If nice weather and outdoor activities were not enough, there is also the lack of motivation facilitated by the low productivity of those around you. Unquestionably spring and summer can be some of the most distracting as well as most beautiful times of our lives. We need to find a balance between our relaxation and our ambitions. Why not start with your schedule.

I find it much easier to work while the distracting sun is preoccupied with the other side of the planet. It’s easy to focus at 1 am when no one is awake to disturb you. Too late for your liking? What about early morning? I realize that at these times our bodies are either exhausted from the day, or foggy from sleep. I support my habits by starting my work session with a workout. Physical activity is proven to provide energy. Usually it is enough to get me through my work period. I understand that not everything can be accomplished during these odd hours but if you can accomplish 3-4 hours of work at these times, that’s an extra 3-4 hours in the beautiful weather.

Obviously most people do not want to schedule meetings at these awkward hours in the early morning or late evening. Why not use the power of the Internet and schedule a remote meeting, enjoy the weather and work outside. Lets face it, connectivity is everywhere and our laptops challenge us to be productive anywhere. I’ve written while in cars, in parks, or at the hotel pool. We can accomplish everything we need to where ever we can find an Internet connection. Make your next step an adventure to find a remote Wi-Fi connection to utilize.

Summer syndrome as I affectionately call it is easily defeated by determination, but who has that? Find ways to trick yourself into working with summer instead of against it. Be happy and work effectively, embrace summer syndrome and find away to get outside for that dose of Vitamin D.

Who are you? The inspired, problem solving task destroyer or the “what can be done today can be done tomorrow” kind of person. Although most people are categorized as one or the other, I would argue that the latter just hasn’t discovered their passion.

Exhibit A: One of my best friends is an average student; somehow he is graduating although he never seems to attend class or complete homework. Most would categorize him as a procrastinator, right? Well I believe that he is very talented but at the moment he is forced to focus on a topic, e.g. school, which is not his passion. Why would I say he is talented? Maybe he chose the wrong school but give this guy a microphone and he will sing and rap until it crumbles from the vibration of his voice. He will sit in his room alone or with friends writing hundreds, maybe thousands of versus. He knows what his true passion is.

Measure him by the work he produces for his passion, which is music, and you would see that he is “the inspired, problem solving task destroyer.”

Exhibit B: Measured by test scores he is average at best, but measured by drive and ability he is first rate. Give him a task such as an assigned paper or project and he will not complete it until it is pushed as far down the road as possible. Show him a blog that will inspire him and improve his quality of life and he will listen to one and a half hour long podcasts, or read blog posts thousands of pages long. Or impress him with a movie idea and he will run with it until his lungs collapse. He knows what his true passion is.

Life is a matter of perspective and relativity. You may be accomplishing a large list of tasks. You may be inspired and hard working, but are you working for the right reasons? Do you have a long-term goal, if I asked what your true passion is; would you have a ready answer?

Variety is not the spice of life. Variety? You will find all the variety and spice bundled up in your passion. Finding and pursuing your true passion is the spice of life.

The question is efficiency. Do we work best non-stop or do breaks provide the relief we need to pursue our intellectual and business goals. The short answer is that it depends on how you’re feeling right now. Is your mind a flutter of random activity refusing to keep its focus on the task at hand? Maybe you just cannot stop reminiscing about last night or last weekend, or maybe planning next weekend. On the other spectrum is your mind destroying your to-do with ruthless efficiency. Chances are if your mind is experiencing the latter, you aren’t reading this post. You’re tactically executing the tasks that are keeping you from the freedom to enjoy the rest of your day.

But if you have found a moment to read this post maybe a few tips to help collect yourself will come in handy.

1.      Lay off the coffee, Mr. Jitters. It may help you wake up but there are always diminishing returns, it might just be the force that is keeping your mind flipping channels like late night infomercials.

2.      Bring a snack to work. One thing that keeps us from focusing indefinitely is hunger; it is the enemy of productivity. That growling is not only a biological function, it is a distracter. So find a healthy snack and chomp away, then get back to work.

3.      Do a quick set of pushups. It sounds stupid but physical activity is a great motivator of the mind. It stimulates, awakens, and focuses your mind at the task at hand. Do them in jeans. Do them in a tie. Do them at work or home. Just do them. Can’t do a push-up? Try a sit-up or a squat!

4.      Change locations. If the sunny weather outside your window prevents you from getting work done, grab a chair in a quiet spot overlooking your great office carpet, or a place with a great view of a soothing wall. Sounds boring but how can you be distracted by a wall.

5.      Close those damn windows. Not the ones that provide the great view but the ones on your computer screen with the flashing banner ads and pretty girls/guys. Those extra windows, that blinking chat window and Facebook don’t add any value to the screen when you’re distracted and attempting to accomplish something. Close them and have a Zen moment of focus with your trusty companion, your computer!

Measuring the effectiveness of a worker is the business of a corporation. We are not measured by our ability or uniqueness. Only in the task we are given are we measured.

