My Sustainable Motivation

In school, I learned about job satisfaction and the internet is flooded with tips and tricks for staying motivated. I'm a big believer in Monday Motivation messages and timely messaging to get your creative juices flowing bright and early.

But it doesn't stop at content.

For me, sustainable motivation comes through experiences. I tap into that experience and draw on the feelings I felt throughout. A recent call with a client comes to mind.

We had a quick exchange on social media where she expressed some defeat in trying to change her business model to adapt to the current market conditions.

"I have a lot of ideas but I can't charge for them. I don't know how to translate my idea into revenue."

As a side note, in case she's not alone, I thought my article might bring value to you as well - and get you motivated. No need to raise your hand, just read on.

So we set up a call to talk through her ideas. Prior to the call, I did a little digging into her company.

I looked at:

• her brand,
• her values,
• her tone of voice,
• and the types of clients she was targeting.

I jotted down some assumptions I made about the value that she was delivering - the intangible stuff. Things like experience, feelings, senses, etc... My next step was brainstorming activities around her values that allowed her clientele to remain connected to her business.

It's important, when developing new streams of revenue, to not lose sight of what connects people to you in the first place. This is what establishes their expectation of you, your brand and the quality of service or product you deliver.

Our call started on a very somber tone, which was ok and expected. I asked her to tell me about her frustrations, her road blocks and her ideas. It was good to get it out. We talked through her process and where she got stuck. I was happy to see that we had very similar processes - it helped that she also had a marketing background.

As a third party, I was able to offer a different perspective though. So I picked up where she got stuck. I walked her through my ideas and concepts and we talked about how she could actually turn them into revenue that made sense for her margins and offering.

All of a sudden, we had a list of viable ideas. She had a to-do list of things to look into. The tone changed - it was up-beat and forward looking.

It's really that last part that is my sustainable motivation. That feeling that I just helped someone turn their day around. But how is that sustainable? This week, I saw her post to her social media one of our ideas - with a dollar-value attached to it. The following day, she posted that she had gotten lots of interest and delivery options. Our talk took off.

Is that job satisfaction? Not really - I do it because I love it. I do it because I love helping people. I do it because the change from somber to forward-looking is what really keeps going.

So this week, have a conversation that's good for the soul. May it grow legs and take on a life of its own.

Sustainable motivation is where it's at, folks!

Elena Parial is a marketing consultant at Why Marketing. She helps small and medium-sized business establish sustainable marketing functions that allow them to scale responsibly. Book your free 30 minute consulation!