As with any job, being your own boss brings with it good days and bad days. On the good days you can feel on top of the world, like you can conquer anything. But on the bad days, sometimes it’s hard to stay motivated, you wonder what the point is, and is it really worth it?
There are three basic human needs which can help or hinder our motivation: autonomy; relatedness; competence. Below are some tips for how to apply it to entrepreneurial life.
Autonomy means having a choice in what you do and how you do it. One of the beauties of working for yourself is that you get to decide what you do, how you do it, and who you work with. While this brings with it many benefits, it can be overwhelming for some. Sometimes there can be too much of a good thing! Remember you always have a choice. If you find you are overwhelmed, there are some steps you can take:
Relatedness means connecting with other people, as well as relating what you are doing to an overall goal. This is one of the biggest struggles for people setting up on their own. You miss the team, the office chat, social activities, the camaraderie. Working on your own can be a lonely venture, but it doesn’t have to be!
Competence is the third basic need which drives motivation. As a new entrepreneur you quickly realise just how much there is to running a business - doing the books, looking after the social media and marketing, selling to customers, never mind actually delivering your service or product. It can all get very overwhelming!
The important thing to note is that these are universal needs – everyone has these needs. There is no order in which they need to be satisfied, but all of them need to be satisfied in order to feel job satisfaction and motivation.