I simply don't want to RP with them. I'd only be carrying them like dead weights, which is not only draining but it also takes us nowhere. Others must find their own inspiration; it's fruitless if anyone else tries to inject it into them. That's not how inspiration works.

 

Likewise, if I'm not truly inspired about something, I'll let everyone know. For example, it's not a secret that the FFXIV RP has never been a big thing for me, unlike my RP from games I don't even play. I have a Spanish friend who joined FFXIV and hoped to create a huge story with me; from the very first day I warned her that the FFXIV lore doesn't really inspire me, but she ignored my warning and tried her best to inject her inspiration into me. It never worked the way she hoped, so she only got frustrated in the end.

[Ignacius]

IF I have no motivation to play FFXIV or RP?  Usually Diablo 3.  Sometimes, a little mindless slaughter is good for the brain.  It's like running a brain reboot.

[Manari]

More often than not, it's the rest of the game besides RP that I keep losing interest in. For someone with a limited time to play as I have, the grind is just so discouraging. Not only that, but I don't have a group of people to do content with, so most of the endgame is just duty finder or nothing at all for me.

 

For RP, I've got a lot invested in my character since I've been RPing since 1.0, but Manari has a certain personality that takes a little inspiration from my own. Which means I do that thing where people are already involved in RP and having a good conversation and I really want to join, but I don't want to crash their RP. So Manari ends up doing a lot of standing in the corner with her arms crossed not talking to anyone. In a way, that's fitting of her character now because she would certainly do that (and so would I) but on the other hand, that kind of personality doesn't cause a lot of RP to happen and it can get discouraging. So the answer is just "don't do that" right? Well, it's not always that simple. I ask myself "Would Manari butt into that conversation?" and the answer is almost always no. This, in turn, does kinda discourage me from time to time and make me lose some of my RP steam when I know I'm missing out on RP.

 

I guess I need to start getting more creative. I don't really want to do things like trip or fall or bump into those people because Manari isn't clumsy at all.

[Hivernal]

I have motivational issues of another kind, heh. I'm really into the lore but most of my friends have a middling interest in it at best. I'm kind of like the bookish girl everyone knew in school; always in the library, reliable source of info for everything.

 

One example was yesterday, watching the Heavensward dungeon trailer and seeing the winged Ixal in holding tubes. The implications for that are absolutely **HUGE**. The reason for the Ixal summoning Garuda, why they hate Gridanians and those living in the Black Shroud, the core of their age-old bitterness, hatred and cruelty ... and I just couldn't get any enthusiasm / understanding out of my friends.

 

Sometimes it feels like I'm trapped inside of myself; in this weird place where I want to be all super nerdy about the lore and discuss things at length, go into implications of Event Y or what would happen if NPC X did this. But I can't. Because there's no-one close to share it with. I have the exact same issue with my writing. It's incredibly frustrating.

 

As far as in-game stuff goes, yeah. Pre-patch/expansion lull. Even finding people to do primal PFs with is rare the past week or so. My advice would be to do what others have suggested: set yourself a goal each day. You've then done something and anything more is a bonus. Be positive!

[lutroxical]

I'd like the echo the sentiment that people and FCs alike are really feeling the pre-expansion slump.  Not to say that any real problems have come of it, but several people within my FC, including myself, have both experienced, seen, and felt the lack of 'oomph' in both RP and PvE, lately. 

 

And to that I say, "meh!" It happens.

 

We can't be all GO HAM! all the time. It's natural for interest to ebb and flow. For me, my interest about three months ago was really waning. I didn't want to RP, dungeon, or anything. It wasn't due to anyone or anything about the game. I was just uninspired, same as you. I forced myself to RP on occasions and it was not very fun, but as a leader, I felt I should set a good example.

 

When I noticed that I would rather lay on the couch and play with my phone all night than hang out with my good friends in this game, I knew I had to do something. So, for lack of a better idea, I picked up my zodiac weapon quests again. I was only on the Braves Books, so I had a lot of catching up to do in a short time.

 

I will say that having a 'tangible' goal really, REALLY helps me stay in an MMO, as well as good RP. In GW2, I could just buy anything I wanted with gold, and so the PvE aspect quickly dwindled. In this game, you have to WORK for your shinies. The Zodiac weapon or [insert expensive/time consuming in game thing here] might help you get back on the FFXIV horse and stay on, so long as you still have something to work for. It has worked so far for me and a few of my FC mates. It's more fun to work on something together, if at all possible. 

 

And if you don't get it done before Heavensward, so what? You can say you tried and just come back to it later. Or maybe something else better will take precedence. It's all about fun, after all!

 

But if none of that is your cuppa, taking an actual hiatus from the game might refresh your attitude. It could be a few days, few weeks, or even until the expansion. Anything that helps your mind! I wish you the best of luck.

[Gegenji]

We can't be all GO HAM! all the time. It's natural for interest to ebb and flow. For me, my interest about three months ago was really waning. I didn't want to RP, dungeon, or anything. It wasn't due to anyone or anything about the game. I was just uninspired, same as you. I forced myself to RP on occasions and it was not very fun, but as a leader, I felt I should set a good example.

