Being an entrepreneur, although rewarding, isn’t always the easiest path to choose and perhaps that is what makes it all the more worthwhile. Success is not built on success; it is built on failure and frustration. No one gets an incredible idea and then magically grows it into a successful business overnight without facing some mishaps. It takes a lot of grit and strength even just to keep going sometimes. Being stuck in this funk happens to the best of us; not just in our professional lives, but personally too. One way to go about it is to saturate yourself with anything and everything ‘motivational’ out there. A lot of entrepreneurs and other highly successful people recommend boosting morale by adopting certain techniques and strategies designed for the very same. There is a lot of motivational content out there and it is a very deep hole to dive into, but here’s a quick guide to get you back to being productive in no time and to save you the 100 hours that I now wish I could save too.
Whilst reading books and watching videos, the one thing that was emphasised over and over again was the power of Habit. Each day, we make small decisions and carry out actions that form our habits. The tiniest changes in our habits change the ambit of our lives in very subtle ways. You are your habits. We convince ourselves that success is the outcome of massive actions, but that isn’t always the case. It is often the tiniest of movements that create impressive change. By doing 1% better every day, you are becoming nearly 38 times better at the end of the year as told by James Clear in the book ‘Atomic Habits’. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
The environment shapes human behaviour in an invisible way. Our habits are thought of as the outcomes of motivation, talent, and effort. No doubt, these factors are important, but it's surprising how much your personal characteristics get influenced by your environment, especially over a long period of time. You should operate in a setting that fuels your results instead of hindering them, if you want to maximize your chances of success. Surround yourself with people who inspire you to be better each day. Make sure that what you are working towards is something you like, working hard towards something you don’t care about is basically what the definition of stress is. Many people think that they lack motivation when what they really lack is clarity. Taking some time to re-evaluate and reset your goals is sometimes necessary.
Here is a personally curated list of all things inspiring to help you get through a slump and gain some inspiration and ideas to follow through on your ideas:
1. Podcasts
- The GaryVee Audio Experience
This podcast offers business and marketing strategies, tactics, and advice. The host shares his opinions on creating a mindset geared towards success and focusses on creating optimum outcomes.
- Entrepreneurs On Fire
In this podcast, the host interviews successful and self-made entrepreneurs and talks about their journey. This is a highly interesting podcast and involves strategies and tips on marketing and building businesses.
- The School of Greatness
This is a podcast that is more focused on holistic growth. The host interviews highly successful people from all fields. Stories, techniques, and tips are featured every episode to encourage and motivate you to be a better person.
- The Dave Ramsey Show
This podcast is perfect if you want to learn about financial literacy. The host talks about money and the best ways to handle it. He gives tips on managing debt, budgeting, accounting, insurance and investing.
- How I built This with Guy Raz
This podcast is a personal favourite. The host talks about "innovators, entrepreneurs, idealists, and the stories behind the movements they built". It offers inspiration and insights from some of the world’s top businesses and their leaders.
2. Blogs to follow
- Seth’s Blog
This blog is the go-to for all things marketing. Seth Godin, the author, was the VP of Yahoo and his insights are valuable when planning your own start-up
- The Entrepreneurial Mind
Nearly every aspiring entrepreneur swears by this blog as the holy grail of all blogs. It is a resource to learn about Business partnerships, investment opportunities, and finance.
- Startups.co
Small businesses and start-ups are the main topics of this blog. A variety of articles on entrepreneurship, start-up mistakes, and failures, as well as interviews with top entrepreneurs and start-up founders, are featured.
- Under 30 CEO
Under 30 CEO is an entrepreneurial blog that focuses on start-ups and entrepreneurship, it has something for everyone trying to beat unproductivity. It features the most successful people under 30 and offers invaluable tips on business strategies.
- Startup Digest
This blog specifically caters to the Indian start-up entrepreneurs. It focuses on tips and interviews related to finance, marketing and businesses.
3. YouTube videos and channels
- The Billionaire Algorithm
- Simon Sinek - How to Change Your Future
- One of the Greatest Speeches Ever | Steve Jobs
- MotivationHub
- Escaping Ordinary (B.C Marx)
