Ep.8/ How to Stay Motivated in Business Year After Year
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No matter your level of experience, whether you’re an aspiring or a seasoned entrepreneur - No matter the amount of wealth or success you have-you know the emotional roller coaster of experiencing periods of high motivation, and then periods of no motivation - it’s like the desert, I’m very passionate about helping you design a thriving business with intention and clarity. So in today’s episode, I’m going to share a mindset framework to help you evaluate whether your business idea is one of true purpose - because if it is - this will ensure the longevity of your passion and thus, your motivation.
It’s a challenge for me today- because usually, a coaching session is a dialogue and a co-creation between you and me. And here today, I can’t see you or hear you, but I’m still going to try to create an impact - by taking you through the process with me.
So today, I invite you - to sit back, and relax, and take the seat of my client for just a moment.
Don’t worry about taking notes, you can just find everything from this episode in the show notes.
The Logical Levels Framework
The framework I'm going to use here is called the logical levels-and it’s based on the work of a Californian psychologist, Robert Dilt, and it was adapted by Marilyn Atkinson who’s the founder of Erickson International - which is where I was trained as a coach.
Robert considered that, in working with project or business development, there were 5 important levels to consider, and he organized them in a pyramid.
At the top of the pyramid, there is your identity, the “WHO”
That is Who you are at the spiritual level, as part of humanity - as an interconnected being.
To explore this level, I’m going to ask you some questions, and you can answer them in your heart...
What are your core beliefs and values?
Who do you want to be?
What qualities do you want to show?
What sort of person would you be?
You could totally have a business that is separated from your identity-many people do. But here, my invitation is to transform your daily life into your fully embodied life, to integrate and unify all the divided and fragmented parts of yourself. I believe that being able to accomplish that, is to me, designing a business of true purpose and aligned success.
After the identity level, is the Value level, the “WHY”?
I would ask:
Why is this important? Why is it meaningful to you?
What value does it have?
Many people do things but they don’t have a strong why. It’s perhaps for the money, or because of an opportunity that came up.
If the WHY is not deep enough,
If it’s an external why,
A Why that came from outside and you don’t believe in it 100%.
Your motivation will wax and wane. So it is important that you know exactly WHY you are doing something- and that why comes from within.
Under the “WHY”, is the capabilities level, the “HOW”?
If something is holding you back, if there is any resistance, we may want to check is it a belief? Fear? Or something around capacities? To ensure the fulfillment of your goal, I may ask you the following questions:
What skills do you have? What skills do you need to develop?
What specific action steps do you need to learn or explore?
How will you achieve it?
What do you need to do to know what to do next?
One level lower, level #4: “WHAT?” And then level #5: “WHEN?” and “WHERE”?
That’s the action level. What you do, when, and where.
So you can see that the pyramid goes from top to bottom. If someone is in the action level without knowing intimately their “WHY”, their identity, and their vision, it will not be sustainable.
Do you ever pause and wonder: “Why am I doing this?”
That’s when we need to step back and look at the big picture again, starting from the top of the pyramid.
→When you have a high-level view of your identity, values, your WHY, it will give information about the lower level - the “HOW”, “WHAT”, and “WHEN”.
And there is one last level: It’s the ecology of the project
In the coaching process, we would also ask about you:
Is it good for everyone?
If you fulfill this business idea - does that fit in the overall plan of your family or community?
How will this affect your life?
Is there a dovetail with the ecology of others that matter to you?
For example, if you’re in a (romantic or business) partnership, how do your outcomes and your partner’s fit best together?
So we just went through the logical levels.
When you’re thinking of your next project, before you go immediately in the action, I invite you to take the time to go through the logical levels and see if it’s in alignment with your identity, your “WHY”, your capacity, and your life’s ecology.
Conclusion
Success to me is when you feel fulfilled in life and business. It’s when just like an architect, you have the freedom to design a business that is in alignment and is a full embodiment of who you are, and who you have become.
The business idea that will have more longevity, the one that will keep you motivated, is the one that you will explore through the 6 levels shared today.
As a client of coaching myself, I know that the support of a coach to navigate this process can be transformative and empowering. Because often, unconsciously, we are limited by certain beliefs and we tend to think small. So if you feel stuck or overwhelmed, invest in a coach - don’t waste any more time. Because you may be one step away from finding that motivation again.
Call to action
I hope you enjoyed today’s episode. If you’re aspiring to build a thriving business with intention and clarity, and if you want my support, I invite you to sign up to my free masterclass: Intentional Business Building.
In this masterclass, you’ll learn the 5 foundation pillars to building a long-lasting, sustainable, profitable business.
Kind words from the previous Intentional Business Building Masterclass:
““Maika brought me a new perspective on how handling my business. Taking a step back and having a look at the big picture with new eyes is very helpful. Her masterclass was clear and inspiring. ”
““Maika showed me the importance of time management and organization in building and managing my business. She encouraged me to share my experience and knowledge with people including my failures. Thanks very much Maika.””
““Just wanted to thank you again for all this amazing content !! Very clear, professional-looking, engaging, love it ! I’m so happy I could access this even though I couldn’t attend. Very much worth the investment! Merci!””
