We all have ideas. Some are better, others are worse. What is common in all of them is that they have an expiration date.
They are like food that you should eat while it is fresh. Ideas last as long as you are inspired to develop them. That is why it is so important to stay motivated if you are going to start a business.
It is not enough to motivate yourself only when developing your business idea. You must establish daily habits to stay inspired, to maintain the magic of the moment. In this article, I give you my ideas put into practice that I hope will help you.
Content
Write your goals for one month, one year, three and five years
A year ago, I randomly began reading a book that initially seemed like a typical scam. But if you look at the recommendations and make the plan that the author describes, you get an excellent idea of what your actual goals are.
The writer is Laura Posey, and the book is “How To Plan Your Entire Year On One Sheet Of Paper”.
I made the plan she talks about in the book. Despite its simplicity, this method helps you envision your life goals in both personal and business dimensions.
It is essential to choose the path you want to follow, and to know how many stones it will have, what type of soil, what direction, etc. If you just think, “My goal is to make money,” I’m sorry to tell you that you won’t get very far with this. You must be more specific, and Laura explains what you should look at.
Establish your routine
I’m not telling you to follow it at any price, just make a plan for the day. This way, if during the day you ramble, and you don’t know what to do now, look at your plan. It is always better to have a routine guide, even if you do not follow it.
My way of organizing is using the Google calendar. I write down everything I have to do in a set color and then change it to basil green when it’s done. I am moving the tasks that I haven’t done to other days.
It may seem that in some days I have done nothing. And that made me feel bad for not achieving my goals. So I started a paper agenda. In it, I write everything I do during the day. And yes, putting the dishwasher counts!
In this way, I see how I complete the small tasks that at some point, lead me to green this larger task on my calendar. Which brings me to the next point…
Big goals: Divide everything into “steps”
I divide each task into steps and use the Trello boards, where I write each big task in small steps with the Checklist. I can do each step in half an hour or so. So every day I do half an hour of different tasks, and I progress little by little in each one. Up to three big tasks a day!
For example, I put “Writing an article” as a task. My Checklist is:
- writing an article outline (key points),
- research studies,
- writing Introduction,
- writing point 1–2,
- writing point 3 and end,
- choosing an image and a title,
- choosing the words by which someone would search for this article.
It may not take half an hour in some steps, so much better. It gives me time to take another little step!
Set your priorities
It is easy to say that health must come first. And you would say to me: “When you have bills to pay, who will care about your health?”
It always has to matter to you! Life is the only thing we have and along with it, health. If you don’t take care of yourself, nobody can do it for you!
I give you as an example the one they gave me in a maternity class. If you are on a plane and there is an emergency, who do you put the mask on first: your child or yourself?
Surely you have heard this example, but if not, the answer is you. Because if you pass out from lack of oxygen, there will be no one to assist your child. In your business and even more, if you are self-employed, it is the same. So put on your mask and take care of yourself!
Put on the brake
You could work from 8 in the morning until 10 at night, eating in front of the computer. I’ve done it! And on weekends too!
I came not to know what day it was and not to enjoy the food. Sometimes I didn’t know if I had eaten and I would look in the garbage if I had thrown away the packaging of what I had bought (normally microwave-heated fast food).
And yes, we are all capable of working 14 hours a day, but is it worth it? NO!
After a few months at this rate, I had to go on vacation with my family. That was the moment I realized what I was missing. Also, I read some books and applied the points above. I realized how unproductive I have been working for so many hours in a row.
Manage your money
As I said before, you must first establish your priorities. So, if you know you are short of money, it is not essential to buy this latest generation mobile to talk to your customers. Buy yourself a practical and cheap one that will solve your life.
I know many people who are in debt and yet they are spending their money on luxury cars that they cannot afford. They pay in instalments, and when they can no longer take it, the bank keeps the car and all the money invested has disappeared.
If you want to develop your business idea and go far, learn to save up!
Read as if your life depends on it
And not just what your friends on Facebook write about! An entrepreneur must know everything. Keep in mind that you are like a 2-year-old who needs to learn everything from scratch, but you also know how to read!
I suggest you read books on business, success stories of other entrepreneurs, articles on accounting, taxation for entrepreneurs, investment, etc. You must perceive a little about everything, and I do not say “know” consciously.
Understand what is happening in the world, and how the environment in which you move works, what others like you do in other countries. All of this will help you stay motivated day by day.
Follow your own motivational style
What I mean is that it works for some to read motivating phrases, while for others, it seems like a waste of time and effort. Some find inspiration in crafting word lists, while others seek motivation through conversations with inspiring individuals.
We each have our tastes. Even, depending on the moment, it can inspire us what we would reject in other situations. Follow your own rhythm! Don’t let the so-called “gurus” dictate your life. Trust your own judgment and inner voice above all else.
Sleep to achieve your goals
One must sleep. That’s obvious! But “how will sleeping motivate me?” The answer has to do with our brain. You may have heard that children must sleep because it is at this time that they digest what happened while they are awake.
The same is true for us adults. To develop our projects, our creativity, talk to clients and convince them of the properties of our products/services, we need to have our mind “free”. If you don’t get enough rest, your mind is still processing the latest events and cannot focus on what you ask.
Some people need 6 hours of sleep, and others need 9. Leave the statistics to the leaders! Try to discover what is right for you. Maybe you are one of those who go to bed at 2 in the morning and get up at 8. If you’re well-rested, focused, and it seems like a good fit, then absolutely go for it!
Write what goes through your mind
I have read of people who have notebooks even in the bathroom to write if they have any great ideas while you know… Others use technological solutions and applications such as Google Keep, for example.
Write everything down where it best suits you and take a quick look at your notes from time to time. You never know when they would become logical and common sense.
Live it up a little
As I mentioned before, it is not worth working 14 hours a day, 7 days a week. It is neither healthy nor beneficial if you don’t care for yourself from time to time.
This whim can be going camping for a weekend and disconnecting your mobile phone, enjoying nature and recharging your “batteries”. It can be having your coffee in the morning listening to the sounds of birds on your mobile, closing your eyes and moving to the place you visited in Ireland long ago. Anything works!
Keep in mind that your goal should be to enjoy the journey, not merely to arrive. When you get to the end, the experience itself should have left a trace on you. This footprint is the seed, the idea of your next project, of the new path you are going to enjoy.
Related articles
Know Your Target Audience for Your Business
How To Earn More And Make Your Customers Happy (without lowering prices)