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I've lost my motivation!
A client made the following statement at the start of our first coaching session.
"I was an entrepreneur and high flier now I’ve lost my motivation"
It was a statement made early on during the Covid19 "lockdowns" in 2020, but I think the following questions and considerations and are valid at any time.
The piece has been written based on my responses to my client's issue.
Having been self-driven and experienced that mental-emotional state I guess the question is about what has actually changed?
The lockdown certainly changed the way we do business and our own routines, but as a self-driven entrepreneur were you creating your own targets, your own working day?
Of course, if your business relied upon maintaining a workforce our outsourcing to others affected by lockdown then those issues will have proven difficult.
One of the things I find interesting and found interesting during the lockdown was the change in routines. My business was structured around face to face training and consulting delivery and online mentoring and coaching. In a number of cases changes in my clients working habits caused unplanned changes in mine. The answer for me was to create a daily routine that kept me effective (and thus motivated) whilst working from home.
Book-ending my day with tasks focussed on productivity and reviewing progress was very useful and kept me focused.
Restructuring and refocusing my offers to meet changing needs now, and for post-lockdown resulted in the need for research and development. Actively learning how to meet the challenges of 2021 was quite motivational.
I realised, as a self-starter, unless I created something to start on I lost energy, optimism and motivation.
I think solo-entrepreneurs businesses are In a situation they were not quite ready for. However, being flexible enough to deal with major change and building new approaches which target opportunities that will start to present themselves reflects the essence of the entrepreneurial spirit.
So some ideas….
Re-evaluate what you are offering and to whom
Redefine your goals
Establish clear daily routines. A set to start the day, a set to end the day
If working from home then actually "go to work" and focus on specific tasks
Relearn what you thought you knew about your business sector or niche
Select some relevant online courses and learn from them
And, one of the most useful things for me, invest in mentoring and coaching. If you are a coach or a consultant then you are doing what you teach and if not seriously look at the value the right mentor or coaching can bring to your business.
Some more general thoughts
The word motivation implies movement, emotion and reason.
Motive, Motion, eMotion.
All of our behaviours are motivated by either conscious goals or unconscious desires/needs. So, even though we may consciously choose a goal we want to work towards our unconscious mind may have different ideas stemming from the stories we tell ourselves. We may want to achieve that “better job” but deep inside we believe we are not good enough.
For every conscious goal we define about our path towards what we call “success”, there may be a host of limiting beliefs and attitudes lurking in our subconscious working against us. Thus our “motivational energy" is diluted. More interestingly there are parts of us that are invested in the status quo and work against change. Our current pain may be more acceptable than the fears of an uncertain future.
Thus, when we have a goal in mind disciplined and coordinated action will help us overcome the inertia of the now. The changes we seek to make in our lives are the sum result of our daily habits, routines and behaviours.
How do I gain motivation and success
think it’s worth being clear about these two terms.
Success needs to be personally defined.
What is success to you?
How will you know when you are successful?
How will your life be different when you have this thing called “success”?
In many ways, success is not a final destination but a step on a journey.
The idea of ultimate success is an illusion because once something has been achieved desires, needs, attitudes and skills will have changed. These changes inspire the next step in your evolution as a person.
Motivation is really the emotional juice that oils the cogs of your actions.
All behaviour (even your lack of enthusiasm) is motivated by ’something’ within you. So it is that something that is worth exploring.
Very often we fail to move forward to achieve our goals because of limiting self-beliefs that come from the ”stories” we have accepted about our abilities.
If you have a clear idea of what success is and the steps you can take towards it then you will be able to challenge these limiting beliefs.
Motivation comes from clearly stated steps towards a clearly defined future that inspires you emotionally.
You can be motivated to move away from something you don’t want towards something you do want but, again, that implies that you know what these “somethings” are specifically.
Alan /|\
You might find this article on Medium.com interesting :