Most of us "cookiers" do what we do because it's what we love to do.  But there are those times when love is just not enough to keep the momentum going.  The path to success for most people is a long haul and hard work.  It is tough to stay enthusiastic during the time the work is being done but the fruits of the labor have yet to make an appearance. 

I have committed myself to a Year of Quitting with the end goal being a flourishing cookie business and little to no day job.  My day job currently is actually jobs, yep plural.  I work as a police dispatcher AND as a medical editor.  Takes a lot of dough (pun  intended) to run a household and feed the tribe (did I mention I have 5 daughters?).  I love my job as a dispatcher, so I imagine I will continue to do that part time for the experience of doing it.  Medical editing is just a job...I'm counting the days until I can be done with that! 

I had big ambitions of writing a blog post every day Monday through Friday...well, with 2 other jobs and cookie orders, it became obvious that was an unrealistic goal.  But I have found a way to keep motivated to get back to the keyboard at least once a week...and to stay motivated to keep cookies a top priority. 

List your goals, then under the goal list small steps to get to that goal.  Do not focus on the end goal, focus on one small step at a time.  When you reach the small step celebrate it.  Enjoy the little things.

I am a cookie artist, so I inspire myself by looking at other cookie artist's work.  Do not confuse this with comparing.  Never do I compare my ability to someone else's work, or I would be a sobbing depressed blob on the floor!  I look at their work and tell myself that I can do that...someday, and then I set it as a goal.  Find what I need to learn to reach that goal such as a technique, and that set about learning it. 

Here are some very good sources for inspiration - 

Cookie Connection 

Sweet Adventures of Sugar Belle

Montreal Confections

These are just a tiny fraction of the fabulous work that is out there, but are some of my favorites to go to.  For me it is like trolling through an art museum...hey, there's an idea...why don't we have any cookie museums yet?! 

Big dreams are great to have, but when it feels like you are not making progress that can be frustrating and anything but motivating.  Set your sites on something quickly attainable to see immediate progress and gain your motivation back.  This is the idea behind creating small steps to a big goal.  

Sometimes you just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other until you get through the Lack of Motivation forest to the sweet open fields of Inspiration/Motivation! 

Do not give up!  Many very famous folks such as my all time favorite - Oprah Winfrey, and many just as fabulous folks such as Steve Jobs, Michael Jordan, Walt Disney, JK Rowling, and many more, the one thing in common, they did not give up!  

Share how you keep your motivation by leaving a comment below.  Share with your friends on Facebook and Twitter.  Leave a comment that you shared and be entered to win a dozen cookies!