Is your passion/motivation cyclical?

or is it just me?

[Fribble]

When (if) you made the transition from employee to self-employed/entrepreneur, did your energy levels change at all?

Something that I've noticed since I've started working for myself is that my motivation to actually 'work' seems to be very cyclical...

I often find myself motivated to work myself to the bone for about 6-8 weeks (looong days, occasionally weekends), followed by about 1-4 weeks of very low creative energy. If I force myself to continue working through the low-energy periods, it actually lengthens the 'slump' and my productivity dives, but when I step away and relax for a week or so, the whole process starts all over again and the high energy levels return for another month or so.

I've also tried limiting my working periods to 6-8/hours per day with weekends off but I just don't seem compatible with it anymore, I can't not think about my work.

I think the difference here is that my driving force is now passion, where when I was working 9-5 (trading time for money), my driving force was simply subsistence. A passion consumes you entirely where a hunger can be satiated. I'm thinking about taking 2 week vacations every two months to recharge. Compared to the average person that sounds pretty excessive, but compared to the average person I'm also a whole lot more productive.

What was/is your worker-to-entrepreneur transition experience like? Does this ring familiar? What is your new routine?

[Marshall]

This cycle usually runs in days for me: pushing the limit for about two weeks followed by a week of zero motivation. I believe these are nothing more than "mini-burnouts" and somewhat of a necessity for your mind and body. I do not think this is unusual for people who work in any profession that consumes the bulk of their life/daily routine.

Marshall

[King_Fisher]

With me it runs in streaks. If I an inspired by a post, a news article, a friend who is inspiring, someone who has been a tremendous success on the
Internet then I am Jacked up and ready to work.

Unfortunately it doesn't last and starts to dwindle down again.

At that point I need another booster shot to get me going again.

But you know what? I think as human beings it happens to us all.
No one can stay up all the time.

You just have to ebb and flow with the tide. To try to do anything else
is to work against your own nature...KF

[Habtom]

At that point I need another booster shot to get me going again.

Maybe a booster like this Washingtonpost.com Launches Reviewed.com Technology Reviews [webmasterworld.com]

[jecasc]

Actually after five years of self-employment my passion/motivation has reached about zero.

This is why I am now planning the next step: To make myself obsolete in my business and to look for new business opportunities and new challanges.

[callivert]

I've had cyclical motivation/passion/productivity for as long as I can remember.

[vincevincevince]

The absolute key is to have employees, at least one. That way you have someone to keep things moving forward during your down-cycles. It's a great feeling to know that although you got virtually nothing done today, your project has moved forwards by the efforts of another.