Anywhere you look on the Internet you will see it. Free money! Great work from home opportunity! Make six figures in a month while wearing your pajamas! Buy this program and you will become a millionaire in three weeks! I'm a dreamer just like everyone else, so I read the ads. But I also apply the logic in my brain and apply the equation: "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is". And five years from now I will be regretting not trying at least something, even if it sounds too good to be true!

Today was one of those days when it is hard to get going. At the office all day long the only thing I could think about was all the projects at home I could be working on. When I finally got home all those exciting projects did not seem so exciting anymore. And they most likely will not be exciting until Monday, when I am back at work angry at myself for not taking advantage of the weekend to get those projects done.

With my "Getting Things Done" list in my back pocket, full of Someday Maybes, Projects, Waiting Fors, and Next Actions, I was on a mission to knock something off my list. Only I was stuck in the "what should I do first?" mode. You may know the feeling; you move from room to room, trying out each chair, waiting for a magical burst of energy to engage full tilt accomplishing "Next Actions". It didn't come. It wasn't going to come. I would have to create my own ignition sequence.

There was a basket of laundry next to my dresser, clean, fresh, neatly folded, waiting to be stuffed into overflowing drawers containing every t-shirt I had every purchased, earned by completing a 5 or 10K race, or received free at some promotional gimmick. About every three years I would sadly depart with one or two of these t-shirts, even through they were paint-stained, full of holes, with any advertising or logos completely unrecognizable. I had been waiting for years..... yes years to really go through everything and get rid of clothes that no longer fit, were completely out of style, or so worn out that they couldn't stay up (my socks were always around my ankles).

So I started by taking all my clothes out of my dresser and out of the closet and put everything on a table. I next sorted everything, moving only the clothes that fit and had a life left in them to the "keep" pile. Everything else went into the Goodwill pile if the condition was good, or the trash or "this t-shirt will make a great rag" pile for items worn out. In less than an hour the mission was accomplished, with an embarrassing number of clothes to provide to Goodwill. Once I got started it was easy, and like everyone else I had some clothes in excellent condition that I just never wear. They will now go to someone who can wear them.

When I pulled out my list from my back pocket I saw that this had been a project for.... three plus years. I crossed it off and added the item: take clothes to Goodwill.

So, the next time you are stuck in a motivation slump take a look at how you can help others by giving something away. It's an easy thing to cross off your list and you feel recharged once you complete it!

Pete Michaels often writes about job opportunities, volunteering, and coaching. He is a contributor to the Motivation Tricks website and blog at http://www.motivationtricks.com