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I just stumbled on this thread. Bottomline on motivation - we all have different things that motivate us. I've had different strategies at different times in my life.
In the beginning of my career, it was like a game to me. I saw clients who weren't as smart as me making a lot more money than me. Talk about a kick in the ego....or kick somewhere. So, I watched them and learned from them. And just did what they did. My lesson from that: You don't need a brilliant idea to be successful, you just need to be able to bring it to market.
These days I still learn from my clients, but I don't have the same need for challenge. I've gone through some business turmoil this year and a few times I've wondered whether it was time to just go completely to passive income. We could have a very comfortable (even better than that, actually) life, but it still wouldn't be as much income as I get when I'm working actively in part of the business.
So, last month, I went down to Juarez (across the border from El Paso, TX) and visited an orphanage that I hadn't seen in 3 years. I think I posted about it somewhere else already, but it was sobering to see the conditions these young girls lived in. They have a new building under construction, but didn't have the resources to complete it once the building shell was done. I challenge anyone to spend a day with 34 girls crammed in a place so small that they have to take turns getting out of bed because they all can't be up at the same time. And, they're located in such a dangerous part of the city that they can't ever go outside. It's worse than jail.
It's through my business that I get the connections that can make a change quickly. In fact, I actually went a little over board. We ended up getting two project double funded. (Two charities agreed to pay for a sub-station, but one moved the funds over to employing a teacher for a year. And we got a grant plus a private donation, both agreeing to fully fund the completion of the interior of the building. Not sure where that extra money will go yet, but it will be put to good use. )
The other motivation for me is our son David. We adopted him just after he turned 14 and he's had plenty of role models on what doesn't work. My husband and I work very hard to set examples on how to live a life of full accountability (not being a victim),abundance (it's not "I can't afford it" "It's how can I afford it...") and outside the box thinking (it's not "Can I? " it's "How can I?") It's pushing us to be much more effective as well!
My biggest challenge is focus. The problem isn't lack of opportunities, it's drowning in opportunities. My husband is working very closely with me in my business again (thank god that the fix and flip market is done - he went into that because it was so easy to make quick money! But my business really suffered without his presence to stay single minded. ) and we go through opportunities every couple of days. He helps me focus back on what we need to do to create the most optimum return.
On overcoming obstacles - well, my family is a family of survivors. My husband was in a car crash that almost killed him and did kill his first wife. My son has been through 13 years of h*** in 6 orphanages in Mexico. My former husband committed suicide. I don't know that everyone else can do this, but when things are bad, we ask each other, "Is this the hardest thing you've been through?" And the answer is always "no." Dust yourself off and get back on that horse.
I can't remember who to attribute this to, but one of my favorite quote is "It'll all work out in the end, and if it hasn't worked out yet, it means it is not the end."
Cat & Kim, you both have found ways that motivate you. Hey, I don't care if it means you wear a Hermes scarf to get you through the day - whatever works, awesome. I am a bit of a hybrid between outside motivation and inner motivation. I don't use someone else for accountability, but I do use other people as the "reason" why I need to self-motivate.
Hats off to all of you who keep plugging away - focus on what's important, don't let anything stop you and be open to change your approach, but never your ultimate goal, or who you are at the core.
In the beginning of my career, it was like a game to me. I saw clients who weren't as smart as me making a lot more money than me. Talk about a kick in the ego....or kick somewhere. So, I watched them and learned from them. And just did what they did. My lesson from that: You don't need a brilliant idea to be successful, you just need to be able to bring it to market.
These days I still learn from my clients, but I don't have the same need for challenge. I've gone through some business turmoil this year and a few times I've wondered whether it was time to just go completely to passive income. We could have a very comfortable (even better than that, actually) life, but it still wouldn't be as much income as I get when I'm working actively in part of the business.
So, last month, I went down to Juarez (across the border from El Paso, TX) and visited an orphanage that I hadn't seen in 3 years. I think I posted about it somewhere else already, but it was sobering to see the conditions these young girls lived in. They have a new building under construction, but didn't have the resources to complete it once the building shell was done. I challenge anyone to spend a day with 34 girls crammed in a place so small that they have to take turns getting out of bed because they all can't be up at the same time. And, they're located in such a dangerous part of the city that they can't ever go outside. It's worse than jail.
It's through my business that I get the connections that can make a change quickly. In fact, I actually went a little over board. We ended up getting two project double funded. (Two charities agreed to pay for a sub-station, but one moved the funds over to employing a teacher for a year. And we got a grant plus a private donation, both agreeing to fully fund the completion of the interior of the building. Not sure where that extra money will go yet, but it will be put to good use. )
The other motivation for me is our son David. We adopted him just after he turned 14 and he's had plenty of role models on what doesn't work. My husband and I work very hard to set examples on how to live a life of full accountability (not being a victim),abundance (it's not "I can't afford it" "It's how can I afford it...") and outside the box thinking (it's not "Can I? " it's "How can I?") It's pushing us to be much more effective as well!
My biggest challenge is focus. The problem isn't lack of opportunities, it's drowning in opportunities. My husband is working very closely with me in my business again (thank god that the fix and flip market is done - he went into that because it was so easy to make quick money! But my business really suffered without his presence to stay single minded. ) and we go through opportunities every couple of days. He helps me focus back on what we need to do to create the most optimum return.
On overcoming obstacles - well, my family is a family of survivors. My husband was in a car crash that almost killed him and did kill his first wife. My son has been through 13 years of h*** in 6 orphanages in Mexico. My former husband committed suicide. I don't know that everyone else can do this, but when things are bad, we ask each other, "Is this the hardest thing you've been through?" And the answer is always "no." Dust yourself off and get back on that horse.
I can't remember who to attribute this to, but one of my favorite quote is "It'll all work out in the end, and if it hasn't worked out yet, it means it is not the end."
Cat & Kim, you both have found ways that motivate you. Hey, I don't care if it means you wear a Hermes scarf to get you through the day - whatever works, awesome. I am a bit of a hybrid between outside motivation and inner motivation. I don't use someone else for accountability, but I do use other people as the "reason" why I need to self-motivate.
Hats off to all of you who keep plugging away - focus on what's important, don't let anything stop you and be open to change your approach, but never your ultimate goal, or who you are at the core.
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