Short Stories From 10 Years Ago – November 3, 2004
Motivation Re-Visited
Short Stories From 10 Years Ago – November 3, 2004 – I wrote about motivation and drive in March, largely related to my somewhat beleaguered exercise program, my relationship with Howard my treadmill and my writing. A few months have gone by and I’m having a degree of success within these areas of my life, and a great big “hooray” for me.
I bet I feel a bit more motivated today than say, John Kerry, and I’m sure he was awake early. Actually I was up at a very respectable, business hour this morning and on my way to a marketing meeting just after nine o’clock. Dorothy, Big, Sima and I started a group in September to act as support system for one another when we get a bit blue about the business of real estate. It can be a frustrating and sometimes, isolating career. The topic for discussion today was motivation.
The four of us sat down at Big’s dining room table over coffee, fresh fruit and banana bread and chatted about the elusive pixie – motivation – and how we can keep ourselves going on a day to day basis. What follows are some of the ideas that we shared.
Dorothy talked about her natural curiosity about life and the pleasure she gets from learning. She treats each day as a new experience with fresh possibilities. She moves slowly, but steadily forward and truly likes people. She gets up and out of her house if she’s feeling blue and has made a decision not to be a cynical or bitter person. She does something that makes her feel good every day.
Big understands the need for an established routine and is happiest when she is working with clients doing real estate transactions. She is motivated by a busy schedule and activity. A mind set that is positive is really helpful for her.
Sima gets up every morning, and gets dressed and ready to go out, even if she doesn’t have a specific appointment that day. She leaves her house and meets a friend or client for coffee or lunch. She enjoys helping people and has lots of energy. She likes the feeling of being independent. If her mood is slipping a bit, she has a talk with herself as a reminder of all that is good in her life. Her father had a favourite saying – “When you’re down, don’t look up – look down”. There will always be someone with less than you have, so remember that and buoy yourself up.
I had my usual three ring binder with me and I’d written down some points about the topic at hand. Making lists, taking a break when on overload, establishing goals, reading positive material, remembering my business track record, helping others, planning for next year and praising my efforts were some of the things that helped me.
We talked long after our formal meeting and as a group came up with a few more things that were helpful. We acknowledged that life can be frustrating, unpredictable and full of disappointments, but in spite of this we all need to move forward. We have no choice.
We Know That:
Attitude is all.
You never know where something will lead when you meet a new personal or business contact.
Treat your business as a business – be serious about your time.
Think of your life as an Energy Bank and only make withdrawals for positive things.
Understand that “activity” energizes you.
Don’t worry about others and don’t compare yourself to others.
Clients don’t need to love us or become our friends, but they do need to trust us and respect us.
Human nature (sadly but realistically) asks – what have you done for me lately and what’s in it for me? It will be ever thus, so accept that.
We will always win some and lose others.
When I got home I sat down and thought about all we had talked about. To me, the most important point about motivation was that “attitude is everything”. If I were to combine that knowledge with the faith that I will always be exactly where I’m meant to be in my life – I’d be just fine. So those are the two things that I’m going to attempt to learn from and focus on. Motivation can be a slippery slope. It won’t always be easy but I believe it’s a learned skill and a daily choice.
