If your business is not functioning like an umbilical chord, then it’s time to sever it!

If your business has morphed into a cash flow resource, and no longer provides you with nourishment, I’m sad to say that you’re doing it all wrong! Michael E. Gerber, author of the famous systematic quick read, The E-Myth, Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What To Do About it, sums it up perfectly when he states, “In order to be successful, you have to always be working on your business, and not just in your business.” Your business is going to reciprocate your hard work in the form of income. But my guess is that you became an entrepreneur to pursue something more than just wealth.

Steve Jobs, Ben Franklin, or Leonardo da Vinci, all shared a common trait that directly supplemented their success. Passion is something that cannot be faked. You either have it or you don’t. It’s the first spark that ignited your once “fully alive” business. At one time you were living your passion. Ideas were flowing, pen was scratched on paper, and the twinkle in your eye could guide a midnight train! But something happened. Your self-imposed reality set in, and you forgot why you started that business venture in the first place.

The world is a looking glass and gives back to every man the reflection of his own face. Frown at it and it will look sourly upon; laugh at it and with it and it is a jolly kind companion.” -William Thackeray

My short time in Clinton, IA has exposed me to a ton of different personalities in business. Some have the drive and determination to build their business, and others are content with simply maintaining it. The potential that lies within the mapped out lines of this city is absolutely mind blowing! The history, architecture, and innovations that have come out of this small town, is what drives me to educate business owners on new marketing concepts that have been proven to work.

Here are three practices that you can implement into your daily routine that will build a massive amount of passion, and help reignite that flicker of motivation.

 1) Create an “I wish” list.

Before you check your email in the morning, take a few moments out of your day, and author a list of important tasks, that if you had the time, you would like to accomplish. This isn’t a To-Do list; it’s a list of wishful thoughts. The theory behind this practice is that if you keep a track record of what you truly want to accomplish, you will actually start to take action! The list will start to shrink, and morph into an inventory of accomplishments.

 2) Surround yourself with insanely positive individuals.

This single practice alone will make a huge difference in the way you approach each and every new day. We adapt to our surrounds like emotional chameleons. If we expose ourselves to too many “Negative Nancy’s”, we start to see the world as they do. Every task automatically becomes more difficult, and seemingly endless. But, if we treat ourselves to the company of positive thinkers, we absorb their energy, and nothing seems impossible.

You can move mountains!

 3) Avoid bad news like the plaque.

Especially in the morning!

Nothing will take the wind out of your sails faster than exposure to a negative story. I’m a huge fan of “Good News” blogs (HappyNews.com), and websites. Their authors go out of their way to report only positive happenings. It would be insanely difficult to avoid bad news altogether, but if you want to reignite that dimming passion and feel motivated again, then you need to ingest positive information on a regular basis. My favorite thing to do in the early morning hours is to watch funny cartoons on TV.

Pour yourself an oversized bowl of cereal, and laugh so hard you squirt milk out of your nose.

What a great way to start your day!

~Andy

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Here’s another quick post you might be interested in reading!

YOLO! 5 Proven Ways To Attract Massive Amounts of Success

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