If you run your own small business, you’ll be familiar with the emotional ups and downs that go with the job. One minute you can be on top of the world and the next, you’re in the doldrums because of, literally, a phone call or an email.
Sometimes it can be hard to see the ‘big picture’, and it’s far too easy to find yourself slipping into the hole of depression. Let’s face it, opportunities happen when you’re feeling great and clients start to come through the door. When you’re feeling down, nothing works and no new clients come your way.
Try these tricks and tips to keep your spirits lifted when those moments of rising panic threaten to overwhelm you.
Jot Down the Good Times
It’s easy to concentrate on the bad things, but if you record the good things too, you’ll find it makes you feel better and then when you start to feel down in the future, you can refer back to these good things.
Print Out your Successes
We all have clients and contacts who send us emails saying great things about us. Print them off and pin them on the wall to remind you that it’s all worth it.
Surround Yourself with Positive People
There is a saying that we are the average of the 6 main people we spend our time with. That means if you spend the majority of your time with 6 people who are moaning and groaning about the world, guess how you’re going to feel. Surround yourself with as many positive people as you can.
Get Out of your Environment
Staying in your home or office for days on end is guaranteed to make you feel terrible. A change of environment can lighten your mood, help you see problems in a different light and often give you a solution too.
Don’t Put Things Off
Whether it’s a tricky conversation with a client or a project that fills you with dread, just get on with it. Putting it off doesn’t make it go away so it’s far better to tackle it head-on, and chances are it won’t be as bad as you think anyway.
Talk About It
As they say, a problem shared is a problem halved. Talk about how you’re feeling with a positive person and see if between you, you can come up with some solutions to make you feel better.
Work on a New Project
If you’re looking at your to-do list thinking “Yuck!” then work on something different. Look over all the ideas you’ve had in the past and see if you can come up with some that inspire you. Then try giving them a go or planning them out to see if that can get you re-motivated.
Take the Day Off.
Even when you know you shouldn’t, taking the day off and physically removing yourself from the business can do you the world of good. Try something totally different that takes all your concentration – it’ll take your mind off work. Sometimes a break from the norm is all you need to recharge your batteries and your determination to make a success of your business.