As I prepared to write this blog, my final blog of 2020 it got me thinking about the year we have…
By: Emma Sheardown
Tags: Motivational, Planning, Tips, New Year, Christmas

As I prepared to write this blog, my final blog of 2020 it got me thinking about the year we have had and the brand new one that awaits around the corner.

2020 has been so unique, whilst the county has been united in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, individually we have endured a whole array of changes and challenges to overcome.

As we look ahead to 2021, whilst some may look at it as being a fresh start and with the recent release of the coronavirus vaccine there is hope that ‘normal’ life will resume. However, the reality is that many more challenges lie ahead as we begin the new year.

During my life, I have encountered many challenges, not least those bought about by having Cerebral Palsy. At 14 months old my parents were told that I would never be able to walk or talk — but I was fortunate that both of my parents had the motivation to put the work into getting me as well as they could.

For me, this is a great example that if you have the motivation to do something, you will put the work in and you ‘will’ achieve. With my parents motivation and, as I got older my own motivation by the age of 6 I defied all expectations and took my first ‘solo’ steps.

So, as we look to 2021 I want to share 12 motivational tips for the 12 days of Christmas to motivate you into making your 2021 happy and successful in your life and in your business!

Tip 1. Enjoy the yule tide ‘you’ time

In the week a lot of people will be finishing work for their Christmas break. This Christmas will be different for so many. So often we spend our Christmas time going to various parties and sharing our time going between one family gathering to another. But, of course due to the pandemic this won’t be the case this year.

Although we will miss the usual family gatherings, this festive period will give us the ideal opportunity to ‘stop’ and enjoy the holiday time just for us, the chance to have a well-earned rest and re-charge for the year ahead.

Tip 2. What does you 2021 look like?

I always think that December is a great time to reflect on the past and make plans for the future. We can use this time to reflect on the year that has just passed — what were your achievements? What were your biggest teachings? What worked for you? What didn’t you achieve, and why? By answering questions like these, we can then look ahead to the new year. We can form a direction in which we want to take, we can use our positive experiences from the previous year and learn from the teachings of our past mistakes.

Tip 3. Plan your route to success

Imagine getting in your car, setting off down the road, you know where you want to end up… but you have no route, no way of knowing how you are going to get there. Do I turn right? Do I go left… or do I just plough straight ahead?

It doesn’t matter how much you want to get somewhere, how determined you are to succeed, if you don’t plan *how* you are going to get there, the steps that you need to take, then you may undertake a lot of mileage… but you won’t get anywhere!

Tip 4. Remember Rome wasn’t built in a day… one step at a time!

They say ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’, they also say ‘patience is a virtue’ and this is so true! Following on from tip 3, ‘step goals’ as I like to call them are a great way to plan your route to success.

Deciding on your end goal may be exciting and inspiring, but it can also feel a bit overwhelming — however much you want to achieve your goal, actually getting to the point of achieving it may feel very daunting.

This is where ‘step goals’ come in — breaking your goal down into bite sized chunks helps you to focus on successfully achieving one important step at a time — this gives you a sense of achievement as you climb each step and ultimately results in you successfully achieving your end goal.

Tip 5 . Everyday’s a school day… Learning from our mistakes

Everyday is a school day is another popular saying, and this is also very true. Whilst making mistakes often leave us feeling silly and un-professional, the most important thing is that we learn from them.

I have learnt in recent years that mistakes are only mistakes if we dwell on them and let them drag us down. It’s so easy to feel like this — you wish that the ground would open up and swallow you.

Now a days, I much prefer to turn my mistakes into ‘teachings’ and ‘learning tools’. I think that the most important question to ask yourself is ‘what will I do differently next time?’

Tip 6 . Celebrate good times!

We are all guilty of putting a huge amount of pressure on ourselves in order to achieve our goals and to create the life that we want for ourselves and our families. So, when we achieve something, when we reach a milestone it is important that we take time to celebrate what we have achieved and reflect on how far we have come.

By recognising and celebrating what we have achieved it injects us with the motivation that we need to keep going or move onto our next goal.

Tip 7. If ‘you’ aren’t on top form, then your business isn’t either

Looking after our mental health is vital for everybody. But if you are running a business or trying to develop your career, then looking after ‘you’ is just as important as marketing, planning and developing your products and services.

I know myself that if I am not ‘on it’ mentally, then my business suffers. I take my eye off the ball.

Tip 8. Hide and seek isn’t good!

If you want your business to be successful, then hide and seek isn’t the game for you! If you are hiding, if no one can see what you or your business offer, then how do you expect to be successful?

Visibility is key! *YOU* are the face of your business!

We are so fortunate to have various social media channels at our fingertips. With the click of a button we can market our business to a range of target audiences.

Tip 9. Review, re-assess and reset

Giving yourself regular ‘down time’ is key to your success. You can’t expect to keep going and have the same level of output indefinitely.

‘Planning’ your time away from your work is essential to making sure that you actually take it.

This time should include time for you to rest and reset, but also by taking a step back it gives you the opportunity to review how your business is going and re-assess where you want to go going forward.

‘Time off’ or ‘down time’ should be seen as important time in your business calendar!

Tip 10. Time is of the essence… (time blocking)

There are only so many hours in the day, so it is important that we use this time wisely.

With so much in our lives to juggle, it is so easy for certain tasks to get forgotten or get pushed to the bottom of your list.

If you are running a business there are so many different areas which you need to dedicate your time equally to in order to succeed — tasks such as networking, PR and marketing and development of your products or services.

In order to be successful, each area of your business requires commitment and focus. For example, if you put 100% into working on the marketing, but don’t do any networking then you won’t have the connections to market to.

I use time-blocking throughout the day to ensure that I dedicate a specific amount of time to focus on a particular area of my business.

Tip 11. Go for Gold

*Always* have a goal — go for gold!

Goals keep you focused, determined, motivated. We all need something to aim for and keep us striving to be the best that we can be.

Without business goals our businesses would sit still, there would be no ambition for growth and eventually our business would fail. Goals also give us a sense of purpose… and when we achieve them, we are filled with so much pride, confidence and achievement!

Tip 12. You have one life… live it, love it!

Tip 12 is you have one life and it is down to *you* to make it your own and live it how *you* want to live it!!

The world is your oyster!

If you want to achieve something — with hard work, determination and self discipline…

You *CAN* achieve the life that you want!

This Christmas ‘will’ be different and right now 2021 seems uncertain, but keep focused on ‘you’ — your business, your goals and you *WILL* get through the challenges that lie ahead!

Emma Sheardown, Motivational Speaker and International Para Dressage Champion is available for keynote presentations for business gatherings, corporate conferences and groups of all sizes. Topics include confidence to achieve, breaking through barriers, positive thinking and disability awareness.

Connect with Emma on: facebook.com/ESheardownMotivationalSpeaker | linkedin.com/in/esheardown-motivationalspeaker | twitter.com/sheardown_emma | instagram.com/sheardownemma