How to stay motivated in your business when all you want to do is quit

Learning to stay motivated in your business is certainly a skill that has to be learned – unless you were born with an unreal desire to work.

There will come a time, especially if you are a solopreneur or mompreneur, when the weight of the business on your shoulders will feel heavier than you could have ever imagined.

Being your own boss is rarely easy.

Not only do you have to manage your business and all that comes with it, but you are solely responsible for keeping yourself on track and working through seasons when you don’t feel inspired or motivated to keep going.

There’s no one but you to tell you what to do, when to do it, and how much needs to be done.

So if you aren’t gifted with superhuman powers to motivate and inspire yourself, you might fall into the trap of becoming discouraged, unmotivated, and feeling like throwing in the towel on multiple occasions.

But just because you are relying on yourself to get out of this funk doesn’t mean that you can’t do it!

With a few solid strategies for getting back on your feet to feel more motivated than ever, you can kick this feeling to the curb and start pounding out work again in no time.

As a homeschooling Mom and triple business owner, I’ve learned a some powerful ways to help me get through these tough times.

Here’s just a few of my very most favorites:

Be organized

Nothing screams lack of motivation more appropriately than being disorganized – both in life and business.

I mean, how can you expect to be motivated to pursue your dreams and create new and exciting content when your workspace is clearly unmotivating?

In order to stay on track with your business, you absolutely must create and keep a tidy workspace that inspires you!

And this doesn’t have to come at a hefty price tag or take you a week to set-up.

Related: How to prepare your business for busy season when you’re a busy Mom

Just focus on getting your desk, room corner, or office space organized and ready to conquer the world.

Once you have your documents organized & your computer files cleaned up (who does this though, really?) you’ll be one step closer to staying motivated to pound the pavement and make your business dreams come true!

 

Have a plan

Are you wading through your business without a plan set in motion?

STOP THAT NOW!

You wouldn’t book a vacation without researching the best places to stay, restaurants to eat at, and shops to visit, so why would you blindly run your business?!

Creating a plan for your business serves a few purposes.

1. Helps you outline your business goals

2. Helps you to create content around your goals & marketing calendar

3. Helps your fans and customers to know what to expect and make better buys.

So when you aren’t working with a plan and only going through the motions, then you are wasting a lot of time and leaving money on the table!

Related: 3 ways to plan 6 months of content for your business

If you don’t have a plan now, then start by creating a simple marketing calendar of your promos, giveaways, and any events you plan on doing throughout the year (or even for the month).

Then you can start drafting content and tasks to work around these events and promotions.

This will at least get the ball rolling and help you become a little more organized so you can use your time more wisely!

 

Consistently create

Consistency is the biggest key when it comes to staying on track with anything in your life.

Want to get in better shape? Then you need to eat healthy and work out consistently.

Want to improve your mental health? Then you need to practice healthy thinking styles and focus on your internal feelings EVERYDAY.

Business is no different.

If you want to stay on track to reach your goals and beyond, then you need to create a habit of working and creating content.

The more that you do, the easier it will become.

Practice makes perfect and if you spend a lot of time working on certain aspects of your business, then these actions will eventually take less time and become a habit when performed enough.

This is where a good content schedule comes into place.

If you have goals, ideas, and a plan put into place, it will be much easier to stay on track and keep working – even if you don’t want to.

If you stop working to get the word out for your business, you might find that business to dry up quicker than you’d know how to water it again.

Related: I took 6 months off from marketing my business: here’s what happened

Don’t make that mistake – it could tank your business fast and hard.

Create checklists

Writing out checklists for tasks in my business has been the most simple way to keep myself accountable to stay on track and keep going, even when I want to quit.

Nothing is more satisfying than looking down at a checklist to see everything has been checked off.

Just how nothing is quite as disappointing than looking at a checklist to see that nothing was checked off.

Creating lists and working off them will not only keep you accountable, but will help you stay focused with what needs done in your business – say goodbye to the mindless social media scrolls!

Personally, I use 3 lists for my business(es).

First, I have a monthly list of goals I want to achieve.

Then I break those goals down into weekly tasks – from there I assign each day of the week a certain amount of attainable tasks to work on. (the key word is attainable – don’t fill your to-do lists with too much, or too little, or you could get burnt-out pretty quick!)

I also have daily checklists and from there I put my highest priority tasks that NEED my attention right away.

These are usually things that pop up last minute, but need my immediate attention. Once I complete that list, I move on over to my weekly list that has my assigned daily tasks.

Creating lists helps me stay motivated, keeps me on track, and helps me work more efficiently (without wasting time being distracted on social media).

Related: 6 time management tips for work from home Moms

 

Remember your ‘why’

When I wake up to days where I only want to pull the covers back over my head, ignore my responsibilities, and binge watch Netflix all day, I remind myself WHY I created my business in the first place.

That usually snaps me out of it.

For me, I started all of my businesses from a desire to help our family’s income status while simultaneously staying at home with my kids so I can raise & educate them.

If I stopped working – we’d be okay, but we wouldn’t have the enrichments in our life that make it more enjoyable.

Being able to buy a home, furnish our house, go out to eat, and save up for a vacation wouldn’t be as easily attainable if it were just my husband providing for us.

I love being able to take my kids out for a random lunch dates, explore new places as part of our home school regime, and buy myself a new outfit once in awhile. Plus, not having to worry about making ends meet is a lifestyle I am willing to work hard at everyday to make happen.

The last thing you want to do is give up when your reasons for starting are greater than your setbacks.

Whatever your reasons are (and they need to be good, compelling reasons), make sure you have them branded in your mind when you are feeling unmotivated to keep going.

So, whenever you are having a rough day and get that feeling of calling it quits, just remind yourself how you can manage through it and turn it around to make the most if it!

Do you ever feel unmotivated as a business owner? What helps you get back on track?

Let’s discuss it in the comments below!