Some days I just don’t feel like it.  Some days it’s a struggle to get out of bed, get the kids organised for school and get everyone out the door with shoes on that all motivation seems to have flown out the window by the time I sit at my desk.  Do you sometimes feel like this too?

Motivation is a funny thing when you work alone at home.  I love working from home and I love being my own boss but it does mean that there is no one to keep me on track.  I am my own champion, my own goal kicker and to do this I need motivation to have a productive day.

As many working mums do, I work during school hours so my working day is significantly smaller than the norm.  It is for this reason that I have focused my energies on supporting mums with home based businesses to be productive.

I know that productivity is the secret sauce to being a mum and a successful business owner.  Discover your greatness by having your most productive day every day using these 5 ways to motivate yourself.

1. Go Back to Your Why

If you have delved deep into why you are doing what you do then that is a huge motivation to keep achieving.  When you feel in a slump, simply remember your why and that will give you a kick start to get going again.  

My reason for showing up everyday and doing my 4 hours alone at my desk, is to allow me to have the time and financial freedom to be there for my kids.  To take them on adventures, have the odd meal out and provide for our future. We are all different, so take the time to work out why you have chosen to have your own business.  And come back to it regularly.

For motivation to increase, start achieving your list of tasks and get that sense of achievement.  If you know you are showing up and taking small steps towards a bigger goal, you’ll be motivated to do more of the same.

TIP 1!

Work out if you are a pen and paper or digital person when it comes to your to-do lists.  I love using Asana and now write everything down there.

TIP 2!

A good way to organise your tasks is to have 7-10 big annual goals, then 2-3 quarterly goals, break those down into monthly tasks to help you reach those goals and then have around 3 outcomes per week plus a daily win.

3. Stop Procrastinating 

If you are procrastinating then you are letting your fears put a dent in your motivation.  Procrastination is the habit that develops when we feel scared of a task. As humans we want to keep ourselves safe so we will always take the easy option rather than put ourselves out of our comfort zone.  The ‘stuff’ we do to stay safe often looks like; scrolling social media, spending time on household tasks rather than work, or doing work tasks that are easy & familiar rather than digging deep into the jobs that challenge you.

To have an awesomely productive day, my advice is to break the task that is causing you to procrastinate down into bite size chunks, face the fear and take baby steps to get it done.

4. Reward

If you are the type of person that works well when there is a reward upon completion then implement a system for yourself.  Whether it’s a food reward, a self care treat or a trip to the shops if you reach your goal; do what it takes to motivate yourself to get your tasks done.

5. Take a Break

If you’re feeling unmotivated and tired, my advice is not to work through it but to change things up a bit.  Sometimes we simply need a break. Doing some exercise, taking a walk around the garden, listening to a guided meditation, making a cup of herbal tea (or coffee!) can all be enough refresh and refocus.   5 or 10 minutes of doing something away from your desk will work wonders to get that motivated feeling back.

Hopefully these 5 ways to motivate yourself to have a productive day will help you have your best day every day.  Go working mumma, go get it done! If you have any other suggestions of what works for you; I’d love to hear them so drop a comment below.

Much love for now…
Nicola

If it’s true that winners are grinners then perhaps by turning ourselves into a winner every single day we can be grinning as well as feeling positive and having a heap of momentum in our business.  The daily win is one way to reward ourselves for all the effort we are putting in. A virtual pat on the back. Or a tick box of warm of fuzzies.

By celebrating a daily win, we are allowing ourselves to sit back and say congratulations on all that we have achieved.  Even if its something as simple as sending an email or getting a meal in the slow cooker before you sit down to work.

Having more than one daily win is fine too.  In fact, I try to celebrate 3 things that I’ve achieved in one day.  I keep it simple, the wins need to be achievable, otherwise it will have the opposite effect and I’ll feel like a failure for not making it.

Why is the daily win important? 

