Comments on: Open Thread: How Do You Stay Motivated?

By: Adam

Adam — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 14:21:44 +0000

I am a freelance web designer / developer. During my down times I keep my routine going get up the same time every day. I do a few hours of work and then give myself a reward. Run to the gas station for a soda, go to the coffee shop for brunch, or take the dog to the park. Do that for no more than 2 hours come back and work and do the same thing in the evening.

By: monica

monica — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 04:48:11 +0000

I stay motivated by keeping busy. I’m a freelance writer and web developer and try to balance my projects between the two. I keep plate loaded with a good mix of interesting work (or not so interesting if things are slow – the bills must be paid!). But keeping that mix helps. I’m also motivated by deadlines so I try to set mini-deadlines for myself throughout the day.

By: Gavin Wray

Gavin Wray — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:41:28 +0000

I think back to the reasons why I chose to try freelancing in the first place. They were good, positive reasons that still hold true now.

By: Dainis Graveris

Dainis Graveris — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 03:36:01 +0000

Great question! I will look here later for more responses. For me it’s easy – I know that graphic and web designer is my proffesion for life, so I don’t know what I could do without it. And that’s only reason to keep my going and work hard every day to get to my goals. It’s simple as that.

By: salwa

salwa — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 01:41:39 +0000

Pretty much what Michael Martine said “Failure is unacceptable”. That’s what motivates me the most

By: Candace

Candace — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 23:05:51 +0000

I used to work as a waitress. Basically it’s this or serving cheese steak and fries. Works every time.

By: Michael Martine, Blog Consultant

Michael Martine, Blog Consultant — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 20:20:10 +0000

How do I stay motivated? Failure is unacceptable. That’s pretty damn motivating for me.

By: Rob Steenwyk

Rob Steenwyk — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 18:17:02 +0000

I look at every job I take as an opportunity to help someone. I used to work for a ticketing company (think Ticketmaster), and although the job could be very high stress, I always looked at the job like I was helping other people have a good time.

I still do that today, like when I am working on the server for a company that manufactures fire alarms. When I’m doing work for them, I figure that in a way I am potentially helping save someones life!

Of course, knowing that money is at the end of a not-so-fun task also helps.

By: Kacper

Kacper — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 15:42:45 +0000

To kick my motivation, I always apply to myself some stron stimulus related to my task/project (for example if I have to code something, I read few quality articles about coding). I described it more detailed in my post there: http://www.kacperwrzesniewski.com/ultimate-motivation-tip-not-only-for-web-addicts/

By: Bryan McCarty

Bryan McCarty — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 15:18:55 +0000

As a photographer and copywriter, I always stay on the lookout for amazing work. Subscribing to magazines like Creativity and Communication Arts is always a great way to see the freshest, newest and most innovative ideas. It’s these ideas that make my heart smile and remind me of why I love what I do.

::bryan