All motivation is self-motivation. You can listen to the best motivational speaker in the world every day, you can hire the best business coach in town, or you can buy all the inspirational books you see on the shelves but without that internal push, all is just a waste.

I own two businesses today and both ventures have passed the longevity test. But the journey getting here is harder than I could ever have imagined. How was I able to push through? Self-motivation!

Motivating yourself has four pillars. Know and master these things and you can do whatever you want and succeed.

What are you here for?

The power of self-motivation is dependent on the alignment of your personal goals to your business/professional goals. What are you here for in this world? What is your “why”? The more accurate you get in identifying your “why” the stronger the push of intrinsic motivation. What jolts you out of the bed so early in the morning to check on your sales? Purpose! What gets you going even if you are so exhausted? It always goes back to the depth of your reason for doing what you are doing. Know your why and you will be invincible.

What are your signposts?

An entrepreneur clearly sees in his mind the things he need to do to realise his objectives. He understands he will go through a process. This guides him through his day, his week, his month. While people see small victories, a businessman sees signposts, a marker that tells him he has arrived to a new level in his entrepreneurial pursuit.

A signposts could be getting a better traffic to your website, to have a thriving blog or vlog, achieve a specific number of followers on Instagram, reach a target figure in your Facebook engagement, or it could be a monetary objective – earning your first million, buying a nice car, and etc.

The signposts feed you with reasons to celebrate along the way. Never rob yourself of happiness in your journey. Motivating yourself is hard to do when you do not have anything to look forward to. Like climbing a mountain, the peak is not the only thing worth aiming for. Every hundred feet you climb, you also get a better view of the valley. Enjoy the view once in a while!

What are the impossibilities in your mind?

There is just something so appealing with impossible goals. It pushes you to perform better than you thought possible. It also gives you the drive to get things done. Challenging goals also build your perseverance – of doing your best even if you thought you did your best already.

Do you set impossible goals? Do you push yourself hard enough? People that are used to achieving the impossible have higher self-confidence. They develop the necessary skills to survive the tough world of entrepreneurship.

How far do you see?

How far you see will dictate how much success you will achieve. People who thrive on self-motivation always remind themselves of the big picture. They do not get rattled with temporary situations, they do not worry about seasonal business slowdowns. They have a clear view of their end, that moment when they can really say to themselves, mission accomplished!

It’s easy to be hyped up with market trends or be in the mood to compete with your friend’s new start-up business. But to succeed you cannot rely on external motivators to keep you moving forward. Master self-motivation and realize your dreams!