Being a home-based business owner and mum can mean we are working alone with no one to share our wins with or bounce ideas off.  We often have a to-do list as long as our leg because it’s not just business that needs taking care of. By celebrating the daily win, we are saying Yes to the Dress, or rather a big fat Yes to getting stuff done.

Celebrating the wins helps to keep a positive mindset, it brings a sense of achievement and ultimately it helps overall productivity.

Here’s a short guide to how The Daily Win can work for you.

1. Set Intentions

Personally I use a notebook and write down 3 things i’m grateful for every morning.  Coming from a place of gratitude will ensure a much more positive mindset. I then write down an intention for the day and why this intention is going to be good for me and my business. 

3. Review

This is the part of the daily win that shouldn’t be missed. To give yourself the all important pat on the back, it’s necessary to review what has been achieved.  As a mum working in school hours, my days are jam packed with work so I prefer to do a little review once the kids are in bed. I take the time to see what has been completed, what still needs to be finished and what the intention and tasks will be for the following day.

4. Communicate The Wins

If a review doesn’t seem like enough of a celebration of your wins then look for an accountability partner or some way to communicate your wins out loud.  High fiving your hubbie is one way. Or find another female business owner who is also looking for a way to celebrate wins. We are social beings so its natural for us to want to shout about our achievements.

5. Reward

Do something that brings you pleasure and helps you to stay motivated for the next win.  This helps to program yourself to reach more goals. This can be as simple as sitting in the sun for 10 minutes at the end of a task or having a block of chocolate.

If you could use a little help with motivation and being productive, perhaps you could implement a system of celebrating a daily win into your work day.  Let me know how you go and what your system is, it’s always good to learn new ways of doing things.

It’s been one of those weeks! My children have needed me to ferry them around to different things during the day as well as it being a week of meetings. This means I’ve been in and out of the office. Once I do finally get back to my desk, I’ve struggled to focus – despite my to do list!

Time just seems to have been slipping away and subsequently I’ve been feeling like I’ve hit a slump. There are many tasks keeping me busy but they are not the things that will ultimately inch my business forward. And because I’m not inching my business forwards my mind slips into negative thoughts. I’m not doing enough, I don’t know enough……this is a slump!

Does this sound familiar to you? It’s quite normal to have times where you’re not in full flow. As a solopreneur, it’s just another thing to work through.

To help you., here are 5 ways that I find help me get over an annoying slump.

2. Networking & Connecting

A great way to feel reinspired is to connect with other business women.  This can be in the form of a workshop or a networking event that you physically attend. In my area there are monthly business breakfasts for women and I always leave an event feeling inspired and ready to dive into my business.  Connecting can also take place online.  If you are part of a supportive Facebook group then start a thread there to get some advice or inspiration to get started on your next task.  Perhaps you are part of a membership that provides you with inspiration and a place to go back to when you’re stuck.  Whichever works for you; put yourself out there and connect.

3. Daily Rituals

It is so important to have daily routines and rituals that improve your overall well-being and help you be more productive.  If I’m feeling in a slump and my mind is struggling to focus, I will do an extra meditation that morning or make sure I write in my gratitude journal and set my intentions for the day.  Not skipping on your daily rituals is essential to keeping your momentum going.

4. Distractions

In the middle of a slump you are not helped by distractions of any kind.  This may mean that you need to put your phone in another room for a 2 hour block of complete focus.  Or perhaps you need to work with your headphones on.  Do you ever work in a café or a co-working space?  If you get distracted by household chores or other things that need doing, remove yourself to feel energised by being in a new environment. 

5. Unfollow

Sometimes when we’re in a slump our minds can be in a more negative space.  Be aware of imposter syndrome creeping in at this time.  If you find you are comparing yourself in a negative way to everyone you see on social media you may need to stop the scrolling.  It may even be helpful to unfollow some people that bring up feelings of not being good enough.

I hope you find these strategies helpful when you find yourself in a slump.  They have certainly helped me this week.