What is the difference between someone who is successful in moving something forward and someone who isn’t. It may come down to the amount of motivation you possess for the goal or dream you are trying to accomplish.
My friends at Merriam – Webster provide the following definition for motivation: 1) the act or process of giving someone a reason for doing something : the act or process of motivating someone 2) the condition of being eager to act or work : the condition of being motivated 3) a force or influence that causes someone to do something.
Your dream may put on its work clothes because you have an inner drive or energetic sensation bursting out, requiring you to act immediately. It is a motivational moment. The problem with motivation is it can falter. Faltering occurs when you hit roadblocks or constant challenges, when you can’t make that needed time or perhaps the bank account balance and credit card limits have reached critical threshold. You may already be doing something that you absolutely love, but recent changes in the work environment or your life make be causing you to lose interest.
Let me give you an example. Have you ever heard a motivational speaker? They have a way of creating a message that energizes you. How about a new campaign or project launch? Efforts are made to make sure it connects and inspires the people involved so they stay focused on moving forward. Perhaps you can relate this in terms of a really good book or movie. They words or scenes connect at a level that drives you to turn the page or watch the movie anticipating what happens next.
As it is fall, let’s talk football. There is a fast moving extremely close game you are engaged in, waiting to see what happens on every snap. Who will score next? What trick play hasn’t been used? As the clock ticks down you are even more captivated. You are motivated to watch until the very end. Same day, another game and it’s a blowout. If you aren’t a diehard fan of one of the teams playing you probably won’t think much about turning the channel or moving on to something else. Why? There is no motivation or connection to continue.
When I joined my wellness team I was focused and ready to move. I knew the products, I understand the positive effects they can have on peoples lives. I wanted to tell everyone and grow my business. For me it checked two big boxes in my life: 1) Helping people 2) growing my own business that produces residual income. Then the roadblocks started. My business could not sustain me financially at that point. I still needed the income from my full-time job. There was also a move, a new job, and a teenager heading to college. Finances were tight and success wasn’t just knocking on the door. I’ll admit it…I lost motivation and direction.
I then realized there was a direct correlation to my motivation. It increased when I was keeping myself engaged with the team, attending any and every team event I could. I also decided to dedicate even the smallest amount of time to move my wellness business forward daily. Celebrate every success, even the small ones! You are giving a lot of yourself toward your dream and giving up other things to get there. If it seems like you are only giving and never seeing a result you will loose motivation to continue. With a strong dream you have a vision of where to start and the successful results can be vividly clear. Many times, we cannot see the journey that occurs between those two points.
Have a mentor – this is a person you can bounce ideas off of, discusses challenges, pitch plans to. They listen, provide guidance and give you that dose of sometimes needed reality. They are an important part of your journey. Don’t forget to also have a MOTIVALTIONAL MENTOR! That’s right, someone who is willing to be your cheerleader and provide a daily dose of encouragement. It can be a text message, phone call, coffee or lunch meeting once in a while. It needs to be someone who is naturally positive, inspires you and really connects with you…your own personal motivational guru.
Take the time to look at what surrounds you! Let’s say you sold almost everything, moved into a very small apartment, brought minimal furniture and it comes with the standard white walls. For me that would be boring and eventually depressing. If I add some color, a picture of the final “success”, flowers, a diffuser with amazing scents I would feel more motivated and inspired to live like this to reach the goal I see in that picture every day.
Perhaps you see yourself with a certain type car once you reach point X. Go test drive the car, look it up on line, build the perfect model. Print out the specs you want. Have it ready to go! Maybe you want to go on a island vacation or visit the Mediterranean coast line. Plan the trip, do some research on the places you will go. Really make the trip come to life. Pick another point X where this will happen. Line up the trip with a specific point in your goals progress.
Inc. has a great article by Lolly Daska titled “19 Highly Effective Ways to Stay motivated”. Write each of these steps down and then detail them out for your dream. Yes, it will take time, but it will also keep you motivated (https://www.inc.com/lolly-daskal/19-simple-ways-to-stay-motivated-that-actually-work.html)!
- Understand your why
- Define your goal
- Create a clear vision
- Produce a plan
- Look for the bigger picture
- Keep it positive
- Approach tasks in new ways
- Break goals into manageable tasks
- Get organized
- Tackle procrastination head on
- Seize the power of deadlines
- Stop multitasking
- Starve your distractions
- Stay in the zone
- Choose success
- Keep it fun
- Harness the power of optimism
- Reward yourself
- Visualize yourself succeeding
Start by breaking down your dream in a step building exercise. Grab a small notebook you can carry with you. When you have a few minutes complete a step, once you finish writing pieces for each step move onto the next. Once completed dedicate an hour or two to enhancing the step with as much detail as you can. Then use the sections to drive your dream forward.
Do you have a dream that remains just a dream? There is a great book by John Maxwell called Put Your Dream to the Test. I will be teaching the lessons from this book very soon. If you’d like to get information on my upcoming dream mastermind email positivityactivator@gmail.com.
Signing off, sending positive energy your way!
~ Tania, Positivity Activator
PositivityActivator 