Low on Motivation? 7 Psychological Hacks to Get Going

Even the most passionate and motivated among us have off days. We wake up feeling detached from work, or groggy, frustrated or depressed, and we can’t get into the right mindset to be productive. We might be able to go through the motions of work, but we aren’t operating at peak efficiency, nor are we enjoying what we're doing.

Is this you? Thankfully, even on your worst days, there are some psychological tricks you can use to hack your mind to become more motivated:

1. Visualize your long-term goals.

Research from the University of Virginia suggests that visualizing your potential future is highly motivating, even if that future is distant. Though we tend to perform our best and achieve the best outcomes when we optimize our work and focus for long-term performance, our minds are wired for short-term focus and goals. So, instead of zooming in on one task or project, think about your long-term goals, and work backward to visualize how these small steps will lead to that eventuality. Visualizing should super-charge your focus.

Long-term thinking is what Jeff Bezos used to make Amazon the tech powerhouse it is today. Since 1997, his manifesto has been “It’s all about the long term,” a kind of proactive warning to shareholders that the company is willing to sacrifice short-term revenue if that means higher long-term gains.

2. At least start your task.

One of the hardest parts of any task, especially a challenging one, is actually getting started. Once you’re in the middle of something, it’s much easier to keep that momentum going. To overcome this initial hurdle, commit yourself to at least starting your task;you can always tell yourself that you can abandon it after five good minutes of actual work.

By the time those five minutes are up, you might already be so into the project that you’ll naturally want to carry that momentum forward. So, start! The sooner you do, the sooner you’ll achieve that flow. This charge may seem intimidating or difficult if the task is beyond your usual scope, but in the words of former Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer, “I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that's how you grow. When there's that moment of 'Wow, I'm not really sure I can do this,' and you push through those moments, that's when you have a breakthrough.”

3. Set a timer.

You can also motivate yourself by setting a timer,forcing yourself to work for a fixed amount of time and putting a break on the schedule for the near future. This simultaneously puts a limit on how much effort you’ll need to expend and gives you something to look forward to -- a break.Studies show that the “average” optimal time for this work-break split entails working for 52 minutes and breaking for 17, but you’ll likely need some adjustments to make the pattern work for you. For example, Tony Schwartz (president of the Energy Project) takes a break every 90 minutes, since he says his alertness tends to drop off after those 90 minutes are up.

4. Tell someone what you plan to do.

Social pressure can influence your personal motivation fairly strongly. If you have a big project to do, or a major goal for the day, tell someone close to you (such as a friend, family member or even a colleague) what you intend to accomplish. Knowing you’ll need to eventually report back to that person, you’ll feel extra pressure to do what you said you were going to

If you want even more pressure, consider broadcasting your goal to a whole group of people, such as the entire office. Ray Wu, cofounder of Weilos, used that online weight-loss community's platform to measure this effect. The result: Participants who actively shared their goals and progress ended up losing 1.2 pounds per week, compared to just 0.27 pounds per week among dieters not using the platform.

5. Change your "self-talk."

A comprehensive review of 47 different studies reported in the Journal of Sports Exercise Psychology confirmed the effects of positive and negative "self-talk" -- that running internal dialogue most of us experience throughout the day. Essentially, positive self-talk leads to higher motivation, better self-esteem and an elevated mood, while negative self-talk leads to the opposite.

If you find yourself saying or thinking things like “This is too much,” or “I’m stressed out of my mind,” try rephrasing those comments to things like, “This is an exciting challenge,” or “I’m going to feel great when I’m done with this.” Sometimes, a simple mental change is all it takes to radically transform your perspective.

6. Keep a task list.

Start keeping a list of tasks to do, and write down everything -- even small, minutes-long tasks throughout your day. Whenever you get something done, cross it off the list or put a check mark next to it. This will help you stay organized but, more importantly, will give you a boost of motivation every time you cross something off.

In the words of April Underwood, vice president of product at Slack, “Have a clear system for to-dos: whether it’s ‘Getting Things Done’ or the ‘Checklist Manifesto,’ just have a system and stick to it." Continued Underwood: "I have a very specific method I use in Slack and in email that works for me, and knowing I have that system keeps me from feeling overwhelmed even when I’m behind or the to-dos pile up.”

