We are all born different, so what I am about to share may or may not work for you because there is not just one set of rules for all of humanity.

For me, motivation comes pretty easily.  I spring out of bed, happy to embrace the day and ready to take on a new challenge.  That’s my persona and probably 80% of the time it is no effort for me to get started on work.

However, it is that 20% of the time that I have to work harder at keeping up my motivation.  And this is where I have learned some simple keys that work for me and that I want to share with you.

Key 1:  ”Work never killed you…it’s just the thought of it that did.”

I remember my mother used to say this to me as a young person.  She’d ask me to do something for her and I’d be dragging my feet and she’d just nail the problem…my stinking thinking.  Doing the dishes and washing clothes were always the killers.  It would take me a long time to get motivated but once I was there and got started I actually didn’t mind the work and there was a deep sense of satisfaction that came from seeing the kitchen shining and the clothes neatly folded and packed away in my drawers!

So our first battleground is in the mind.  Change the way we think about what it is that we need to do and it will become easier.

Key 2:  Just do it – adopt a Nike attitude to life!

Sometimes tasks just niggle at you and niggle at you and like the unwanted food on your plate, they get pushed around the plate, moving aside to accommodate more interesting projects, but the truth is that the whole time those undone tasks are niggling away at your brain and causing you to worry and to be anxious because you know that your procrastination is going to catch up with you.

So in these moments when I can see that I am pushing a task around my desk but not actually getting on with it, I actually say out loud to myself, “Just do it, Hayley!”  And I deliberately (and I mean deliberately) make myself get started on it.  9 times out of 10 what I was worred about and the reason why I didn’t want to do it was because it was slightly complicated and I knew I’d have to use my brain to solve the problem. The truth is that when you actually get down to it, they are not as complicated as previously assumed and the end result is the job is done and off your conscience and you can’t put a price on the feeling of a clear conscience.

Key 3:   Partner with others

I cannot stress enough how valuable it is to have other people that you can partner with to keep up your motivation in your business.  I have many people in my life that I work with that help me to keep motivated and on track and they really are invaluable.

So if you feel like something is a bit hard and you don’t really know where to start or just can’t get over that first hump, grab a business friend or business mentor and work on it together.  There is definitely strength in a group and a good support group can really not only help you to keep up your motivation but really propel you forward.  This was the whole motivation behind creating the Empowered Entrepreneur‘s group that I run on Facebook.  It’s a closed group that has 20 entrepreneurs who are committed to supporting each other and in doing that they are sharing information, providing online support and helping each other to keep motivated and inspired.  It really does work a treat.

So there are three keys to keeping up your motivation.  I’d love to hear your comments, so please post below and if you could share this article with your friends that will help them also.

I also offer business mentoring services if you feel like you need someone to be accountable with and to get inspired by.  Just fill in my email opt-in on the home page to make the most of a free 30 minute introductory consultation with me.