How do you stay Motivated?

Tonight's topic is partly for you guys, but mainly for me. Tonight I have been struggling with motivation....a LOT... I have been busy getting all kinds of tasks, projects and business completed, but there are days where I completely lose motivation to do anything. It is days, or evenings, like that that cause me to ask the question, how do you stay motivated?

This topic was touched upon in a prior blog, but after re-reading that blog, I found there there was a lot missing. Actually, there are tons of books on motivation, so how do I think a brief blog on motivation will cover all aspects? Silly me... But, since I have been lacking in motivation this evening, it is a good time to re-visit the topic. I suspect that everyone wrestles with motivation, or lack thereof, at some point in their life. There are motivation seminars, there are also books and audio all covering motivation. I am by no means an expert on motivation, but I will freely admit that I struggle with motivation. Motivation, or lack of motivation can be the bane of the home-based business entrepreneur. If you want to grow your business, you have to remain motivated the majority of the time. But, due to human nature, motivation will come and go. The key is to harness that energy when you have it and use it to the best of your ability.

In order to remain motivated, one trick you can do is to determine the time of day when you feel you are the most productive. Some people tend to get a lot of work done in a short period of time first thing in the morning. There are also those who do their best work late at night. You know what time of the day you are most productive. Choose to do some of your more challenging tasks during that time of day. That way, when you are most motivated, you will have fewer challenges, distractions (or excuses) when completing those tasks. After that, when your energy level starts waning, you will be more motivated to get the easier tasks done because you are relieved at having finished a big, challenging task. Haven't you noticed that once you finish a task you have been dreading, you have more energy? Same concept. Get the hard stuff done when you are feeling your strongest. Then when you are on the "high" at having a big task completed you will be more motivated to complete other tasks.

Another item to help retain motivation is to learn to say "NO". It is critical to learn how to say 'no' to distractions or to small tasks that crop up during the day. I am not suggesting that you don't do those tasks, but learn to put the unimportant tasks off until you complete the bigger task that you are currently working on. By saying 'no' to distractions, you are beginning the prioritization process. You will find that those distractions will then either go away because they resolved themselves, or once you finish the project at hand, the smaller task is much easier to deal with. It is also a major kick to be able to put a small task on your 'To Do' list and then cross it off later in the day.

"To Do" lists can also be a great motivator, as long as you don't make the list impossibly long. When you create your list, be sure that you have identified things that can be completed in a reasonable day. If you make your list pages long, that can become a major demotivator. If you have a lot of tasks that must get completed, write your "To Do" list in a manner that some projects are completed in one day, and then assign other, less urgent, tasks to another day. By spreading all the things that must be done over days, it makes all that you have to do much more manageable and again, you get a great motivational boost when you can cross tasks off your list. Be sure when you create you list that you do not carry "To Do's" from one day to the next. If you do that, you will again have the problem of too many things to do in too short a period of time. If you cannot finish a particular task in one day, look to see when you can complete it, assign it to that day, then move other tasks appropriately. Do not assume that you can complete 28 hours worth of work in a 24 hour day. It is not possible, or if it is possible, it is not reasonable to expect. Doing that on more than an exception basis is also extremely demotivating.

Lastly (for tonight), when you are feeling a distinct lack of motivation, go out and get some exercise. Exercising outside may not be possible all the time, but be sure to find some physical outlet that can allow you to take a mental and physical break. You can do a brisk walk outside, or do some push ups or jumping jacks inside. Exercising will help you to de-clutter your physical body and release endorphins into your blood stream. Endorphins are what make you feel good, and by releasing them, you are allowing your body to relax a little bit. You may even find that if you were facing a challenging problem prior to exercising, when you are done, you may have found a simple solution to the challenge. Exercising is great not just for clearing your physical body, but can help to clear your mind of unintended obstacles.

Hopefully these ideas on how to stay motivated were helpful and heck, ....even motivating...

If you find that you are stressed out because of financial concerns, you may want to explore second income opportunities. We specialize in second income coaching and consultation and have a wide array of business opportunities that you can review. One of these opportunities may be just the thing you were looking for and may be what keeps you motivated. You can also just e-mail us with any questions or concerns you may have, we would love to help you.

Until tomorrow...