One of the most crucial points in your journey to grow a successful business will be how you react to the inevitable plateau that every business owner faces.
You see, when you have just started your business, motivation is not so important. You are already motivated! Getting out of bed is so easy when you have that challenge in front of you. But what do you do when the going gets tough? What can you say to yourself to keep moving when you feel like giving up?
I’ve done quite a bit of research on this topic and compiled the following motivational tips to help you drive your business forward.
1. Define your vision
There's old saying: "If you don’t know where you are going, any road will take you there." So ask yourself, what road do your want your business to take? Do you want your business to offer the best customer service in the industry? You can't achieve this goal by accident — you must be clear with what you want for your business.
Start by brainstorming. Write down every possible business goal that you want to achieve. Do you want to earn $1,000,000 every month in net revenue? Then write it down! It’s important to be open minded at this stage. Don’t think "that’s silly; it'll never happen to me." This is exactly the wrong attitude to take.
After you have a decent sized list (30 goals is a good number to aim for), pick your top five. Now rank them from first to fifth. Your number one goal should take up most of your time and focus. This is your major priority and you should immediately define some crucial action steps to achieve it.
This is where you get really specific. Think the process through from start to finish. Will you need to hire extra staff? Will you need to take out another loan? If so, when?
When you have defined your critical action points, work backwards from there: identify what will you need to do this year, next year and in three, four or five years to reach your goals. The key here is to break your goals down into yearly and quarterly goals.
Once you have set these goals, you should divide your quarterly goals into monthly and THEN weekly goals.
Every week, take time out of your usual routine of listing and shipping items and do ONE thing that you have identified as being part of your plan to reach your goals, e.g., calling a shipping company or contacting a new supplier.
Whatever it is, it should be something that helps your business grow and helps you to work towards that big dream you set in the beginning.
It may seem a little overwhelming to look at that long list, so just remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day. Take small steps towards your big goal and celebrate every small achievement. This will build momentum.
2. Collect your favorite motivational quotes
And refer to them regularly. These quotes have been handed down, over thousands of years in some cases, by the most brilliant people that the human race has ever produced. Don’t discount their power.
Here are a few of my favorites:
You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.
—
Christopher Columbus
Intelligence without ambition is a bird without wings.
—
Salvador Dali
The first man gets the oyster, the second man gets the shell.
—
Andrew Carnegie
Create your own list of motivational quotes and keep them in plain sight. You can do this in many ways. For example, you can print off your favorite quotes and keep them next to your desk, or you can collect quotes from Pinterest and Instagram and keep them in a special folder on your desktop. There is no right way to do this, so find your own method and keep at it.
3. Work when you are at your best
Do you jump out of bed roaring like a lion, ready to tackle the day? Or are you a bit slower to get started? It’s important to work through your most difficult daily tasks when you are feeling confident and strong. This is important because you don’t want to waste these precious productive hours on easier tasks like answering emails or data entry.
Furthermore, if you force yourself to adapt to a schedule that you’re naturally not suited for, you will rapidly lose motivation. This is a two-edged sword, so take this seriously and find out when you are in the "zone."
4. Plan out tomorrow
All of the most productive people in our society agree that planning out your day in advance is very important. This simple, 5-minute task achieves a lot more than you think it achieves. Not only does it take some pressure off of your shoulders for the following day, but you also mentally prepare yourself for the challenges ahead. In many cases, when you sleep on a problem, you will have an answer in the morning — at the very least you will have a clearer sense of direction.
Bonus tips to help you work from home
If finding the motivation to achieve your business goals is hard, then trying to do it from a home office (or kitchen table) can be even harder. Here are some tips that should help:
- Set aside a dedicated work space. Ideally this will be a separate room on your home. It should have minimal distractions (like TV).
- Have set hours for your work. Whether you start at 8 a.m. or 1 p.m., you need to set your work hours in stone. Keep temptations (and distractions) like running personal errands or Internet browsing from creeping into this time.
- Get dressed in clothes that make you feel professional. If you can be productive in pajamas or yoga pants, good for you, but if you are struggling to get things done, wearing shoes and casual but presentable clothes will help.
- Take breaks during work sessions. Get away from your work space for 10-15 minutes. This can help clear your mind and allow you to refocus on the task at hand.
- Enjoy leisure time away from your home or work area. Go for a jog, meet a friend for a coffee somewhere, or go to the movies. It’s important that you get away from your home if you are working from there. Cabin fever is a real thing!
Need more help for when working from home? Check out these blog posts:
Growing a business is not easy. You will have to overcome obstacles that most people don’t want to deal with. This is why you are a business owner, someone who is in charge of your own destiny. This is the price you pay for that privilege. So keep these motivational steps in mind the next time you feel like giving up, and bounce back. In the words of Muhammad Ali:
Inside of a ring or out, ain't nothing wrong with going down. It's staying down that's wrong.
Now it's your turn. Start goal setting now: What do you want your business to look like in 5 or 10 years? Be realistic, know your limits, but don't be scared to think big, either. Break those goals down into action steps that you can take each year, quarter, month and week. Set aside time every week when you do ONE thing to get you closer to that goal.
