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Perfect marriage of form and function.

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Where there is a will, there is a way :). Vertical garden in Madrid, Spain

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#SuccessfulSaturdays

5 Ways To Boost Your Productivity

 Here are 5 productivity-boosting behaviours I’ve picked up over the last 2 years from some of the most successful people in the world. Since implementing these behaviours into my life I’ve seen progress beyond belief and I wish the same for you too.

1. Wake up early. This used to be the hardest thing for me to do, but I’ve found one enormous hack - sleep with the curtains open. Waking up early gives you more hours in the day to spend working on your craft and get more done. When I wake up at 5am I feel like I’ve gained an extra day and this is why it’s first on the list.

2. One thing at a time. Don’t spread your focus across 6 things at the same time - do one thing well and then move onto the next. When you try to get multiple tasks done at the same time they are done with a fraction of your attention and this leads to mistakes. It’s better to do it right the first time around than to have to come back and start again later on.

3. Take breaks. Working yourself too hard for too long will result in you having to take a long break later down the road. It’s better for your productivity to take short, regular breaks throughout the day to remain energised mentally and physically. The best breaks are ones you take for exercise and relaxing in nature as they will rejuvenate your mind and body so you can come back fresh.

4. Don’t waste time on your “competition”. My role model in business is Gary Vee - he says he wants to build the biggest building (business) in town by actually building it rather than tearing down everyone else’s buildings. He knows that the time he spends trying to bad mouth others is time he could be investing into building his own business.

5. Be grateful. There are going to be challenges along the way, but staying grateful for what you have and for the problems you don’t have is a great way to push past the difficult times. When you value the health and wellbeing of yourself and those around you - every other problem becomes minor in comparison. Having perspective on challenges and problems is key to not getting overwhelmed in these situations.

Peace & positive vibes.

Need some help getting to the next level? Add me on Skype for a free consultation - spoonofconsciousness@gmail.com :)

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HOW TO STAY MOTIVATED AS AN ENTREPRENEUR

I believe motivation is highly subjective and that each person has a unique motivational catalyst. So this post isn’t actually written to motivate you (LOL). What this post will do, however, is give you 3 distinct suggestions on how you can generally stay motivated by yourself. These are based on observations made in my brief time working with entrepreneurs. Of course, like with anything, this is not a closed list.

1. Have Passion For What You Do:

You’ve heard this plenty of times, I know, it’s annoying to me too. But we wouldn’t hear it so often if it wasn’t so important.

Steve Jobs, when addressing a crowd at his alma mater, famously said “You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers.”

Do what you love, and not in an airy fairy, kumbaya kind of way. If you derive actual pleasure from what you do, you are likely to be more motivated than the average person. It follows that people who do what they love will approach their work with a guaranteed level of enthusiasm. I don’t think this needs a great deal of explanation.

2. Find A Suitable Co-Founder:

Some of the best companies in the world were started by co-founders (e.g. Apple, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, etc.). Often, a start-up is launched and maintained through a combination of expertise, which, for complex projects, is hardly ever held by a single person. Sometimes it takes 2 or 3 people to start a project. So the importance of compatible co-founders cannot be stressed enough.

Like with every endeavour, there will be challenges that dampen the passion. The honeymoon period WILL end, and co-founders need to understand their effect on each other because this can serve as the necessary spark to push each other forward. During a slump in motivation, if you don’t feel more motivated after speaking with your co-founder, he or she may not be the right person for you to work with.

Some questions you should ask about your co-founder - When you are not feeling your best will they be able to take control? Do they create a mood which is conducive to productivity? How do you feel after talking to them about a hurdle you are facing? Do they actually have the capacity to perform the tasks that are needed to drive the project forward?

To achieve the best results, be brutally honest with yourself when answering these questions. Based on your answers, you may need to make some changes.

I left the first business I started at University because I could no longer work with my co-founder. The person whom I had originally chosen as my co-founder because of his technical knowledge of the (media) industry became the reason for my loss of enthusiasm. I am not sure what the root cause was, but my co-founder started developing a habit of killing the business relationships I had worked hard to build (and other bad habits, which are best left unmentioned). In turn, our reputation as a serious business began to take a knock. But this wasn’t yet the issue. The real issue was his inability to realise his problem, and then act in accordance with such realisation. 

Needless to say, I was brutally honest with myself - I just did not believe that he had the capacity to perform necessary tasks anymore, so I cut all professional ties with him.

3. Figure Out Your Motivational Currency

I define motivational currency as: a positive response which fuels the desire to be productive.

For example, I run a consulting business. Now, as much as I love what I do, there are mornings which feel completely hopeless (because - life) and my reason for continuing has escaped me. However, my mood suddenly changes when I get up from my bed, check my mail, and find an email from an entrepreneur requesting my services. After viewing this email, I feel a new energy, a sense of purpose, which prompts me to keep going. I am motivated, and the email is my motivational currency. 

If you are an outdoor event organiser whose event receives good reviews on social media and in the local papers, such reviews are your motivational currency because they prompt you to repeat the amount of effort put into your work, in pursuit of the same or an even better response from your market. 

This type of “currency” is different for different businesses, and is usually controlled by external factors. We cannot determine when motivational currency will be forthcoming, but the more work we put in, the more motivational currency we are likely to receive. (i.e. the more good work I do for my existing clients, the more likely I am to wake up to an email requesting my services.)

Conclusion:

Staying motivated is, in my opinion, the most important thing for any entrepreneur. You can do anything you set your mind to with the right amount of motivation. Conversely, you can do very little without it. This is why it is crucial for entrepreneurs to find what motivates them, and have ready access to it whenever it’s needed.

So print this. Put it on your wall, and highlight the points which speak to you the most. Every time you feel demotivated, give it a quick read, and remind yourself of the ways in which you can regain your motivation.

As always, thanks for reading. I promise to make it a shorter read next time.

The strongest people are not those who show strength in front of us, but those who win battles we know nothing about.

Anonymous  (via wordsnquotes)

So true.

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Stay Humble by Colin Tierney Twitter: @visualvibs