The state of Nigeria’s economy is really depressing. People are working like elephants but eating like ants.

Business owners are struggling just to remain in business and those who can’t are closing shops.

Thought of making profit is now like wishful thinking.

Even people are now forcing themselves to go to their businesses because you can go and stay from morning till night without a customer asking you what are you selling?

But Zig Zigler said that Success is not bought in one payment-It is earned in daily installments of effort, focus and discipline.

And for those who are afraid of starting the truth is that you don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.

So stop waiting to be good enough or to have it all before you start.

You don’t even have to wait for the economy to become good before you start because it can never be.

Successful is not magic.

You have to learn the principles and if you do and put them to work, you can be successful in anything

Most of the richest men in the world did not have university degrees.

All you need to do is to be willing to put in the work.

I know that that the ‘work’ part is hard.

And that is the one that most people don’t want to hear.

They get scared or discouraged when then they hear “work”.

But what they don’t know is that if success is easy, everybody would become successful.

The reality is, success is hard.

Success is difficult, because work is involved.

In fact, behind every successful story, there is one chapter that no one likes to read, the one on struggle.

The real winners are not the fastest but those who never stop running.

Success does not come from what you do once, but what you do consistently.

So, success involves believing in yourself, writing down your goals, embracing failure as learning and controlling your mindset through positive thinking.

Success requires action, self discovery, perseverance over wishful thinking.

Even those who are currently surviving in business are not doing that because their business is easy, but because they have the right information and taking tough decisions.

The other reason Is because they have kept themselves motivated by deciding that they would never give up no matter the circumstance.

So if you want to do well in business, you have to maintain motivation.

Maintaining motivation involves a combination of strategies that help you stay focused and driven.

1-Set clear goals: Define specific, measurable, achievable relevant and time-bound goals. Break down large goals into smaller, manageable tasks.

One thing that keeps you motivated is when you have a very clear goal of where you are going.

When you know where you are going, you would be ready to fight all the battles on the road to your destination.

On the other hand, when you don’t have clear goals of where you are going, it would be very easy to get discouraged when challenges come your way.

So the first step towards maintaining motivation is to have set clear goals.

2-Find your why: Identify the reasons behind your goals. What drives you? What is your purpose?

Knowing your purpose is another way of maintaining motivation.

Purpose is what drives you.

It helps to maintain motivation.

It helps to chase procrastination, excuses and tiredness away, thereby helping you to maintain motivation.

3-Create a routine-Establish a daily routine that includes time for goal oriented activities.

The easiest way to achieve any task is to turn it into a habit.

4-Track Progress-Monitor your progress, celebrate small wins, and adjust approach as needed.

5-Stay positive— Surround yourself with supportive people and focus on positive self –talk.

6-Reward yourself-Give yourself treats for achieving milestones.

7-Stay accountable-Share your goals with a friend or mentor and ask them to hold you accountable.

8-Take breaks; Allow yourself time to rest and recharge. The two most important things in the world is health and wealth but in alphabetical order, H becomes W. That simply tells you that health is far more important than wealth. Whatever you want to be on earth, you have to be alive to be that.

9-Find inspiration-Read motivational stories or follow inspiring people.

10-Be kind to yourself-Don’t be too hard on yourself when you encounter setbacks .Learn from failures and move forward.

Nothing good comes easy. Battle must always come before victory and the only recipe is to maintain motivation.