There are many great and depressing metaphors for the employee, all of which we ignore for the “American Dream.” We believe that if we work hard and long we can all have what we desire. The only problem with this is that the loyalty you share for your company, it does not reciprocate. We are all emotionally on guard especially with an economic climate such as this. I have seen this disloyalty firsthand; the problems we’ve faced are not unique lightning strikes but a disheartening commonality. What is the result of these events? We learn that changing careers frequently is normal, the job search is a part of life and we will never have the opportunity to be comfortable in a position.

Especially in this economy we are emotionally battered, new graduates have no company to call theirs and seasoned employees are turning their efforts to resume writing and job searching, something they thought they were past. Preparing for a round of layoffs or a restructuring is something all employees have lost sleep over. It is not surprising that a majority of employees are unsatisfied, unhappy and depressed. We are farming a society of drones, humans on autopilot. We are only allowed fleeting moments of happiness, those few weeks of vacation or the misused sick days. There is never a sense of freedom, freewill or lighthearted carefree mentality. We are always obligated to another, our group, our boss, or our corporation. I want to be obligated only to my family, my goals and myself.

Utter these words and be prepared for silence. This question is one of the hardest to answer. How do we know if the path we are currently traveling is the right path for us? Using the words of Machiavelli, how many of our choices are based on the ends instead of the means? I think the best acid test is to question your immediate happiness. If this action or decision doesn’t make you happy, is it worth completing?

Specifically?

Using this job market as a case study, you can almost taste the depression. A while back I read Timothy Ferriss’s 4-Hour Work Week. In it he describes his “mini-retirements,” short month long vacations that allow him to enjoy his dreams. He outlines the costs of one of theses retirements and it is often much less than the expenses experienced state side. He travels through multiple continents on the search for his ultimate passions. Sometimes focusing inward is the only way to figure out what truly makes us happy. For better or worse we work for over 40 years of our lives. Can you imagine the innovation and emotional gain from investing those hours in a company that we own and are truly passionate about? Maybe instead of a constant grind month after month in search of a job, a mini-retirement would allow unemployed workers the ability to find and cultivate their true passions. Using this method we could avoid the high costs of our premium living, enjoy a unique culture and learn from another group of people while doing some valuable soul searching.

The Viewpoint

My opinions are shaped by the consistent creation of new and more exciting ideas, most of which I want to start right now. Although there is a general plan for execution none of them involve a boss, all of them are unique and each are possible at the right point in life. This entrepreneurial ADD involves a lot of time and energy but it embodies a certain freedom enjoyed by a relatively small population. With unemployment reaching all time highs, why not take advantage of the government welfare and create a company that you enjoy sweating for? There is nothing to lose currently; I would argue those without jobs are the ones who are truly free. A salary traps employees, and in the same way a wild stallion is broken, we are conditioned to live for that deposit that occurs every two weeks. It is almost frightening to walk away from, a world of uncertainty and imagined pain awaits those that turn away from their corporate check.

Newly freed graduates and employees should embrace this new opportunity for happiness. Use your first few months of unemployment for the creation of a venture that you will love and appreciate for the rest of your life.

Starting with a familiar occurrence, imagine a situation that has you so excited you cannot sleep, maybe a big event your planning. From my personal experience this event was a concert, put on by a group of apparently under qualified people. Promised was the chance of a lifetime, a big concert opening for a well known band. This opportunity doesn’t come along often. As I am the manager I handled all the logistics concerning the participation of my talented group of artists. In 2 days I put in a substantial amount of effort, promoting and facilitating the mobilization of our fans. Seemingly I put in more effort than the group facilitating the event. I saw them advertise once; they said “we hope we have a good crowd.” We hope?

There is the first step in the wrong direction, but I realize that I can make that happen for this underprepared bunch. So we continue on until the final nail in the coffin. An email 24 hours before the concert explaining that the top prize is now unavailable and would be replaced with a negligible amount of money. Obviously the show did not go on. This proved to be a severe disappointment.

The Wrong Way

We had 2 options at this point; we could relent, give up, and break. Just as in life we have the choice to give up our dreams and passions. We could blame the group, which planned the ill-fated event. We did not participate in the concert and that could be considered a form of retreat.

The Right Way

In our eyes, we believed that we could create an atmosphere, which would facilitate a positive environment to play our music. This is the way we were taught to think by our parents. “What happens when we fall of the horse?” “We get back on” Even though this represented a minor speed bump in our plans we stood tall, alerted our fans and took responsibility for our actions. We did not cower or blame others, we found a way to redirect our energies in the direction which would fuel our growth. We decided to stand tall and remain gentlemen about the situation.

How did we make up for it? Currently in the works, we are planning our own concert, not centered on prizes but centered on the emotions of our music and our fans. The most important aspect of music is its ability to positively affect all who choose to listen. With this concert we are symbolically getting back on the horse after our grave disappointment. This is one of the most important lessons of the entrepreneur.

Get back on that horse

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul.

William Earnest Henley

We all have the ideas that can change our lives; one way my roommates keep up the motivation to fight seems crazy. When we see legendary quotes we read, maybe we tweet, but often they are forgotten. My roommates have found a way to remember and be reminded every day.

