Motivation Skills Blog

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Chris Farmer's Leadership and Management Training Blog

Welcome - the purpose of the blog page is to provide you with a never ending source of valuable, practical and entertaining information designed to help you get the best performance from yourself and others.

In these blogs you will find all the information you need to make faster progress in less time and effort. Here you will find all the information you need to achieve your goals. In addition to helping yourself to achieve your goals, you can use the same information to help others to achieve their goals.

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Motivation Skills Blogs

Motivation is important because motivation drives action.

Motivation comes in two basic types: Positive motivation and negative motivation.

Positive motivation includes emotions of: Desire, ambition, optimism and goal focus.
Negative motivation includes emotions of: Fear, anger, bitterness and revenge.

Some managers motivate by negative means: fear, threats and anger. (Sticks)
Other managers motivate by positive means: setting up goals and rewards. (Carrots.)
Some managers use a mixture of positive and negative means. (Carrots and sticks).

It all depends on the situation and the mindset of the person to be motivated.

We recommend you use negative emotions as a last resort.
We recommend you use mostly positive motivators which can be triggered by: promise of Money, security, achievement, appreciation, team acceptance, and pride.

Motivation Skills Blogs

How to Inspire People

6 May 2025

Master positive motivation to inspire people. Replace fear and anger with desire, goals and praise. Discover leadership skills that raise results and team spirt

10 Steps to Stay Motivated

9 July 2024

Learn how to stay motivated with 10 steps: set goals, plan, think positive, use feedback, manage energy and help others. Turn effort into lasting success.

How to Motivate People At Work

4 June 2024

Boost employee motivation with seven positive techniques: pay, perks, praise, awards, job security, skill growth and career paths-backed by Gallup data.

Motivation Techniques

12 March 2024

Discover motivation techniques that link clear rewards with feared setbacks to spark action, boost goal setting motivation, and help you avoid negative outcomes

Load the Dice In your Favour

19 December 2023

Learn how self-discipline keeps your dice on six each day, so you control what you can, beat tough odds and build personal success with simple daily habits.

The Myth of Natural Talent

28 November 2023

Break the natural talent myth: accurate knowledge, 10,000-hour deliberate practice and constant feedback turn ordinary effort into expert performance and growth

How to Find Positive Motivation

14 March 2023

Learn six clear steps to build positive motivation: set goals, write an action plan, pick positive people, use role models, boost energy, keep learning daily.

What is 'Quiet Quitting'?

23 August 2022

Learn why quiet quitting spreads when culture fails, managers bully or life intrudes, and discover training steps that raise employee engagement and motivation.

How to Change People's Bad Attitudes At Work

10 May 2022

Change bad attitude at work by exposing root beliefs, reframing views and coaching staff to act. Get clear steps, stats and tips managers can use today.

How to Handle Uncertainty About the Future

9 November 2021

Learn how to handle uncertainty, focus on what you can control, align with trends and set SMART goals to keep your business adding value and moving forward.

Understanding Human Motivation: Fear of Rejection

23 February 2021

Learn why fear of rejection evolved, how it stops job moves and pay rise asks, and get clear brain-based tips to beat rejection fear and act with calmconfidence

Six Scientifically Proven Ways to Motivate People At Work

20 October 2020

Discover six proven drivers of staff motivation-money, security, social ties, achievement and praise-and learn how to apply them to lift morale and profit.

How to Stay Motivated During Lockdown

5 June 2020

Discover practical lockdown motivation tips: build a daily routine, lift your attitude, improve your space, cut news use and stay connected for good mental

How to Deal With a Manager Who Loves Pointing Out your Mistakes

12 May 2020

Learn how to deal with a critical manager, turn harsh feedback into growth, ask for balanced praise, and keep motivation high with our simple, proven steps.

How to Stay Motivated When Self-Isolating

27 March 2020

Stay motivated at home with six practical tips: build a written routine, dress for work, limit rolling news, set clear goals, refine systems and keep learning

How to be More Fun

17 January 2020

Learn how to be more fun with four proven habits: drop fear, relax, laugh at life and spot the silly side. Boost mood and draw people to you today with ease.

How to Inspire Others

3 December 2019

Learn five simple methods to inspire others: speak with positive words, set shared goals, highlight optimism, lead by example and reframe failure into growth.

