Motivation-Boosting Tips From 8 Of The Greatest Entrepreneurs
Article by www.entrepreneurmag.co.za
Motivation is a daily struggle for entrepreneurs, so I’ve put together these motivation-boosting tips from eight of today’s most successful international entrepreneurs.
1. Fear of failure
In an article that he wrote for Bloomberg, Mark Cuban stated that he uses the fear of failure for self-motivation.
“No matter what business you’re in, you’re always at risk — particularly in technology, where it changes so rapidly you’ve got to put in the effort to keep up,” writes the US Shark Tank panel member. “There’s always the opportunity for some 18-year-old to come out of nowhere and crush you — that motivates the hell out of me.”
Failed at something? Ask these Mark Cuban questions. “What did I do wrong? Who did I trust that I shouldn’t trust? What can I learn from this situation so I can avoid it next time?”
2. Follow your passion
This is the key. However, as Chalmers Brown, co-founder and CTO of Due writes, “We want to not only make a lot of money but enjoy what we do as well. We are willing to take on the risk of unstable pay in exchange for following our dreams.
“Unfortunately, your dream job may not always be the best decision financially. Sometimes your hobbies are best kept as projects in your spare time for fun. If you do want to try to turn your passion into a full-time job, these tips can help you get started the right way.”
Brown gives the tips below:
- Improve something that you’re already doing
- Figure out where the market is
- Share your passion with others
- Stay happy and motivated by assigning tasks that you’re not a fan of to someone else.
3. Keep affirmations where you can see them
“It’s so easy as an entrepreneur to get sucked into feeling exhausted or frustrated, and often the blame is yours alone,” writes Murray Newlands, founder of online invoicing company Sighted. “But a negative mindset sucks up mental bandwidth and energy that you need to stay focused and successful.
“It is crucial to maintain an optimistic attitude in the face of setbacks. Whenever you see a quote or a picture that helps you stay positive, place it front and centre so you can remember what this journey is all about.”
4. Surround yourself with highly successful and motivated people
“No one does it alone,” said Mark Zuckerberg during a Q&A in 2016. “When you look at most big things that get done in the world, they’re not done by one person, so you’re going to need to build a team.” When building your all-star team, seek out people who excel in the areas where you’re not strong or have less experience.
“You’re going to need people that have complementary skills,” he emphasised. “No matter how talented you are, there are just going to be things that you don’t bring to the table.”
5. Be grateful
“Most of the time when people ask me about motivation, 80% of the time I attribute it to gratitude. If you want real fuel to win, be grateful,” writes Gary Vaynerchuk.
“Gratitude is what has gotten me through my toughest moments in business. Whenever I have lost a deal to a competitor, or an incredible employee, or millions of dollars in revenue, I default to gratitude. It’s impossible not to stay motivated or get too down when you’re feeling grateful.”
6. Never feel sorry yourself
“All of my best successes came on the heels of a failure, so I’ve learnt to look at each belly flop as the beginning of something good,” says Barbara Corcoran, founder of The Corcoran Group and Shark on US Shark Tank.
“If you just hang in there, you’ll find that something is right around the corner. It’s that belief that keeps me motivated. I’ve learnt not to feel sorry for myself, ever. Just five minutes of feeling sorry for yourself takes your power away and makes you unable to see the next opportunity.”
7. Don’t obsess over your vision
Yes. Think about your vision. But don’t spend too much time over it or it will bog you down. Elon Musk, for example, only spends around 30 minutes a week on his vision of SpaceX colonising Mars. Besides those 30 minutes, Musk spends a majority of his time focused on the milestones that are the most immediate and critical to get him there.
8. Leverage the power of rejection
“On June 26, 2008, our friend Michael Seibel introduced us to seven prominent investors in Silicon Valley. We were attempting to raise $150 000 at a $1,5 million valuation. That means for $150 000 you could have bought 10% of Airbnb.
“Below you will see five rejections. The other two did not reply,” writes Airbnb co-founder Brian Chesky on Medium. “The investors that rejected us were smart people, and I’m sure we didn’t look very impressive at the time.” Today Airbnb is valued at just under $30 billion.
This article was posted on Entrepreneur.com.
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