Be serious but enjoy yourself.
Take your business seriously but at the same time, enjoy what you are doing. Putting the effort into your business that it needs will lead to personal satisfaction, a must if you wish to grow to the extent that you will reach financial stability. If you work from a home office, there may be some who will not look at your business as real work. Being highly motivated and extremely well organized will help your business stay on track. Sticking to your plan, setting reasonable goals and taking the time to investigate all options before making big decisions will help you to project a professional image.
If your planned your business around something which you enjoyed doing and it has always held your interest, then you were already halfway there. The ability to enjoy yourself while taking your business seriously is an important quality in a business owner. The majority of business owners are very good at developing serious qualities but not so great at knowing how to enjoy themselves at the same time.
Learn and work hard.
Working hard means to work not just on your business, but also to work on yourself. Learning new things, whether business related or not, can keep you moving mentally. Become as much of an expert as you can on business issues that pertain to your niche but also take the time to learn about things that are of interest to you and outside the scope of your business. It makes you a more interesting person and who knows? It may lead to a whole new business later on in life. Those who succeed tend to be those who love to learn, who are always seeking out new learning opportunities and enjoy the tools that help them get ahead. Consider this as an investment in yourself, the more effort you put in, the more you will reap the rewards.
Working hard means working smart. Know which areas will benefit the most from your energy and spend the most amount of time on those. Prioritize tasks so the most essential items are completed to the best of your ability. Look to the future and what you will gain from your hard work. The ant didn’t get ahead by listening to the grasshopper, he ensured his future by listening to himself and working hard.*
Motivate yourself to gain strength.
In order to succeed at your business, you will need to be strong and in order to be strong, you must remain motivated. The two go hand in hand. Not everyone has what it takes to motivate themselves, which is why not everyone is a great small business owner. Holding yourself accountable, without the quality of your work suffering, will be one of the most important things you can do in order to succeed at your business. Without someone managing you, being capable of managing yourself is a quality you will want to develop.
Self-motivation is very much tied to your attitude. Try to keep as positive a frame of mind as possible by checking how you react to other people’s moods and statements. Never forget that you choose your reaction. If you find yourself reacting negatively, take a step back and think about the reason you’re reacting this way and try to put a positive spin on it. It affects your mood and makes you realize that you are in control. Staying in control of your emotions leads to inner strength, always a good thing to help you on the road to success.
Everyone’s definition of success differs and for most, the qualities needed will differ also. Take a long look at yourself and figure out which of your qualities stand out the most. Stress those the most as you grow your business and work on the others that you feel you need.
© Chris Draper, DemGen Inc. 2013
*The Ant and the Grasshopper, Aesop’s Fables
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