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Neopets Slump Solutions – Get Motivated Now!


by saiphami

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You're sitting at your computer, staring blankly at the screen with lack of a better thing to do. Perhaps you have no idea what you want to work on, or maybe your routine has gotten stale. I'm talking about the "slump" that appears occasionally within Neopets users; there is a niggling thought in your brain that you ought to get something done or accomplished, yet the desire to do so has faded. You're lost.

Never fear, I'm here to help! In my years playing on the site, I've encountered a few "slumps" and I've figured out many strategies to overcome them. There are ways to get inspired or motivated to push forward or try new things, and then for the particularly stubborn slump, there are other tactics that will force the slump to retreat. Overall, I suggest trying a combo of these strategies and see what works best for you. Now, enough babbling – onto the strategies!

Target the Cause

Before you try anything else, I highly suggest trying to target what caused the slump to begin with. Did you recently reach a goal you've been working hard on? This often can cause a lack of motivation as one finds themselves without anything difficult to work on. My suggestion would be to select one large goal to gradually work on; this should be something that you will find especially challenging and you really want. Something like a hard-to-get spotlight trophy, or a completed stamp album page, or a particularly expensive item you have always wanted would work well. In addition to this large goal, I also recommend finding a handful of other, smaller goals that you wish to work on. If you are at a loss as to what these small goals could be, take a glance at your own user lookup! Try to pinpoint the weak spots in your account or things you would like to work on. Maybe you have a low neodeck count, or your pets do not have any petpetpets, or you have a gallery you have neglected! If you have avoided a particular area of your account, make that a priority to focus upon. This brings me to my next point...

Try New Things!

A slump often arises due to a routine that has gotten boring, which is why the best solution is to try something new! For example, I have a rather large goal I've been working on for a year and a half, and I'm still nowhere close to completion. Occasionally, I find myself bored of saving for this goal, so what I have done is find new ways to make greater progress towards this goal in addition to my original routine. I started betting in Food Club semi-regularly, trying the Employment Agency, and I even attempted restocking a few times. These things were new and exciting to me, and they also helped me make progress overall in saving for my goal. Even if something may not help you in achieving your specific goal, trying something new may still motivate you. Thus, I suggest figuring out what you haven't tried on the site and testing it out. You might love it!

Join a Guild

This suggestion might seem a little bizarre, but trust me on this one. Guilds are one of the most under-appreciated aspects of the site, in my opinion. They're a great way to bring like-minded people together and build wonderful friendships. I believe your time on the site is always more fulfilling when you have friends to share it with. Furthermore, guilds can build a support system that pushes you forward to work on goals even when you're not feeling it. An art guild may be full of users that have spectacular ideas on how to rejuvenate your art style and become inspired, while a writer's guild could bring ideas on how to overcome that dreaded writer's block. In addition, there are quite a few guilds that are "account improvement" guilds – some are more low-key in guiding your goals while others can be more intense. Both kinds have their benefits and can be helpful to you – check out some guild pages and lurk the guild Neoboards and see what approach appeals to you. I often find that my guild has been instrumental in me achieving what I found impossible, and they help me find things to work on that I would have never thought of. If a specific type of guild does not appeal to you, I would still suggest finding some type of guild, even a general chatting one, that you think sounds fun. A guild brings a fresh set of faces and they can be the "something new" we talked about previously to help you break your slump. Regardless, you must be sure to...

Never Give Up

It may seem cliché, but this is the truth to overcoming a slump – never give up. You may not want to work on something, but you should do it anyway. There are some days, weeks even, where I just don't want to work on anything. Yet, I'll make sure to work on something, even if it's just trying an avatar game a few times. I may not want to do it that day, but a few days later I'll find myself saying, "Hey, that was fun! I should try again and see if I can get a higher score!" If you just keep pushing forward, and working on things, your slump streak will eventually break. Just keep trying things, finding things to work on, and push yourself to keep going, and eventually that forced motivation will become a reality.

Slumps can be frustrating to all of us, because we love Neopets so much that we want to spend time on the site and enjoy it. Overcoming these slumps can certainly be difficult and challenging, but the challenge is part of why we love this site. Take that love and use these strategies and soon enough you'll defeat that stubborn slump. Now... what are you waiting for, get moving!

 
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