I want to talk about vampires. No, not the nice sparkly ones but the ones that suck up your energy and emotions. When you have your own business doing something you're passionate about, then at the end of the day you expect to be feeling tired but uplifted, content by what you've achieved and the difference you've made in your customer's lives. I'm guessing though there's been times (maybe too many), that at the end of the day you are ready to collapse and it's more because you're feeling overwhelmed mentally and emotionally rather than elated from productivity.
Of course life isn't all champagne and roses, there's things that pop up to mess with us. You know how the saying goes: “Lord, give me the coffee to change the things I can, and the wine to accept the things I can't”. We can make it easier for ourselves by eliminating those things that suck up our energy and emotions which leave no room for positivity and progress and take our focus away from what's important in our business.
3 Easy Tips to keep Positive and Focused on your Business
Look for possibilities. It's easy for our minds to keep being dragged back to difficulties in our business and all the little things that go wrong. Slowly slowly we start to believe that we're not cut out for the entrepreneurial life or that there's something inherently wrong with our business. Challenge yourself to move away from the unproductive and instead focus on constructive thoughts: “this didn't work, what can I do next time? What can I tweak or do differently?”. “What is going right that I'm proud of?”. Focusing on what you can change and the possibilities will keep you on track.
Leave the room. That is the virtual room: Facebook forum, online chatroom, and anywhere else online that drains you. Often we'll be on a Facebook group or online forum either because we've joined a group to get connected with other likeminded people or because someone's naughtily not followed internet etiquette and added us without asking first. Either way, if you find yourself in a room that is sucking up your energy then it's time to either mute and hide the group, or move on. There's hundreds of positive and uplifting groups we can be a part of, but if you find yourself feeling like your blood pressure is rising each time you visit a forum, or hours of time sucked up with no benefit, then give yourself permission to leave the room. I should clarify the “no benefit” part, often the benefit is because we've been able to help others, not just us taking information. Avoid places where you give, give, give without appreciation (or worse, you get shot down) and you're left feeling deflated. Leave the room. The groups you hang out in should be mutually beneficial and you should feel excited and supported by being there.
Unsubscribe. How many emails do you receive that you really want to read? Are you subscribed to newsletters with topics you're not interested in anymore? If you're not interested in the topic anymore then constantly seeing those emails pop up are subconsciously draining you. Are you subscribed to a competitior's emails that leave you feeling frustrated and annoyed? Don't do it to yourself. Unsubscribe, unfollow on social media, unlike their page and focus on your business. You'll feel your energy levels rise, and a weight off your shoulders. What will define your success is you, not what someone else is doing, you don't need to keep tabs on them. If the emails or updates are taking up valuable head space, move along. Instead, fill that space with positivity. Follow people like, Denise Duffield Thomas, Tony Robbins, Richard Branson and me 😉 for an energy boost. Filling your day with positivity pushes out the negative and gives you energy to focus.
Now it's time for action. What are you going to do differently today to boost your business energy?