Staying motivated is crucial if you want to meet your ambitious goals. But it’s not always easy when you get bogged down in day-to-day starting up or running a small business, or when a hot prospect suddenly decides to postpone their purchase for another six months.

But you have to keep going. So managing your mindset is vital habit or skill to master. I’ll cover this topic a lot over these pages, as it’s not something we’re taught anywhere else, apart from martial arts or sports, right?

For now, here’s a good list by Forbes on how to stay motivated, plus I’ve added my comments underneath each item.

1. Set a goal and visualize it down to the most minute detail.

This is a great tip and something elite athletes live by. Michael Phelps, the record breaking swimmer did this daily. He ran a video tape in his mind of winning the race, daily and nightly, and he goes into minute detail as though he was actually swimming the race. When you do it properly and feel the emotion, the brain can’t tell the difference between you actually physically doing it or whether it’s your mind.

2. Make a list of the reasons you want to accomplish the goal.

This is important because it makes you get in the emotional space of why. And it’s important to write it down – not on a computer, but good old fashioned pen-to-paper.

Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear with almost any ‘how’. – Viktor Frankl

So if you have a big enough WHY, the HOW will show up.

3. Break the goal down into smaller pieces and set intermediary targets — and rewards.

When you climb a mountain, you’re not going to climb it all in one go. You begin with one small step. And then another, and another. So don’t overwhelm yourself, just focus on the tiny step in front of you.

4. Have a strategy, but be prepared to change course.

Yeah, sometimes you need to take a step back, see the the bigger picture, to find another way to achieve your goal. You’ve got to be flexible.

5. Get the help you need.

But be careful who you attract. You don’t want to cause yourself more trouble by working with someone who creates more work for you. Get someone who is better than you at the particular task.

6. Pre-determine how you will deal with flagging motivation.

Have a plan about how you will handle an emotional dip. For example, perhaps allow a five minute pity-party, but that’s it. Then move on and focus on solutions. Because the pity-party won’t change what is, and they certainly don’t make you feel better.

7. Continually check in with your reasons for carrying on.

I also found it useful to speak to our happy customers who would often rave about our product. Knowing we made a difference and added value to people’s lives kept me going.

You can read the full article, here.

Here’s three more I’d like to add:

• Look back to see how far I’ve come and what I’ve achieved. Perspective helps!
• Make a list of what I’m grateful for
• I have a list of affirmations I repeat to change my thoughts

How about you, folks, how do you stay motivated? Got any tips to add to the list?

And what action can you take, right now, to pick yourself up?