By keeping a task list, you too will be able to tangibly mark your progress, and you’ll feel better about what you’ve already achieved. You’ll also get to visualize your progress over time, which can help you keep going when you hit a wall.

7. Establish consequences.

Though reward-based systems often work better for teaching people new things, our instinct to avert loss motivates us to accomplish a goal when there are consequences for not accomplishing it. For example, in one experiment, teachers were split into two groups: one group was offered a $4,000 bonus if their students’ grades improved, and another group was actually given the $4,000, along with the threat that they would have to return the money if grades didn’t improve. Those consequences led the latter group to perform better over the semester.

So, if you want to get more things done, establish your own consequences for not getting them done.

If you find yourself chronically low on motivation and this happens relatively frequently -- say, more than once or twice a week -- consider this a sign of a bigger problem in your daily work life. You might be dealing with too much stress (without an outlet to relieve it), or you might be heading toward burnout.

Jayson DeMers • VIP Contributor

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The Power of Motivation: Crash Course Psychology #17

WOW he wasnt joking when he said crash course lol ! I'd be surprised he didn't pass out after this video I'm not sure he took a breath lol!

Seven Key Steps to Success in Today's Challenging Business World

Succeeding as a business in today’s business world is no small feat, as entrepreneurs need toovercome significant challenges from the start, such as creating a viable business model, building a strong and reliable team, standing out among your competitors, and generating enough revenue tobe sustainable.

While there is no one-size-fits-all recipe for success, having a clear road map and making sure to implement a series of critical st Succeeding as a business in today’s business world is no small feat, as entrepreneurs need to overcome significant challenges from the start, such as creating a viable business model, building a strong and reliable team, standing out among your competitors, and generating enough revenue to be sustainable.

While there is no one-size-fits-all recipe for success, having a clear roadmap and making sure toimplement a series of critical steps toward one’s business goals can have a tremendous impact on an organization’s growth and development.

Below, seven members of Young Entrepreneur Council below share some key steps you should take, including talent retention, knowledge of the market, trust in your team’s capabilities and not being afraid of failure. Here are some details.eps toward one’s business goals can have a tremendous impact on an organization’s growth and development.

Below, seven members of Young Entrepreneur Council below share some key steps you should take, including talent retention, knowledge of the market, trust in your team’s capabilities and not being afraid of failure. Here are some details.

1. Retain Your Talent

Entrepreneurs need to be catering to their employees. Any company can do sales, any company can do marketing and any company can provide quality assurance — but not all companies can maintain their talent. Talent is what separates the lead singers from the rock stars. Catering toemployees is a multi-faceted goal, involving extensive vacation time, freedom to work and earnest involvement in their growth. - Allyson Case, Integro Rehab LLC

2. Give the Market What It Needs

In order for an entrepreneur to remain competitive and achieve success in the modern businesslandscape, they must maintain a high level of curiosity, work ethic, focus and persistence. Many times, people chase what is trending, or what they think will make them rich or famous, for instance. Forget what you want and focus on connecting with something the market needs, that you love and that you can be the best at. - Dan San, Meural Inc.

3. Help Others Shine

Helping others shine leaves a bigger impact on your character than all your efforts to raise yourself up. This type of commitment to the team will not go unnoticed. Look for an opportunity to put other people in the limelight. They will drop their negativity and will look forward to working with you. This is how true leaders are shaped. - Sweta Patel, Silicon Valley Startup Marketing

4. Evolve Constantly

To achieve success in the modern business world, entrepreneurs need to constantly evolve. CDs didn't become irrelevant because the quality suffered, they became irrelevant when MP3s arrived. Blockbuster didn't become yesterday's news because their selection was down, it happened because they didn't evolve quickly enough to our on-demand culture. If you don't evolve, someone else will. - Matt Carpenter, College Funding Services (CFS), LLC

5. Don’t Be Afraid to Fail

Don't get discouraged: Keep your head up and work your butt off. If becoming an entrepreneur was easy, then everyone would do it. Making mistakes is what has made me successful. I had 10-plus businesses fail before I landed a successful one. The lessons I learned from my failures are 10 times more valuable than any book or article. - Jonathan Bast, T3 Marketing, LLC

