July 19, 2012

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26. “Nothing is more motivating the considering the alternative of being self-employed. Building value for someone else’s company, being controlled by a boss, only being able to influence your success rather than being in full control of it. Picturing this scenario is enough to turn the worst day into an empowering one.”

- Ross Johnson, CEO of 3.7 DESIGNS

27. “Knowing what could be and knowing how badly you want to achieve it. If you want something bad enough, you’ll work harder for it. For me it means getting up and knowing I’ll be fighting the good fight with my friends and fellow teammates.”

- Matt Beckham, CEO of QuiBids

28. “Thinking back to the look on my former bosses faces when I told them I wanted to start my own company. I envision them slaving away at the job they hate, chained to their desks. It puts a smile on my face to know that I’ll never have to report to them again.”

- Jill Nadorlik, President, Marketing Consultant of Nadorlik & Co.

29. “I am motivated by the fact that I have total control over my career. I’m not at the mercy of an employer or owner with poor judgement who makes flawed decisions. It’s up to me how many clients I take on, the hours I work, and the company’s culture and style. If I’m ever upset or frustrated about my job, I always remind myself of this control and it motivates me to keep growing my business.”

- Dana Kaye, Owner/Publicist of Kaye Publicity

30.”Starting a small business at a young age presents many obstacles and skeptics just looking to see how successful you can really be. That said, it’s my biggest motivational tool — wanting to prove those people wrong. Why not be able to establish a business at 21 and be more successful than others doing the same in their 30′s, 40′s, and up?”

- Bisera Urdarevik, Founder of Lush Gourmet Foods, LLC

31. “Keep setting higher and higher goals for yourself. Any time you reach a goal you have set, rather than pat yourself on the back and become complacent, immediately set a next, even more ambitious goal for yourself, so you always have something you are working towards.”

- Stephanie Kaplan, Co-Founder and CEO (Editor-in-Chief) of Her Campus Media

32. “Set goals – At the beginning of every year establish at least one goal you’d like to work towards. Try to stretch yourself professionally to meet that goal, and ensure you don’t make it unrealistic or too easily achievable.”

- Maise Knowles, Co-Founder and Chief Operations Officer of FreeShipping.org

33. “Share victories with everyone on your team – from the top, down. Employees want to be a part of a winning organization and are excited by growth, which can feed ownership’s own level of engagement and willingness to press forward.”

- Mario Ochoa, Co-Owner of Sammis & Ochoa

34. “In order to stay motivated, you have to keep your eyes on the prize and understand that starting a business is going to be a roller coaster no matter what. When it’s bad, just remember that it’s going to be really awesome soon if you push through.”

- Chuck Gordon, CEO of SpareFoot, Inc.

35. “Having a goal that is more perpetual than final. Watching the industry, watching for ways to improve, and implementing them in innovative ways. There is always more to learn, always new approaches, and always more work to be done. Boredom is never a problem if you stay involved.”

- Jason Haeger, Founder of AJ Coffee Company

How do you stay motivated? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Photo Credit: Blanco

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