 

When I noticed that I would rather lay on the couch and play with my phone all night than hang out with my good friends in this game, I knew I had to do something. So, for lack of a better idea, I picked up my zodiac weapon quests again. I was only on the Braves Books, so I had a lot of catching up to do in a short time.

 

I will say that having a 'tangible' goal really, REALLY helps me stay in an MMO, as well as good RP. In GW2, I could just buy anything I wanted with gold, and so the PvE aspect quickly dwindled. In this game, you have to WORK for your shinies. The Zodiac weapon or [insert expensive/time consuming in game thing here] might help you get back on the FFXIV horse and stay on, so long as you still have something to work for. It has worked so far for me and a few of my FC mates. It's more fun to work on something together, if at all possible.

 

Quoted for multiple truths, at least with myself. While I like to think I'm always up for RP, there are days where I just... don't have the motivation to go wandering around looking for it. And sometimes I'm just content enough shooting the breeze with the folks in my various Linkshells. But, as the half a week without my computer proved, I'd rather be doing "nothing" in FFXIV than actually doing nothing.

 

And having goals definitely helps, even if they're tenuous ones. I worked on Gogonji's relic before coming to Balmung because "it was there" and it was something to do. Same with leveling all his combat classes and trying to get them all geared up decently well. My goal to get Chachan his Lucis kept me quite busy leveling the classes and getting the gear all set up.

 

And, if nothing else, there's always using the wait time until Heavensward's drop to prep that Au Ra you might be making (if you're not just changing one of your existing characters into one). I have Judge all leveled, caught up with the MSQ, and set to go!

 

And, if nothing else? Just find something fun to do - either as a "reward" after completing tasks, or just as something to set as a goal. Like racing Chocobos? Try and get the achievements for it before Heavensward! Or try and get a full Triple Triad deck. Or put together a really cute RP outfit.

[Lilia Lia]

The temptation to procrastinate about RP and "do the content," for me, comes from the fact that non-RP aspects of the game are generally pretty brainlessly rewarding and require so little effort. You can zone right out and faceroll most of the trials/dungeons, FATE grinding, even much of the game's crafting. It's also kind of antisocial so it appeals to people who are introverted types (like me) and shy away from interaction.

 

If I ever have an RP opportunity but I'm having trouble "getting in the mood," I just start daydreaming about RPs that I've had that I really loved, and that always makes me want to get something new going.

[Dravus]

If I feel like my motivation is slipping then I strive to figure out why so I can identify the problem and address it. Sometimes I realise that I need a short break so I go and do something else. 

 

One thing I find disheartening, however, is that I live in a completely different timezone to many role-players which makes setting things up rather difficult. This makes it difficult to invest in long term interaction with anybody outside of my Free Company and sometimes even those inside of it.

[cuideag]

I find one of the best ways to hype myself back up for RP is to think about ridiculous situations for my characters to be in.

 

What if Jajara hasn't been around work so much lately because she developed a gambling problem and has been working as a chocobo jockey to make up the lost gil? What if she had to do the bunny girl thing for a bit, and go around serving people strange colorful drinks? What if one of her friends saw her doing that? How quickly would she die from shame? Etc, etc.

[Caspar]

I find one of the best ways to hype myself back up for RP is to think about ridiculous situations for my characters to be in.

 

What if Jajara hasn't been around work so much lately because she developed a gambling problem and has been working as a chocobo jockey to make up the lost gil? What if she had to do the bunny girl thing for a bit, and go around serving people strange colorful drinks? What if one of her friends saw her doing that? How quickly would she die from shame? Etc, etc.

Sounds like fun. I can already think of a few people who would comment amusingly...

 

As for me, I set goals for myself and hope my ambition doesn't exceed my free time, lol. I see it as an extension of the  bullishness that allows me to raid.

[D'aito Kuji]

I'll be honest, FFXIV is not my true love or even close.  I've never liked the fantasy genre and much prefer superheroes and real-world settings.  But there is no City of Heroes and nothing comes close (yes, I've played DCUO and CO).  I really liked, even loved TSW, but the updates are so painfully slow and not the best quality when they do happen.  I left TSW for FFXIV and I do appreciate the value, the amount of content, the flexibility of being able to eventually play every role with the same character, I just can't totally get into it.

 

So, I'm almost always in a state of being slightly demotivated.  I've abandoned FFXIV three times since I started playing but keep coming back whenever TSW disappointed me in some way.  Their last update was the last straw for me and it's unlikely I'll come back.

 

But I see FFXIV as more of a discipline.  It's not the kind of thing I absolutely enjoy but that shouldn't stop me from being able to do my best and write good stories for D'aito Kuji.  If I were passionate about it the way I was with City of Heroes, then I'd have no problem writing, RP'ing, doing raids, dungeons, grinds.  But that's not really a challenge.  It doesn't require discipline.

 

So while I'm rarely ever truly motivated by FFXIV, I make myself do it.  And sometimes, I do enjoy it.