6. Be Ready to Work With a Remote Team

Entrepreneurs need to set up their business to work in remote environments. The workforce is constantly changing, and more people are becoming location-independent. In the U.S. alone, it's estimated that 50 percent of the workforce will be working remotely by 2020. Entrepreneurs need to be prepared: People no longer desire to be tied down to an office — they want more freedom. The change is inevitable. - Jinny Oh, Wander

7. Let Your Employees Grow

For me, the most important part of any business are the employees. Allowing your employees towear multiple hats, feel engaged in business operations, and make their own decisions is a keyfactor in attracting and retaining talent in the modern world. And always be over-transparent. Remember, the employees are what make your business what it is, so don’t lose sight of this fact. - Mark Grignon, Kognitiv, Inc.

POST WRITTEN BY

Young Entrepreneur Council

  YEC is an invite-only organization comprised of the world's most successful entrepreneurs 40 and younger.  

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This is Why You Don't SUCCEED - One of the Best Motivational Speeches Ever

Very insightful! Comment if you check your phone in the middle of the night lol.

5 Sales Skills Everyone Should Possess

Sales is something that everyone needs to learn. What few people realize is that they’re closing deals every day. If you don’t work in sales it’s easy to assume you don’t need to learn how. That’s simply not true. Developing sales skills will help you in many situations beyond a sales job.

Whether you’re closing a big deal or selling your significant other on where you’re going for dinner it’s still a sale. At the end of the day there’s no secret formula to closing every deal. However there are plenty of sales skills you can develop to improve your close rate.

Here are five sales skills that everyone should possess:

Qualify Every Single Prospect

It’s estimated that more than half of the prospects you come across aren’t actually a good fit for your products or services. That said sales people still spend hours trying to push their products on these unqualified prospects.

Instead of rushing to the sale you should emphasize quality control. As you prospect, develop a strict process on how you qualify a customer. I suggest making a basic check-list. Decide on what is required to be considered a qualified lead and only move forward with prospects who meet your specific requirements.

Script Your Introductions

Studies show that it only takes about 10 seconds for a prospect to decide whether or not they want to continue a conversation with you. This makes your introductions extremely important.

Since sales is a numbers game, you’ll likely be doing plenty of introductions throughout your career. Instead of leaving it up to chance you should always try to script your introductions. You can try out different methods but make sure you keep the script constant for a few prospects. Once you find one that works, stick to it as much as possible.

Find Your Metrics

As I mentioned above, sales it truly a numbers game. As you schedule your week for success you should always quantify what it’s going to take to hit your goals. Keep track of metrics like email opens, responses, and calls scheduled per set of prospects. Your end goal is obviously a closed deal.

If you can build a model that clearly shows what it takes to close a deal you’ll be able to work much more efficiently.

Build Relationships

Building rapport through schmoozing simply isn’t enough to win clients over. People are becoming increasingly skeptical of salespeople these days. This makes it increasingly important to build real relationships with prospects and clients.

If a prospect trusts you on a personally level then they’ll trust that your products and services will provide value. If you’re able to build relationships with existing clients then they’ll be more likely to give you a referral or two when you ask.

Listen Attentively

Every sales mentor will tell you that you need to listen more than you speak. This is especially true when the client begins to express interest in the deal. When a client is on the verge of closing they will typically ask their most important or pressing questions. These questions are the tipping point for whether or not they want to close.

If you fail to listen attentively you’ll miss valuable information on that specific client and potentially the industry as a whole.

Final Thoughts

If you want to succeed in sales you need to get out there and sell. If you want to close more deals I suggest practicing the five sales skills listed above. You won’t be disappointed.

 Renzo Costarella 

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Simon Sinek's Top 10 Rules For Success (@simonsinek)

Very inspiring and truthful. If your getting in the way of your own success this is a great video!

9 New Year's Resolutions for Small Business Success

Kimberly de Silva • Guest Writer
This story originally appeared on Bizness Apps

It's a good time to reflect on your business' progress and plan how you want to grow your business in the new year.

