She Never Gave Up

I came across this information about Katy Perry which I found very interesting as it details her extremely difficult journey which eventually led to her worldwide success. 

Born in 1984 in Santa Barbara, California, Katy Perry is an American singer and songwriter. Perry experienced a seemingly sudden rise to fame. But did she? Perry experienced numerous heart-wrenching failures on the path towards stardom before she ever became a household name.

In her childhood, her family faced severe struggles, oftentimes living in poverty, and having to use food stamps just to get by, which had a big impact on Perry’s upbringing. From an early age, she realized that things weren’t easily obtained, and that she would have to work hard for them, something that stuck with her through the failures.

Growing up, she and her siblings listened to Gospel music often. At the age of 13, she was gifted a guitar, and shortly thereafter she began performing the songs that she wrote using that very guitar. However, she was far from famous. In fact, fame was going to elude her for quite some time.

In 1999, at the age of 15, she dropped out of high school to pursue music full-time. She moved to Tennessee where she signed with Red Hill Records and debuted a Gospel record entitled, Katy Hudson in March 2001 at the age of 17. It sold only 200 copies before the label ceased its operations a few months later.

In 2004, at the age of 20, she signed with another label called Java, which was associated with The Island Def Jam Music Group, to work on her solo record. However, after Def Jam dropped Java, the record was shelved.

Afterwards, Perry signed with Columbia Records and recorded new music over the next two years. But before the record was completed, she was dropped from that label as well.

However, her big break came in 2007 when she signed with Capitol Records. In 2008, when she released the would-be-hit song, I Kissed a Girl, Perry was 24. 

What seemed like an overnight success actually took 9 years to accomplish from the time that she had dropped out of high school.

I often wonder how many people have given up just before they broke through to success. Motivation is one of the real keys to success and when you lose motivation you commence the downward spiral to failure.

What is Motivation?

Motivation refers to the psychological factors that drive an individual’s behaviour towards a certain goal or outcome. It is the internal or external stimulus that propels an individual to take action, persist in that action, and eventually achieve their desired outcome.

Motivation can come from various sources, including internal factors such as personal goals, values, and beliefs, as well as external factors such as rewards, recognition, and social influence. It can be positive, such as the desire to achieve a goal or earn a reward, or negative, such as the fear of punishment or failure.

Motivation is a complex process that involves cognitive, emotional, and behavioural components. It can also vary in intensity, duration, and direction, depending on the individual and the situation.

How to improve motivation

Improving motivation can be a challenging task, but there are several strategies that can be used to boost motivation. Here are some effective ways to improve motivation:

1. Set clear and specific goals: Setting clear and specific goals that are challenging but achievable can help to provide direction and focus and increase motivation.

• Create a plan: Developing a plan with specific steps that need to be taken to achieve the goals can help to provide a sense of control and increase motivation.

• Focus on the benefits: Focusing on the benefits of achieving the goals, such as the sense of accomplishment or the rewards that come with it, can help to increase motivation.

• Break down tasks: Breaking down larger tasks into smaller, manageable tasks can help to avoid feeling overwhelmed and increase motivation.

• Celebrate progress: Celebrating progress along the way, even if it is small, can help to provide a sense of accomplishment and increase motivation.

• Surround yourself with positive support: Surrounding yourself with positive support, such as friends or colleagues who provide encouragement, can help to boost motivation.

• Find meaning: Finding meaning and purpose in what you are doing can help to increase motivation and make the work feel more rewarding.

• Take breaks: Taking breaks and allowing yourself time to rest and recharge can help to prevent burnout and increase motivation in the long run.

Overall, improving motivation requires a combination of strategies that work best for the individual and the situation.

My weekly blogs

I enjoy writing these weekly blogs and I have been doing so every weekend for over 9 years. My motivation for this is to help people discover new ways to improve their mental resilience which helps them live happier, less stressful lives.

My reward for this is to occasionally receive an email explaining how my blogs have helped in some way and that is my motivation to continue.

I have said before that one of the ways to true happiness and contentment is to help someone without payment or anything in return. This results in a unique feeling which you can only receive by helping someone.

You can’t describe this feeling, but it is a joy deep within that simply makes you feel good and that you are making a difference.

Thoughts for the week

1. Re-read Katy Perry’s story and observe how many times she hit a brick wall.
2. Think about these times and try to find out what mindset she used to carry on.
3. This week, think about your motivation for things in your world.
4. Are there any areas you need to improve your motivation?
5. If so, look at the list again and pick out one or two things to take action on this week.

Well, that’s it for this week, have a wonderful weekend and keep believing.

Warm regards

John

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