Motivation for Small Business Owners (Science-Backed Tips)
If you’re lacking motivation in your business, you aren’t alone. A recent study found that one-third of business owners lose inspiration to run their businesses, but this doesn’t have to be you. In this article, I’ll discuss motivation for small business owners and entrepreneurs, so you can work towards your goals and grow a fulfilling business.
I started my business in 2019 and have finally found the best strategies for finding inspiration when I need it the most. These include re-evaluating goals, making plans, and practicing appropriate self-care, which I’ll discuss more below, along with science-backed methods for these improvements.
Let’s explore how you can overcome a lack of motivation, stay inspired, and reach the success you deserve.
Why is staying motivated important in business?
Motivation drives people to behave in a way that helps them meet their goals, says psychologist Jeremy Sutton. Since motivation encourages people to take action towards their goals, it’s necessary for business success.
If entrepreneur A and B both want to make 15 sales this month, and entrepreneur A feels motivated to achieve that goal but entrepreneur B doesn’t, who’s more likely to succeed? Entrepreneur A.
As simple as it seems, staying motivated as an entrepreneur can be difficult, so let’s dive into how you can do this.
Motivation for small business owners (science-backed tips)
Business motivation can be hard to find, especially when you’re facing challenges. These tips can make it easier:
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Identify your goals
Get clear on your goals. Otherwise, there’s no reason to be motivated. Setting goals gives you a vision – something to work towards.
Studies show that envisioning what you want rewires your brain to achieve this self-image. When you don't reach the goal, your brain keeps working towards it. This makes it easier to take the necessary actions to reach your goals.
I’ve learned the positive results of this practice firsthand. I grew up believing I didn’t deserve financial success because no one close to me had it. I set goals to earn a comfortable income in my business, envisioned this, and created a plan. Over time, my beliefs shifted.
Started identifying your goals by:
Closing your eyes and envisioning where you want your business to be in a month and year
Dreaming big with reasonable expectations
Setting two to three measurable goals and when you want to achieve them
Goals you can measure might be:
I want to sell X products this week
I want to get X website visitors this month
I want to earn $X in revenue within X months
Create a plan
Now that you know your goals, you need a plan to reach them.
Start by writing your goals down, which increases your chance of reaching them by 42%.
After you write your goals down, list your action steps to meet them.
For example, if you want to get 1,000 website visitors this month, you might:
Work on improving your website SEO
Start or update a blog
Share your website with your audience (email, social media, etc.)
Stick to your action plan by setting specific times to work on it. For example, I work on marketing tasks for one to two hours every weekday morning.
Take care of yourself
If your mind and body don't feel good, feeling motivated in your business is nearly impossible. I know this from personal experience – when I started taking care of myself, my motivation skyrocketed.
While self-care has become a buzzword, it’s more than that and has significant effects. Self-care can include emotional, physical, and spiritual practices.
When you take care of yourself, you improve your:
Sleep
Energy levels
Motivation
Cognitive abilities
Ability to fight off illness
I have a 20-minute morning self-care routine: go outside, meditate, and practice breathwork. I also get 6-8 hours of sleep every night, have a (mostly) balanced diet, and moderately exercise a few times per week.
Self-care should be enjoyable. Find a few daily and weekly practices you enjoy and make a habit of them. These might include:
Regular bubble baths
Sleeping in once per week
Daily breathwork
Limited screen time at night
A weekend date with your partner or a friend
Daily reading
Nightly walks
Lunch outside
A consistent bedtime
Use various marketing strategies
A recent study found that 45% of people in the marketing space found attracting quality leads to be their biggest challenge. In other words, reaching people who will likely buy from you is difficult. And when you aren’t making sales, it’s nearly impossible to feel motivated.
The answer? Use various marketing strategies, and be okay with not selling to every prospect. Now that I’ve implemented diverse marketing into my business, I get new leads almost daily.
When you think of marketing as planting little seeds, it’s easier to envision the growth you’ll achieve with time. Over time, the seeds will grow into clients or customers, but you must be willing to play the long game and stay motivated.
If you’re just starting your small business or in your first year, I recommend getting comfortable with one or two marketing strategies. Then, expand to one or two more each year.
In year five, these are the marketing strategies I use to reach my target audience:
Website SEO
Email newsletter
Social media (LinkedIn and Instagram)
Pinterest
Guest podcasting
Referrals
Surround yourself with like-minded people
Before I started my writing business, I never knew the average person could be a successful business owner. I had no idea what I was doing, didn't have role models who seemed similar to me and didn't have anyone to ask questions to – until I found a group of other people running their own writing businesses.
