Do motivational quotes spur you on?
Whether splashed across social media posts, merchandise, or the walls of our homes, motivational quotes are more popular than ever. Seen as cheesy by some, they’re mediocre to others; however, these wedges of wisdom and wellbeing can have a real impact on some people’s lives.
Here’s an example:
‘The greatest glory in living, lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall’
~ Nelson Mandela.
It’s just seventeen words long, yet this motivational quote could inspire someone to finally overcome their fears and work on their resilience. The phrase is easy to remember, and it comes from a credible person who faced great adversity but who still went on to achieve their goals.
We’re all constantly learning in life. The self-help industry has seen exponential growth over recent years, with numerous illuminating podcasts and various inspirational books—it’s big business. Motivational quotes are part of this world, and they may be all someone needs to read or hear to change their habits and their mindset—and even their lives—for the better.
The clever wording of some quotes helps them to stick in our brains—particularly so if they involve parallels, such as this quote by Maya Angelou:
‘People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.’
Reverse language is also a tactic that helps motivational quotes to become memorable, such as this by Abraham Lincoln:
‘It’s not the years in your life that count, it’s the life in your years.’
Linguistically, rhyme and repetition encourage the conviction of a statement.
Motivating the minority?
Motivational quotes don’t work on everyone, suggests Jonathan Fader, PhD, founder of the Union Square Practice. He believes there is a specific segment of the population that digests motivational quotes and uses them as the basis for their actions.
Scott Sobel, psychology expert, feels their appeal is wider than this, however. He says, ‘Humans are aspirational. We want to look up to role models and leaders and follow what they ask. Leaders and their words–inspirational quotes–affect us on a primal level.’
According to ‘The Psychology of Motivation’ by Lois V Brown, ‘Motivational quotes give us the same feelings we experience when we’ve accomplished something.’ How can that not be a positive?
There’s plenty of research that proves how powerful our thoughts can be when we’re trying to reach our goals. Positive Mental Attitude appears in the trainings of top coaches in practically every sport. If an athlete or sportsman doesn’t believe they can achieve greatness or that they can win their match, they’ll be right, as the body implicitly follows the mind. Mindset is everything in these instances, and motivational quotes can play their part.
So, do you find motivational quotes help you as you run your business? Or do you think they’re a load of old tosh?
As a Virtual Assistant, I help people achieve their business goals. The people I work with tend to be looking forwards, not backwards, when they engage me.
At that point, they’ve made the decision to stop the (vital but time-heavy, unproductive) tasks that drag them down. They’re naturally open-minded for two reasons: if they were focused only on the tasks themselves, rather than the bigger picture surrounding their business, they would want to control these activities and would loathe the thought of passing them on. Also, they understand that passing such tasks on is for the greater good of their business, i.e. by freeing up more of their time they can take advantage of any opportunities that may arise. You have to be open-minded to even notice potential opportunities—if you’re too busy obsessing over every last detail of your working day, you’ll be oblivious to them.
What’s included in your personal growth strategy?
Forward-thinking, open-minded people accept new ideas and opinions and recognise that continual learning is how we grow and mature—intellectually, emotionally and professionally. I would therefore wager that most of the people I work with do include motivational quotes in their personal growth strategy. They will likely listen to inspirational podcasts, too, and set themselves business goals that they review at regular intervals.
Would I be right?
I’ll leave you with this motivational quote, as I feel it’s appropriate…
‘Early on in your career, find someone better than yourself to run the business on a day-to-day basis. Remove yourself, maybe even from the building, and from the nitty-gritty. That way, you’re going to be able to see the bigger picture and think of new areas to go into.’ ~ Richard Branson
Hear, hear!
If you’d like more information on how I can help you grow your business, give me a call on 07711 933457.