Is It Time to Give Up?

This entrepreneurship thing ain’t easy AT ALL! There are moments when I feel like not getting out of bed or I can get out of bed but in a few hours, I hit obstacles and I feel like crawling right back into bed and that could be right in the middle of my workday!  In this article, I share 3 strategies with you to fight that feeling of giving up.

Thu May 4, 2023

Photo credit: relif from Getty Images

No, It's Not Time to Give Up!

On really bad days, the feeling of wanting to give up can hit just after starting my workday. When I have so many bad days back-to-back, it really starts to feel like it’s time to give up. Because in those moments, it just feels like none of the actions that I am doing are working. That really makes me feel frustrated and being honest, even a little depressed. But then I start doing a few key strategies and I no longer feel like giving up!


Some of you might be wondering, 'But I thought you are a business coach?' 


Yes I am, but that does not mean that I am immune to having negative days or experiencing negative emotions in my business. I am a Strategic Business Coach and Consultant, but I am also the founder and CEO of my own company. Being a founder and CEO comes with its own set of decisions that must be made and challenges to overcome, daily.


Even when you know some of the best strategies to help with motivation and staying motivated in your business, it is still possible to experience a down day. After all, I am human too!


My background is in psychology and I know about what depression really is and the actions that a person can take to avoid staying in that depressive mindset.


But when I am taking actions in my business for the sake of my business, those psychological techniques and business strategies are necessarily at the forefront.


However, there comes a point when I do remember those psychological techniques and business strategies. Then I use them on myself because I am a skilled Strategic Business Coach. I have experience with helping micro business owners overcome obstacles, reengage with their business, and become motivated again in their business.


Today, was definitely one of those days where I had to set aside what I had scheduled and intervene for the sake of myself and my business.


So, I decided to share with you about today, but most importantly, I wanted to share strategies that you can use if you are feeling down in your business and are even remotely thinking about giving up.


Stop scrolling through the LinkedIn and Indeed job postings looking for the easy way out. Instead, use these strategies to give yourself a motivation boost.



3 Strategies to Increase Your Motivation

1. Evaluate your business

So, it’s so easy to get stuck on what is happening right in front of us that we forget where we have come from and how close we are to reaching our goal. In the moments when I feel like giving up, I either look at the last evaluation I did of how my business is doing or I do a new evaluation.


I use that evaluation to look where I truly was at the beginning of a plan, the progress that I made each month, and where I am on that day that I am doing the review.


Our minds can play such cruel tricks on us. So doing such a review is so helpful and motivating, because in my mind I might be thinking that I am not doing anything or that my actions are not making an impact, which can get me down and feel like giving up. But when I take the time to really review my progress in my company, it is then that I see in words or charts that I am making positive progress. Don’t get me wrong, there were highs and lows in the progress, but the trend for my progress is positive.


2. Reach out to your support system

It is not the size of your support system that matters it the strength of it. For some of us, our support system might be just one person or it can be a few people. The point is we need to identify our support system and use them.


Even though our support system contains people that know us. There are going to be times when they don’t know what is truly going on with us. This has a lot to do with the fact that many of us might choose to hide the truth of the challenges that we are facing because we don’t want our support system to see that we are failing or judge us.


But we have to remember that those who are truly in our support system do not judge us and they want to see us succeed.


They may not understand everything about what we are facing, but when we open up to the people in our support system, they have a way of supporting us and encouraging us to keep going. They are good at reminding us of what we told them that we wanted to do in our business. They also are great historians too. They can pull out the memories of the times when shared some huge milestone with them about our business.


So on those tough days, instead of giving up, reach out to your support system. If you are thinking that you don’t have anyone in your support system, maybe it might be helpful to reach out to a mental health professional to help you with navigating the emotions that you are experiencing.


3. Remember your why…your reason for starting your business

So we each started our businesses because we wanted to help people. But the extent and type of help varies within each of our businesses. When we are having those tough days, that is a great time to review our mission and vision statements. I know that this helps me just as much as the other two strategies that I mentioned.


It is in our vision statements that we talk about why we why we started our business. Then our mission statement is about how we are going to accomplish that vision. Our vision and mission statements should excite us and motivate us.


So we might be having a tough day or a tough set of days or maybe even tough months, but I guarantee that you had some positives along the way


It can be so easy to focus on the negative that we minimize the positive. So as you remember your why for starting your business, start thinking of the positives that have happened in your business. When your mind wanders over to the negative, ask yourself how you can take those negatives, learn from them, and take actions that will help you focus on accomplishing the why for your business.


Summary

These are just 3 of the strategies that I use when I am having those tough days and feel like giving up on business. Each time I use these strategies, I become so reinvigorated and motivated to keep pushing forward.


I will leave you with this quote:

 “Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life like most people won’t so that you can spend the rest of your life like most people can’t.” 

-- Anonymous

If you are ready to learn how to implement these strategies in your business, submit your coaching application and see if you qualify for a customized coaching program to meet your specific needs.


Thank you for taking the time to read my article.


Regards,

Dr. Priscilla "Dr. P" Kucer

Solutions+Actions=Results! (SoAR!)

ecimen book.

Dr. Priscilla Kucer
Dr. Priscilla Kucer "Dr. P" is a Strategic Business coach who enjoys helping entrepreneurs and small organizations to become unstuck and grow their business strategically. Dr. P is the founder and CEO of Priscilla Kucer Consulting Solutions LLC. Her company offers business coaching, management consulting, and training and development to micro business owners and their teams. Dr. P is the Development Coordinator Board Member for Jamsz Konnections, a non-profit based in Austin, Texas. She holds a Leadership position within Business Network International (BNI). When she is not helping entrepreneurs or teaching part-time for Nova Southeastern University, she is spending time with her dog, family, and friends. She also enjoys traveling, dancing, listening to Soca music from her home country of Barbados.