3 Ways to Restore Your Motivation
Posted 17th October 2014 at 06:48 PM by Ryan Russo Denver
I’ve spent a lot of time talking about various ways to keep your employees motivated and engaged. But entrepreneurs lose energy, motivation, and drive, too. I’ve flirted with burn-out more than once, and it’s a bad place to be.
You know that everyone’s depending on you. You know that there are 1,000 things that really need to happen.
You also know that your brain feels like it’s pressing painfully against the back of your eyes, that your mind is moving sluggishly, and that you’d rather be doing anything else. When this happens, your business is in trouble too. You need to recharge those batteries so you can jump back into the fray.
Work on the business.
You’ve probably heard the old saw about working “on” the business vs. working “in” the business. Sometimes burnout is a good sign that you’re doing too much of the former, and not enough of the latter.
Working on the business is part of our wiring as entrepreneurs. Entering that process gets me thinking about possibilities: about where the business could go next, and how it could grow and be better tomorrow than it is today. It lifts me above the day-to-day drudgery and lets me spend some time in a more strategic mindset.
It also gives me the tools to eventually shift tasks to other people, to gradually hire some employees so that I get room to breathe.
Give yourself more time to be successful.
We’d all love to generate a multi-million dollar business overnight, but it usually just doesn’t work that way. It takes time to gain momentum. If you’re pressuring yourself to do it all faster you will wear yourself out. Thoughts like: “I was supposed to be making $10 million by the 2 year mark” can only bring you down.
Instead, take a deep breath. Focus on the next logical step. Celebrate the successes you’ve already achieved, and enjoy where you are today. You may even find that many of the things which feel terribly urgent to you really are not urgent at all.
Remember why you’re doing this in the first place.
All of us have our reasons. There’s some reason why you’re not content to just sit and work in someone else’s cubicle, whether you’re an entrepreneur because you love the thrill of building a company from the ground up or because you wanted the freedom to be your own boss.
Take the time to reacquaint yourself with your vision for what you want to accomplish. Focusing on the larger goal—instead of today’s headaches—keeps you going when nothing else can.
You may not be able to stop and take a break. Time off is a luxury that many entrepreneurs can’t afford. But you may just be able to remind yourself why this is all worth it.
You know that everyone’s depending on you. You know that there are 1,000 things that really need to happen.
You also know that your brain feels like it’s pressing painfully against the back of your eyes, that your mind is moving sluggishly, and that you’d rather be doing anything else. When this happens, your business is in trouble too. You need to recharge those batteries so you can jump back into the fray.
Work on the business.
You’ve probably heard the old saw about working “on” the business vs. working “in” the business. Sometimes burnout is a good sign that you’re doing too much of the former, and not enough of the latter.
Working on the business is part of our wiring as entrepreneurs. Entering that process gets me thinking about possibilities: about where the business could go next, and how it could grow and be better tomorrow than it is today. It lifts me above the day-to-day drudgery and lets me spend some time in a more strategic mindset.
It also gives me the tools to eventually shift tasks to other people, to gradually hire some employees so that I get room to breathe.
Give yourself more time to be successful.
We’d all love to generate a multi-million dollar business overnight, but it usually just doesn’t work that way. It takes time to gain momentum. If you’re pressuring yourself to do it all faster you will wear yourself out. Thoughts like: “I was supposed to be making $10 million by the 2 year mark” can only bring you down.
Instead, take a deep breath. Focus on the next logical step. Celebrate the successes you’ve already achieved, and enjoy where you are today. You may even find that many of the things which feel terribly urgent to you really are not urgent at all.
Remember why you’re doing this in the first place.
All of us have our reasons. There’s some reason why you’re not content to just sit and work in someone else’s cubicle, whether you’re an entrepreneur because you love the thrill of building a company from the ground up or because you wanted the freedom to be your own boss.
Take the time to reacquaint yourself with your vision for what you want to accomplish. Focusing on the larger goal—instead of today’s headaches—keeps you going when nothing else can.
You may not be able to stop and take a break. Time off is a luxury that many entrepreneurs can’t afford. But you may just be able to remind yourself why this is all worth it.
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