Working for yourself, being your own boss sounds great in the beginning, but

like many Solepreneur, many sole traders, you soon discover that giving up the

day job is not as glamorous as it seems.

Loneliness and a lack of motivation will eventually creep in, and you

may even find yourself thinking how you miss your nine to five job more

than you thought would be possible.

However, if you think on that, you know that you went into business.

By yourself for a recent or a bunch of reasons, but somewhere along the

way, motivation is lost, but that motivation can soon be found again.

It's really important to mentally prepare yourself for those bumps in

the road of which there will be many, and understand how to motivate yourself

to keep going even when it seems bleak, even when the going gets tough.

In this week's from passion to profit, I'm gonna share five tips on how you

can stay motivated as a solopreneur.

Let's crack on

number one.

Make your business adapt and fit to your lifestyle.

Now Freedom is often quoted as one of the top reasons solopreneurs

leave the corporate world and go into the business by themselves.

I remember that one of the primary reasons that I wanted to work for myself over

30 years ago was to be more in control, more in charge of my own destiny.

I. Now being in business by yourself, entrepreneurship offers you that

chance to fit work around your lifestyle, not the other way round.

Therefore, the key to staying motivated is actually putting this into practice.

What we think and how we behave are two separate things.

Now, more particularly during the startup phase of your business, you may feel as

though you need to dedicate every single waking hour to your budding enterprise.

But is that really the reason that you started out on your own?

Aligning your business with your lifestyle will boost your overall satisfaction

and give you that motivation that you need to carry on and keep on working

and make the schedule work for you.

For example, if you like having those times spent with your friends,

that happy hour, adjust your working schedule so your days start and finish

early, and there's gonna be time left over for socializing afterwards.

If you're a Keen Fitness fan, then take advantage of your flexible hours.

And go to the gym at a time that suits you, perhaps midday, early

morning, late afternoon, go when it's more likely to be quiet.

Doesn't mean you should abandon those things that you enjoy.

Make them flexible and adapt your life and business together.

Now, these are just a couple of examples, so take some time out.

Think about the ways that you can balance your business to map

and join out with your interests.

Tip number two, find a co-working space.

Now being able to work from your home.

The comfort of your home has its upsides and it sounds fantastic, but

being on your own, not seeing anybody all day, perhaps daytime TV to keep

your company can be very lonely.

I remember those days when I started my own business from my back bedroom.

Those days can be quite isolating.

You know, you don't have that social interaction that you

are used to in a workplace.

You also run the risk of going stir crazy.

And also if you've got family members at home, you know that

peace and quiet that you might strive for is not gonna be present.

It's gonna be difficult to focus, difficult to concentrate.

Check out your locality.

Is there a coworking space near you?

Can you hot desk somewhere?

You may be able to find a space where you can meet like-minded individuals and work

in a relaxed but focused environment.

Coworking spaces also will run lots of useful events like workshops and seminars,

which can help you learn new skills.

And develop your ideas.

What's tip number three?

Well, tip number three is about finding a support network.

One of the biggest advantages of coworking spaces is the opportunity

and chance to meet and learn from your fellow business people.

They can empathize with you, understand what you're going through,

that most of your friends and family probably can't, but also can

give you that well-meaning boost.

When you need it.

Plus, they'd be able to offer valuable insights and advice to

help you through your problems.

Now, obviously, co-working isn't the only way you're gonna meet

other entrepreneurs, other business people, there are mastermind groups.

They're very popular.

Please do exercise your due diligence before you embrace one.

A mastermind, if it's well structured, is their peer to peer mention group

where you can find inspiration, bounce those ideas around, and enjoy the support

and advice of fellow entrepreneurs.

Now participating in this type of group activity also helps, keeps you

accountable, which is essential when that motivation dial is going into red.

Tip number four, balance your workload.

Now, balancing your workload is easier set than done, but it's a

vital part of staying motivated.

Now studies have been carrying out that shown that small business owners

tend to work longer hours than the average worker in the United Kingdom.

Companies can't force their employees to work any longer than the contracted

47.5 48 hours per week, but there are no such constraints on us.

Being in business on our own account.

However, I always advise clients of mine, think of yourself as an employee

of your own business and therefore make sure you have a relationship

that will be that of a good employer.

Set yourself a time limit to make sure you don't stay beyond

those hours that you're working.

You're certainly gonna put in more.

Than other employees, but you wanna stay productive and you wanna keep your sanity.

Now, it may take time to get it right at first, but make those small

modifications, those adjustments, and find out what's gonna work for you.

If you put too many hours in, if you work too hard, you'll burn out.

You'll lose that motivation and you won't progress, and you'll

probably end up getting bored and resentful of your business.

Now, don't lose sight of those long-term goals you have.

Set yourself and remember, your journey is a marathon.

Not a sprint.

And what's the last tip I'm gonna share with you?

Well, that last tip is rewarding yourself.

Instant gratification is undoubtedly more motivating than

slogging towards a long-term goal.

The problem is that entrepreneurship, being a business is all about the bigger

picture, and it may be some time before you reap the financial rules and others

of all the hard work you're investing and you're putting into your business now.

Now, one of the easiest ways around this.

Is set yourself smaller goals.

Set yourself those achievable things in a shorter timeframe

and attach reward to each one.

That reward effort, relationship is a powerful way to power forward.

For example, if you're finding it difficult to work that eight hour

day, motivate yourself, break it down into smaller steps that if

you accomplish certain things.

By a certain time, then you are gonna reward yourself with a

walk, a favorite snack perhaps.

The gym is something that takes your fancy scrolling through videos, social

media, looking at, uh, lots of lovely videos of cats might be the treat you

give yourself for putting in the effort.

Obviously, you can set yourself bigger bonuses, more extravagant things

when you achieve larger milestones.

Now what can we say in conclusion, folks?

Well, in summary, the key to staying motivated.

As somebody on their own account, as a solopreneur, a self-employed

individual is to enjoy the journey.

And remember, you've gotta have fun along the way and remind yourself the reasons

you went into business in the first place.

Self-discipline is crucial, but you can't sustain a punishing schedule.

For too long before you start to suffer from that.

Now, it may sound a cliche, but finding that work life balance is

truly the secret source for success.

Folks, I hope you found this podcast useful.

If you got some tips to share, I'd love to know what your

tips are for staying motivated.

But until next, Pete, folks, keep that motivation going.