Getting up and getting started every day can be a hurtle many creatives struggle with. Failing to get moving can contribute to depression and low self-esteem. So, how can you fix it?

A piece of advice I have heard from many sales professionals and motivational speakers is to plan your day out the night before. The theory goes that if you know what you will be doing the next day, you will be less likely to sleep in, slack off, and generally fail in your goals.

This doesn't always work, especially for creatives who tend to follow their moods more than others. But, it CAN work. The first key is to mentally reward yourself for every little success. Don't even think about what others might think about your success; your own self-congratulations is all you need. Give yourself permission to feel you've achieved something even if it seems incredibly small. If it helps, think of it like playing a video game and unlocking the very first challenge. Whether you plan to get up at 6 a.m. or 11 a.m., meeting that goal is a success. Be proud of it.

The second key is forgiveness. When you first try this, you can't expect it will apply to every day for the rest of your life. You don't need to succeed every day. You only need to succeed one day in a row. If you do it one day in a week, you can still celebrate that one day! Maybe next week you can celebrate two days. Eventually, you will be doing it most days. Succeeding at something, anything, more often than not is better than most people can celebrate.

The third key is visualization. If you've ever gone on a vacation where you started early in the morning, then you know exactly what it means to visualize your success. You pack, you clean, you plan every move until you get on the road or to the airport. Then, no matter how tired you are, you get up on time. You do it because you know the reward for that day is worth it. If you imagine ever day is a vacation day, you can harness that same energy .

What's more, it's not hard to imagine every day is a vacation day. You only need to remind yourself that every day you succeed gets you closer to a true vacation day. It doesn't matter if your dream vacation is traveling to Europe or spending a day at a local park. Every step counts.

So, what's your dream vacation?