I’ll be honest — the last few days haven’t been my strongest. Not in a catastrophic way, just in that subtle, dragging kind of way where the energy isn’t quite there. You wake up, you hit the alarm, and you feel like you’re running at 70% capacity. It’s not burnout, it’s not crisis — it’s just… heavy.
But I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it means to keep moving forward, even when you’re not feeling your best.
This hit me hardest this morning at the gym. I didn’t want to go. My body was tired, my motivation low, and my mind was already bargaining with me about why skipping a day wouldn’t hurt. But I went anyway. I showed up, moved some weight around, went through the motions — and it wasn’t my best workout by any stretch. But it was something.
And that “something” mattered. Because when I walked out of the gym, I realized I wasn’t just working out my body — I was working out my discipline.
That’s a lesson I’ve been trying to carry into my work and into how I coach my team.
There’s this belief in sales — and really in any performance-driven role — that you have to be “on” all the time. That energy equals success. But the truth is, we all have off days, off weeks, even off quarters. What defines the best teams isn’t that they always feel great — it’s that they know how to keep moving when they don’t.
Lately, I’ve been encouraging my team to find momentum over motivation. Motivation is great when it’s there, but it’s unreliable. It fades, it fluctuates. Momentum, on the other hand, is built through small, consistent actions — even when you’re not at your best.
Here are a few practices I’ve been leaning on to keep moving forward when the tank feels empty:
- Shrink the Goal.
When I don’t have the energy for a full workout, I tell myself, “Just go for 20 minutes.” When a big project feels overwhelming, I focus on one task — sending one email, prepping one slide, making one call. It’s amazing how often “just one thing” turns into a full stride once you start moving. - Recommit to the Routine.
Discipline is freedom. I’ve learned that sticking to my routine — gym, morning planning, team check-ins — gives me a structure to rely on when my energy dips. The routine carries me when motivation won’t. - Be Honest with Your Team.
I’ve started to tell my team when I’m not firing on all cylinders. Not as an excuse, but as a reminder that it’s okay to be human. It’s been amazing how that transparency builds trust — and how often someone else will step up to carry a little extra weight for the day. - Find the Win in the Effort.
Progress isn’t just measured in outcomes. Sometimes the win is just showing up, giving what you can, and knowing that consistency compounds over time.
Some days, it’s not about peak performance. It’s about perseverance.
So if you’re in that stretch where everything feels just a bit heavier — keep going. Don’t wait for the perfect conditions. The act of showing up is the work.
Because even when you don’t have your best stuff, moving forward is still progress.
