The Top 10 Tips for Staying Motivated!

Originally Submitted on 4/25/2000.

Many small business owners, entrepreneurs and professionals work alone. These 10 steps can help you maintain and increase your motivation so your business will continue to grow and flourish.

1. Create your business and your life around your values.

- What would you do even if you didn't have to? What are you naturally drawn to?
- What are the most important elements for your life, career, family, relationships and financial health?
- Think about times in your business and in your personal life when you were really excited and felt terrific. What values supported these experiences?
- Some examples are beauty, wealth, learning, service, spirituality, family, nurturing, winning and adventure. The closer your business is related to your values the more successful you will be.

2. Create compelling goals that will attract you.

- Are you in the right business or career? Do you feel passionately about it? Is your vision big enough to be exciting and compelling?
- Once you are clear about what your vision and values are, describe what you really want to accomplish. Describe what the value and what the rewards will be.
- Review your goals. Are you doing something because you think you should or because you want to? If it is a should do, eliminate it or restate it positively.
- Make time for both personal and professional goals so that you maintain balance.
- Celebrate success.

3. What is happening when you are not motivated?

- Is it a particular time of day?
- Is it a certain type of activity?
- Is there a deeper cause than the obvious symptom?
- Keep a diary for a week and see what patterns emerge.
- Give yourself time off and see what new ideas appear.
- Resolve the underlying issue if there is one.
- Eliminate or delegate activities you just don't like to do.

4. "Flourish in optimism."

- Find foods that give you energy.
- Ensure that you have enough light.
- Surround yourself with a supportive community and leave time for volunteer activities.
- Create 3-5 positive affirmations and repeat them at least twice a day.
- Eliminate watching the news or at least limit it to programs such as the News Hour with Jim Lehrer.
- Keep a gratitude journal and update it at the end of each day.
- Listen to motivational tapes and read inspirational books.

5. Add variety to your day.

- If most of your work is technical, add periods for creativity and vice versa.
- Set aside 10-minute breaks for easy exercise.
- Use lunch as a real break; join someone if you spend most of your day by yourself.
- Add some fun into your schedule, especially after completing challenging tasks.
- Try totally new leisure activities.

6. Try an accelerated success program.

- Identify an important goal that will make a difference personally or professionally.
- Describe the goal in compelling terms with an exciting title.
- Describe the benefit and how you will celebrate.
- Set aside one hour each day to work on the goal.
- Maintain your focus each day until the goal is achieved.

7. Follow the Grandmother Principle.*

- List the 5-7 most important tasks for the day.
- Arrange them in reverse order of ease of completing.
- Do the most difficult task first and the rest of the day will be easier.
- Progress and success are very uplifting.
* Bringing Out the Best in People by Aubrey C. Davis

8. Form a support group or partnership.

- Join a Mastermind Group.
- Find someone in a similar situation and offer support to each other.
- Start your own support group or community.
- Hire a coach.

9. Simplify.

- Let your surroundings reflect who you are and who you want to be.
- Eliminate clutter so you can eliminate distractions and energy drains. Create space for new opportunities and ideas.
- Get rid of things, activities and ideas that that no longer serve you. If you were moving into half the space, what would you keep? If you had to free up 10 hours a week, what would you eliminate?
- Give yourself time for creativity and innovation. How could you create new processes that are easier, that deliver a better experience for your clients or that you would enjoy more?

10. Get your needs met.

- This is the hardest recommendation to describe but it is the foundation for all the rest.
- Everyone has personal needs so it is not only OK but important to acknowledge them and try to meet them.
- These are things we must have to be ourselves and to have the energy to pursue our dreams and goals.
- Some examples are achievement, approval, service, freedom, balance, recognition, prosperity, assurance and control. What are yours? How are you meeting them?

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