Feed your Brain the Right Thoughts

13 September 2019

Learn how to control your thoughts, silence the inner critic and use positive self talk to build will power, lift more weight and boost results in sport and 1

How to Motivate Someone to Change

3 September 2019

Learn how to motivate someone with the Pleasure–Pain Questioning Technique. Two questions expose long-term pain and pleasure, igniting lasting behaviour change.

How to Change the Way you Feel

27 August 2019

Learn how to change how you feel in seconds. Shift your focus to real good facts, build a daily habit of positive thinking and lift mood each day. Start now.

How to Overcome the Fear of Failure

6 August 2019

Learn why fear of failure holds you back and how to beat it. Use clear steps, self-talk and focus on effort to reduce anxiety and build unshakeable confidence.

How to Make 2019 your Most Successful Year

2 January 2019

Guide to goal setting: craft SMART work, learning and health goals, add real value, and act on what you can control to make this year your truly best ever.

How to Gain Respect

21 September 2018

Learn how to gain respect with ten clear traits: fast choice, honesty, hard work, self-discipline, open talk and calm manners. Build trust at work and in life.

Motivational Management: Positive Mental Attitude

3 November 2017

Learn eight clear steps to develop a positive mental attitude, boost self confidence and stop negative talk. Apply them today to turn your goals into results.

Give Yourself Positive Feedback

2 October 2017

Discover how positive self feedback builds self esteem, improves self image and stops negative self talk for a healthier personality. Backed by UK data.

How to Succeed and How Not to Fail

19 September 2017

Learn how to succeed with a proven five-step success formula: set a goal, plan, act, review feedback and adapt, while avoiding common reasons why people fail.

How can I Fulfil My Potential?

5 September 2017

Learn how to fulfil your potential with the RAISING method: decide, specialise, study and practise skills every day to achieve goals, grow and raise your game.

Motivational Emotions

2 May 2017

Learn why fear and anger harm mental well-being while desire lifts ambition and results. Discover simple ways to use positive motivation to inspire yourself.

How to be Happy and Successful

21 April 2017

Discover how life balance and smart goal setting prevent neglect, boost health, enrich relationships and drive personal success. Learn steps to stay happy.

The Difference Between a Wish and a Goal

14 February 2017

Learn the wish vs goal difference and turn vague hopes into achievable, realistic goals. Use simple skill and resource checks to set clear targets and act now.

How to Motivate Yourself and Others

7 February 2017

Learn how to motivate yourself and others by asking eight goal-setting questions. Shift focus to a better future, spark emotions and gain clarity of purpose.

Make 2017 a Terrific Year for you and your Family

4 January 2017

Turn new year goals into results with a clear five-step success plan: think positive, set specific targets, write daily actions and track progress with family.

Motivation by Affirmation

25 November 2016

Discover how positive affirmations rewire thoughts, spark motivation and boost optimism. Clear steps, examples and research help you start a self-talk habit.

How to Motivate Myself and Others

7 October 2016

Learn leadership motivation skills. Use four simple question types to spark positive thinking, boost self motivation and energise your team, avoiding gossip.

Three Ways to Motivate Others

2 September 2016

Learn how to motivate others by rewarding good behaviour, limiting punishment and using praise that boosts profit, cuts absence and turns teamwork into success.

Blog Categories

Accelerated Learning (6)

Accelerated learning techniques are special methods of organising information, so that you can more rapidly memorise and more accurately recall it on demand. Accelerated learning also includes mind mapping and creative thinking techniques.

Assertiveness (5)

Assertiveness is a both a communication style and a mind-set which, when combined, allows a people to express their meaning using just the amount of forcefulness, in relation to their body language, voice tone and spoken language.

Change Management (16)

Change management training is how to use the fact of continuous change, to work FOR you, rather than against you. It is a fact that all improvement implies change, but many people hate change. Change management is about training people to love change as a means of making the future better.

Coaching, Mentoring and Developing Staff (10)

There is a pressing need to develop the next generation of leaders, managers and technical experts. One way to develop staff is through coaching and mentoring. To be an effective coach and mentor is not an easy skill to master. These blogs discuss the skills of coaching, mentoring and staff development.