Without this group, I’m not sure where I’d be today. Join a similar community to surround yourself with fellow business owners who can offer support or motivation when needed.
Here are a few ways you can find a community of other business owners:
A local coworking space
LinkedIn
Facebook groups (i.e., Women’s Small Business Support)
Keep learning
Often, motivation for small business owners can come from learning something new. Every time you have a light bulb moment or learn something new, notice that and imagine how this can help you in your business.
While you shouldn’t overwhelm yourself with education, you can implement methods of learning into your daily life. For example, read books and listen to podcasts about business as ways to learn from others without feeling like I need to prioritize much time for education.
A few of my favorite business books and podcasts are:
The 1-page Marketing Plan by Allan Dib (book)
You Are a Badass at Making Money by Jen Sincero (book)
The Freelance Friday Podcast by Latasha James (podcast)
Reprogramming with Lindsay Hyatt (podcast)
Practice positive affirmations
Did you know positive affirmations can rewire your brain and nervous system, making it easier to overcome challenges and remain hopeful?
Instead of feeling defeated and wanting to give up when something goes wrong, like not meeting a sales goal, a healthy mindset and nervous system help you feel inspired to keep trying.
When you practice positive affirmations, you activate neural processes that lead to feeling competent and eager to succeed. This helps you feel motivated to take the necessary actions for business success.
As you think more positively, you also calm your nervous system, which lets you think clearly and act appropriately to reach your goals.
Give yourself and others grace
It's easy to lose motivation as a business owner if you don't meet a goal or a customer or client lets you down. Instead of dwelling on this, give grace because we’re all humans doing the best we can.
Research shows that finding positivity in difficult situations leads to success, whereas focusing on the negative inhibits it. When you're down about something in your business, find one thing you're grateful for, even if it happened last week or month.
You can also create an action plan to move past the current situation. For example, if you didn’t meet your monthly sales goals, make a plan for how you can revamp your marketing for next month.
Be flexible
When you're willing to be flexible, you can determine what works well for your business and goals. If something isn’t working, it’s okay to change it.
For example, if you can't finish all your daily tasks, you might want to outsource or rework your schedule. Or if you aren't hitting sales goals, consider trying other marketing strategies.
There’s growth in flexibility and the more you’re willing to pivot, the more opportunities you’ll have for success.
Motivation for small business owners: FAQs
Let’s explore answers to common questions about how to stay motivated in your business.
Why am I not motivated in my business?
If you aren’t motivated in your business, this could be a sign of burnout or self-doubt. Mental health concerns can also contribute to feeling unmotivated.
According to Amy Morin, a psychotherapist, you can overcome a lack of motivation by acting as if you are motivated, which goes back to rewiring your brain. You can also spend time in nature, create to-do lists with top priorities only, take care of yourself, and reward yourself for completing tasks.
How do you turn around a struggling small business?
If your small business is struggling, you can turn it around by re-evaluating your goals and action plan. Figure out your top few goals and what you need to do to achieve them. Avoid tasks that aren’t directly related to your success or that you can hand off to someone else.
More importantly, you must take care of yourself before you can take care of anything else. If you're feeling well, you can give your all to your business. For example, I prioritize getting good rest, eating well, getting outdoors, and spending time offline. This helps me reset my brain and body to better work towards my business goals.
What makes a small business owner successful?
Success is different for every business owner. Many business owners and entrepreneurs feel unmotivated because they aren’t achieving what someone else is. It’s necessary to remember that what makes one business owner successful might not be the same for you.
Envision or list what you’d like your business and life to look like. You can have levels to this – something like a “would like to have” and a “would be amazing to have” idea. This is your success.
How business owners can find motivation today
Whether you’re starting a business or years in, it’s normal to lose motivation as you go through the ebbs and flows of life and being an entrepreneur. I hope this article inspired you and helped you better understand how to stay motivated as a small business owner.
To find motivation for small business owners today:
Determine clear goals
Create a practical plan to work towards them
Prioritize time to meet your goals
Get a business book or listen to a business podcast
Choose a daily self-care habit (or a few) to implement
Print positive business affirmations and read a few every day
If you found this article helpful, consider sharing it with a fellow business owner.
