If you’re in a motivational slump, your business can suffer. Repetitive, same-old routines can cause you to lose motivation and cause you to passively sit by waiting for something to happen and improve. You might find yourself looking forward to distractions like weekends and holidays. This is deadly! After all, you were full of passion and hope when you started your business. What happened to that fire? How did it go from a roaring fire to a feeble flicker where you’re just going through the motions?
Even if your situation isn’t quite that drastic, you can benefit from implementing checkpoints, or rewards that keep you motivated when the day-to-day grind is getting you down.
Checkpoints are not milestones. Milestones are measurements of achievement. Checkpoints are just something to look forward to, some satisfying reward, that can keep you going when you’d rather quit.
When you reach a milestone, there is a lot of internal reward that comes from a feeling of satisfaction for a job well done. Checkpoints don’t rely on internal motivation. They are external motivators like tangible items. There’s nothing wrong with a little bribery to get yourself to do something you don’t want to do, or something you find dreadfully boring!
Checkpoints can include:
● an extra day off after a project is completed
● a thank-you event for your staff (it doesn’t have to be huge – a BBQ is a great way to say thanks!)
● a “surprise” performance bonus for you and your staff (of course you know about it, but they don’t and it’s such a pleasure to go above and beyond for them and surprise them with an unexpected gift!)
Spread your checkpoints out so that they are like carrots for you throughout the year. If your business is seasonal and you have a few months of down time where suddenly the tip of your pencil becomes the most fascinating object in the world… make some checkpoints! Give yourself a reward for organising the files; for catching up on paperwork; for updating your staff’s training… whatever needs to be done, do it and then reward yourself with a little extra.
Inspired by a post on http://www.pluginid.com/.