Communication - Clear Communication (82)

One to the most important facets of communication is clarity. Whenever you write or speak, your words should denote only one possible meaning. If your words can be properly interpreted in multiple ways, then you are creating the conditions for confusion, error and misunderstanding. These blogs discuss the nature of clear communication.

Communication - Listening Skills (6)

Communication includes the ability to attend to, understand and memorise what people say to you. Effective Listening is an active, not a passive process. These bloggs discuss what it takes to be a good listener.

Communication - Nonverbal Communication (8)

Communication includes a large visual component. How you appear, as you speak, makes a big difference to how your message is received. These blogs are about how to best use your body language. (Eye contact, posture, dress, hand and arm gestures, etc.)

Communication - Persuasive Communication (41)

Persuasion is the art of convincing others that your ideas are good, right, fair and practical, and in addition, persuasion includes motivating people to put your ideas into action. Persuasion is a key communication skill that everyone should study. These blogs discuss how to be more persuasive.

Communication - Written Communication (5)

A part of your communication is in the written form. Writing well is a skill that most people do not study, though it is of immense importance. These blogs discuss how you might improve your written communication.

Conflict Management and Handling Difficult People (28)

Conflict is inevitable, and when it occurs, you need to resolve it quickly and efficiently. Conflict management (and handling difficult people) is about managing your communication and your emotions, so that you arrive at a negotiated solution as quickly as possible. This series of blogs discusses the various ways you can best manage conflict.

Decision Making and Problem Solving (22)

Decision making is the skill of selecting the best option from many options. And problem solving is the skill at determining the causes and implications of a problem and finding efficient remedies. This series of blogs discusses the elements of effective decision making and problem solving.

Goal Setting (9)

Success is the achievement of a worthwhile goal. And therefore, the first step to achieving a goal is to set it. Goal setting is the starting point of all achievement and is one of the most important topics you could study. This series of blogs discuss the elements of goal setting.

Leadership and Management (151)

Leadership is the art of setting a clear goal and inspiring others to achieve it. Management is the art of organising resources so as to most efficiently achieve that goal. This series of blogs discuss the details of leadership and management.

Mental Health (12)

Mental health is the skill of managing your own mind so as to achieve mental stability and a high degree of rationality. Mental ill health is the opposite, mental instability and irrational actions. This series of blogs, discusses how you might manage your mind.

Motivation (35)

Motivation is an emotion that induces action. Without motivation, nobody would achieve anything of value. This series of blogs discusses the various ways you can motivate yourself and others.

Other (45)

Whilst interesting and informative in their own right, these blogs don't fit into a category.

People Management (13)

People management is a combination of skills including goal setting, communication, planning, handling conflict and motivation skills. This series of blogs discusses people management skills.

Personal Development (75)

The best investment you can make is in your own personal development. If you develop your skills, knowledge and experience, then you will maximise your potential to produce excellent results. This series of blogs looks at the details of personal development.

Personal Effectiveness (87)

You are not paid for how hard you work; you are paid for your effectiveness. It is possible to improve your effectiveness and get more valuable work done in less time and effort. This series of blogs discusses how you might improve your personal effectiveness and therefore speed up your rate of progress.

Positive Thinking (9)

The quality of your results is based upon the quality of your actions. And your actions are controlled by your thoughts. To simultaneously improve both your material results and your mental health, it is vital to develop the skills of positive thinking.

Stress Management (4)

Stress can be both good for you and bad for you. Good Stress triggers improvement. Bad stress grinds you down. Stress management is about using stress to help you to improve, and to avoid the negative effects of too much stress. These blogs discuss the various aspects of stress management.

Supervisory Management Skills (4)

Supervisory management skills are a combination of five major skill sets, setting goals, communication skills, planning, performance management and motivation. These blogs discuss the details of supervisory management skills.

Team Leadership (7)

For the most part, we all work in teams. Leading the team effectively can make all the difference to the performance of the team, as a whole. This series of blogs discuss the details of team leadership.

Teamwork (19)

Teams are often composed of people who have very different personalities and skills. In order to perform well, the members of the team must work well together and play to each other’s strengths. This series of blogs covers the importance of team work skills.

Time Management (17)

Time management is about prioritising, planning, organising and delegating, so that, at any moment, you are always adding the most value, and setting the conditions for your future success. This series of blogs investigates how you might better manage your time.