What are the three keys to self improvement and motivation?
1. INSPIRATION.
Inspiration is critical to staying motivated and improving oneself. If you are not interested in your business, your motivation level will never be high and you will not be able to sustain interest for very long.
Take an honest look at your inspiration level. Are you excited about going to work or is it an obligation? You would be surprised at the number of people who choose a business that looks good on paper, but in reality does not interest them in the least.
These individuals will grow weary and uninterested pretty quickly because they have no inspiration or passion to sustain them during the difficult times they will encounter as a small business owner.
If you do not like your work, then think how you can re-focus your small business to better match your needs. Or consider making a change entirely. Without inspiration, there will not be motivated to even try self improvement.
2. SETTING GOALS.
Short and long-term goal setting is vital for any business owner. If you do not set goals, you would have no definite purpose on which path of self improvement to take.
How could you possibly be motivated if you were unsure about the direction of your company?
Take the time to put your goals in writing. A business plan may sound daunting, but it is really nothing more than goals, strategies, implementation and a budget. Write your own business plan and update it at least annually.
Include “mini-goals” that can be accomplished in a matter of hours, days or weeks as well as the more ambitious “grand-goals” that may take years to complete. Refer to this plan throughout the year.
But can a business plan really help motivate you? Of course. Written goals will make you feel more professional and certainly more connected to your business. It will also free you from having to reinvent your business goals every single day.
3. NETWORKING.
Another key factor in getting and staying motivated is networking with other small business owners. No one person knows all the knowledge.
However, when a number of people begin working together, the challenges will just be there waiting to be conquered.
In fact, the isolation of working alone is of one the most difficult parts of being an entrepreneur. You can never be on your way to self improvement without the help of others. Mutual support is motivating.
Make it easier on yourself by connecting with others either in your community or online. Even when businesses are not related, you will often find common ground and ways to work together.
Many successful entrepreneurs report that finding the right networking group was a turning point in the growth of the business. Working together, a networking group can help its members generate more qualified sales leads and solve problems faster and more efficiently.
Sharing ideas, expertise and experience is also an invaluable aspect of motivation and self improvement.
Your own personal team of business owners will help re-energize you when the burdens of running your own business seem too much.
With your networking team to rely on, you can accomplish more in less time and probably have more fun in the process. You will feel motivated to accomplish self improvement when you know you are not alone.
Remember: Success comes from Passion, Persistence and Purpose.
Cheers…Paul Mracek
Good points — I’m very guilty of the “isolation” issue, because I tend to stay in my home office. Lately I’ve acquired clients that necessitate getting out and about, and it’s changed my whole view of things!
I’ve been doing some self-improvement work lately (my office is so much tidier!), mostly because I simply had to change or I couldn’t function. So I’ve been reading lots of different web sites and perusing books for help. Natural Success Principles by Jack Hatfield takes a very interesting approach. As the result of a personal situation (premature birth of his daughter), he did studying and thinking, and believes (and wrote about) that we are all born with the necessary tools to success. We just have to nurture them, and give them room to grow and emerge. Now, he’s not saying this is magic: you still have to work, you still have to have goals, etc., and be willing to change to Plan B if Plan A doesn’t work out. But it’s a very interesting concept.
,
Hi Lizzie…thanks for the great comments, they are always the best when they come from the heart and learnt from experience. It is very easy to get into habits that take us away from interacting with others, which in the end is not productive for us to be able to learn and grow, this really only happens when we interact with others.
Thanks for the note on the book by Jack Hatfield, I have a friend who had the same problem with a son who was born 20 weeks premature and have gone through a lot of learning’s. Will check the book out that you suggest.
I am on the same page with what he is saying and have also put down my thoughts in a book which is called “Kotan – The Way to Mind and Body Balance” you can find it http://www.kotanaustralia.com. Kotan is a Japanese word that means “Elegant Simplicity” when applied to your life and that solutions to our problems are not as difficult as we tend to make them.
I am sure that you will find it intesting and relative to where you are at in your career and life at the moment.
Thanks again for stopping by.
Best wishes…Paul