When people hear new year’s resolutions, they often think of “exercising more," “spending more time with the family” or “traveling more." Besides these personal resolutions, you can also create impactful resolutions for your small business. A resolution, after all, is a decision to do something differently to bring about positive change. It’s a good time to reflect on your business’ progress and plan how you want to grow your business in the new year. 

1. I will learn how to delegate and do more of it. 

As a small business owner, your to-do list probably doesn’t even fit on one page. There are so many things to do, and it’s easy to delude ourselves that we need to do all of them ourselves. You can only work so many hours in a day. As a result, you’re probably exhausted, stressed and don’t have any free time outside of your business. Delegation is the key to a healthy work-life balance. However, people don’t delegate because it takes a lot of upfront effort and requires a loss of control. So how do you let someone else do certain tasks, while making sure it’s done correctly? The answer is simple: communication and training. Make sure your employees are trained enough, to the point where they can take over some of your tasks. The next step is to clearly communicate the objectives and deadlines, so that you don’t end up micromanaging.

2. I will learn how to manage my cash flow more effectively.

Cash flow is the lifeblood of any small business. In fact, a prominent study from the financial services company U.S. Bank found that 82 percent of startups and small businesses fail due to poor cash flow management. According to The Balance, “This is a great resolution for small business owners who have drastic ebbs and flows in their cash flow, have been unable to create enough capital to invest back into the business or those who don’t really understand the day-to-day finances of the business.”

3. I will take steps to improve my digital presence.

If it’s been more than a year since your site has been updated, if you haven’t taken action to make your online presence mobile-friendly, if you still haven’t created an email marketing list or if digital isn’t part of your marketing strategy at all, it’s time to add this to your new year’s resolutions. You could even take a step further than mobile-friendly and use a mobile-first approach to your digital presence. 

4. I will charge what I’m worth.

Do you feel that your product or service is undervalued? If so, then it might be time to raise your rates to correspond with the value you bring to the table. You might be thinking that raising your prices will alienate certain people from becoming a customer. That could be the case, but you can’t be all things to all people. “Your target market will pay what the marketplace has proved it will pay”, says Entrepreneur. How can you implement this? Depending on your business, you can shift to a “packaged value” approach. This is where you provide tiered packages that give potential customers choices, so they can focus on the value you offer rather than the amount of time you spent. Your prices can then reflect this value

5. I will learn something new.

New year, new skill. Choose something new to learn in 2018 -- it may be directly related to your business or completely unrelated. Learning a new skill will add a dimension of interest to your life that will help to maintain that work-life balance. It will also help you to get out of your comfort zone and meet new people, if you decide to take marketing classes or learn a new language.

6. I will make business strategizing a weekly event. 

Planning is vital if you want to foster a growing business. But running a small business can be chaotic and it’s easy to get sucked into the day-to-day operations. Business strategizing allows you to take a step back and highlight what worked and what didn’t, while adjusting old goals and setting new ones. So why do it just once a quarter or once a year? Set aside time each week to review your strategies. This will help you stay on track and allow you to have a clear hold on your business. 

7. I will drop what’s not working and move on.

After all that business strategizing, you will know exactly what’s not working for your small business. Maybe your sales method isn’t performing well, one of your products isn’t selling or a specific partnership isn’t working out… If this is the case, it’s time to drop it. As The Balance states, “If a technique or a product or a business relationship isn’t working for you, stop using it. Don’t invest a lot of energy into trying to make the unworkable workable. Move on. Something better will turn up.”

8. I will promote my business regularly and consistently.

Since small business owners wear a lot of hats, you might not always have “marketing” at the top of your to-do list. While you should definitely focus on delivering that amazing small business experience, you shouldn’t forget to market that amazing experience to to the outside world. To attract new customers, you have to make promotion a priority. Take the time to create a marketing plan or, even your funds allow it, hire a marketing expert to help you set it up. To get started, try some of these ways to get press coverage for your small business.

9. I will enhance my technology footprint.

Few things frustrate employees -- and customers -- more than working with outdated technology. Slow internet speeds, clunky operating systems and inadequate tools can eat up valuable time. Make an inventory list of all your company supplies to see what needs replacing. Maybe it’s time to implement that online food ordering system, or maybe your employees could use new computers. Start the year off right by upgrading your technology footprint.

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