How To Keep Your Motivation Moving Forward

Have you ever been inspired by someone who is successful in business? Maybe you want to be like that businessperson. In fact you are so inspired that you want to take action. You say, “This person has moved me,” or “has inspired me.” So what do you do? You make a concerted effort for a short period of time to be like that person. But alas the motivation and inspiration doesn’t last. Why?

Because it is really something that comes from outside of you rather than inside of you. Your inspiration is ‘out there’ so to speak and not ‘grounded’ in you. Only when you inspire yourself because of what you do will motivation stick, and if you continue to act out the behavior you will gain traction or momentum to continue the behavior.

A Business Example.
You have just read an article about the importance of business planning (the importance of working “on” your business and not “in” your business) and the long term benefits you would receive if you developed a business plan. Your inspired! You begin to do it and then after some time of working “on” your business your enthusiasm starts to wane. You start saying to yourself, “Maybe I don’t have to develop that plan – I’m too busy doing stuff.” You begin to procrastinate. Soon you are back to being busy ‘doing’ and not working ‘on’ your business. You find you lack the self-discipline to stay with it. Sound familiar?

Now if you approached it with a different perspective like, “It’s important for me to develop a business plan, not because someone said so, but because I’m convinced it will give my business direction. I am responsible for my own business and a business plan will help me strengthen my focus, set priorities, clarify my personal values and the values for the business and give me a set of actionable goals. In the end I will feel better, sleep more soundly, and improve my lifestyle.” This is not something someone else is telling you. You are affirming it to yourself. You have taken the first step to realizing your goal of working “on” your business and not just working “in” your business.

Once you personally commit to working on your business plan and you actually prepare it, you are reinforcing your ‘non-procrastinating’ behaviour. You start it and bring it to fruition. It is this stick-to-it process that is difficult for most people. The start is the beginning and bringing it to completion is the end. It is what you do in the middle of the start and end where momentum takes place. And it is in the momentum where inspiration and motivation occurs. Your ideas begin to percolate and creativity begins to take hold.

But here is the kicker, if you want your business plan to succeed and not just sit on your shelve or on your computer you must actualize it and make it happen. You must keep the momentum going. And this is often the hardest part.  

It is in the actualization of the business plan where you enter the realm of ‘real’ momentum. As you actualize your plan you are moving toward achieving something for yourself. You are inspired and motivated from within - it is you motivating and inspiring yourself not someone or something outside of you. You now want to keep going because you are doing something to reinforce your plan. Not only that as you actualize your plan you begin to see the results of your efforts. So It is not the effort of others that inspires it is your own efforts and results that inspire.

What Happens When You Don't Keep Your Promise
Now let’s look at it from a different perspective. Every time you break a promise to yourself it usually bothers you. It niggles at you and after a while you start doubting yourself and wondering if you can achieve your goals. And if you do this often you let yourself down and your confidence about achieving goals is lessened.

However, when you keep your promise to yourself you strengthen your self-respect and build your confidence and every day that you take action you are gaining momentum and more confidence and self-respect.

As you strengthen your momentum, you are strengthening your stamina, your self-discipline for what you are doing and from that point on it is matter of reinforcing your activity and improving it. After a period of time, let’s say three or four months you will find you have progressed and your results will then inspire you to achieve even more. Your motivation is now forcefully coming from within. And this is the motivation that counts.

You no longer need someone to motivate you. You are using your own progress and achievements and you are inspiring yourself in the process. You have now set a new pattern of behavior, and once that pattern has set you have taken on a new habit – that of self-discipline because you have learned the ‘stick-to-it-ness’ of getting things done.

The Busy Business Person
Now let’s take this scenario and put it into the context of the busy businessperson – the solopreneur. These busy people can easily be juggling many roles in life, not only are they running a business they may also be a parent, a community representative, a member of a business association and a faith community and so on. Added to their roles they have the pressures of making sure they have enough cashflow to meet expenses and make a profit, they find themselves marketing, selling, keeping administrative records and maintaining their own healthy lifestyle and dealing with the anxieties of everyday living.

That’s different than the person who has time on his hands, who has developed a business so that it runs on its own and experiences less pressures in life. This businessperson enjoys life and is satisfied within himself. Isn’t that the paradox of life? He who has is often given more. So the busy businessperson who is not in this situation is going to have to fight for what he believes is necessary and make the commitment to move forward. The word here is ‘commitment’ coupled with daily discipline and reinforcement to achieve the desired outcome.

This is true with whatever we do in life – we need to commit and move forward. It is less about making comparisons with others and more about doing what is necessary on a daily basis for ourselves until we achieve the necessary momentum to make the difference. Then it is a matter of improving the behavior so that we are gradually becoming better versions of ourselves. With each improvement we move towards a more satisfied self in mind, body and spirit.

In conclusion, be responsible and accountable for driving your own inspiration and motivation and build the self-discipline to make it happen. That’s all there is to it. Now is the time to start gaining momentum in all that you do.

By the way if you need help in developing a business plan fill out the contact form below and I will set up an interview with you
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As always folks take care, keep safe and continue becoming the best version of yourself.

Thank you for reading,
Richard.