Yes thats their wall, a bland and boring white wall. They took it and shaped it into motivational art, we should all be so lucky. Everyday they wake up, their vision is filled with images that inspire us to keep going. More?

What have we learned? Maybe that I’m not the best photographer, well there were poor lighting conditions. We should all be willing to make big changes, and implement our best ideas. Turn your wall into art, keep going and hustle like you mean it.

What is the motivation of the entrepreneur? Is it legacy, money or ego? Maybe a combination of the three, maybe it’s something inside that tells them that the status quo is no longer the right way to make a living. One of my favorite blogs, Under30CEO, tackles the issues of the young and the restless. It focuses on the people who are willing to risk it all, make good choices and lead a life they are passionate about. Is money the only reason the entrepreneur exists?

I question my motives everyday; it is a part of self-analysis that I find particularly rewarding. Every time we look in the mirror and ask ourselves the hard questions you put yourself in the position to learn from your past experiences as well as understand the psychology behind the decisions you make. Will you devote the time it takes to become your own master? If we are ultimately driven by instinct or impulse what makes us higher than the rest of the animal kingdom?

All these questions come with unique answers; each person must decide that they are worth analysis. Each of us has the power to make the best decisions with the information present. The entrepreneur is one of the most respected business figures in America. We worship them, we envy them, and we uplift them. Why wouldn’t we, they are the independent few willing to risk their futures on an idea they believe in.

Ego

Your ego is your biggest asset or your biggest flaw? It can give you confidence in nerve-wracking situations or be the catalyst for disaster when you come off like a snob. Make sure the former is the end result, everyone has an ego, and it is the root of our self-confidence. Be certain your ego is working for you and not against you.

Bank

Monetary motivation may take you to the top, but if it is all you focus on or want in life you will end up unfulfilled and lonely. The monetary reasons should be useful to the point of fulfilling your dreams and goals. It goes without saying that providing for your family is assumed. Making bank will help you live a full life but it wont be the ultimate catalyst of happiness.

Legacy

The true measure of a man’s (or woman’s) worth is the legacy he leaves behind. It may not be in grand parks or buildings, or large corporations. It may just be a large network of people whose lives were forever changed by this person. Whatever your legacy, it is the most important part of the time you spend on earth. Do not only focus on the bubble around you, but also uplift and inspire the people who mean most to you. Once you find that the real gift of life is connection, the true journey begins. People will come to your aid eagerly. The world may not be changed but your network will be better off because of your existence.

Be the change you want to see in the world.

Gandhi

From the moment we awaken we are faced with choices. Should we fall back asleep or to start the day? Should we get right down to work or maybe watch some TV? Each moment there is an opportunity to make a choice. We are in control of our destinies.

Choose

Each day we face the decisions that will shape our future, now more than ever I am feeling the pressure to make the correct decisions. Although I happen to be in a position of transition, graduation means many things to me. It is a new chapter, a new opportunity and a new day to make choices that will echo in my future.

Although we may not all be in this transitional phase the choices are all around us. The beliefs that every day is a small battle for the metaphorical war that is our lives. It may not be violent or aggressive but each day is a piece of the puzzle.

Facing opportunity is hard but each time we choose our personal growth or progression we make the correct choice for the battle of the day. Each morning, my hardest battle is leaving my warm bed; I imagine this is an uphill battle for most people. I feel that I am working to fix this example of procrastination by working each day to wake up at the same time (Check out this related blog post: “Get UP!”).

This is a small example of the tiny choices that we all make that affect our future. I find that I am most frustrated when the people around us expect their goals to be reached without the necessary level of commitment or hustle. They are losing the small daily battles that construct the war. How do they expect to fulfill their goals?

Enough Rant

1. Make a list of your most sought after goals on paper
2. Put them in order of importance
3. Make a timeline with using actual dates for deadlines
4. Place this tangible timeline on your refrigerator
5. Each decision you face, ask: “Will this help accomplish my goals?”
6. Think of your timeline, your motivation, your future
7. Regret is the ultimate enemy, ask: “ Will I regret this decision tomorrow?”
8. Make the choice that will allow you to win the battle of the day!

Where will today’s battle take you? Make sure it’s somewhere you want to be.

Each of these attributes represents one reason, in a long list of reasons for starting your own venture or changing jobs to become an entrepreneur. These are my top ten, each day I am thankful for the ability and courage to break the mold and compete on a playing field I chose.

The Top Ten

1. I can’t sleep because I’m infatuated with my newest venture
2. I love planning and implementing my own ideas, big or small
3. I am organized and meticulous once I get behind a project
4. I hate the idea of a boss
5. I love my own rigorous schedule
6. I have an eccentric and infectious personality
7. I love describing my business plans to anyone who will listen
8. I actively create ventures that solve peoples current problems
9. I work hardest when the task is self-assigned

10.  Wealth is created through smart work not necessarily hard work

Why are you an entrepreneur? What wakes you up, out of a deep sleep and sets you into motion? Maybe you would rather work in the corporate world, why do you do that? Share in the comments.