Vampires. Werewolves. Scary stuff in the movies. Scarier still in real life.

Vampires feed on your energy and give nothing back. The client who demands constant attention and yet balks at your fees? Vampire. Worse still, doing your best work with vampires is difficult unless it’s 100% focused on their (often hidden) agenda.  They leave you drained and lifeless, looking for the nearest stake. Enforcing consistent boundaries works best with vampires, but sometimes you’ll just need to cut them loose.

There’s waiting. And then there’s waiting for Godot.

Waiting—especially for those of us who thrive on action—is hard. Waiting for a client to OK a new project. For the check to arrive. For Congress to pass a debt-ceiling bill. You know that an answer—maybe not the one you want, but an answer nonetheless—will come. Eventually. And so, you wait.

And then there’s waiting for Godot. Plenty of time and energy is spent in the wait, yet he never does appear. Are you waiting for Godot?

Here are some telltale signs:

Is this you? Pushing so hard in so many directions, that your keyboard looks like an excellent place for a nap?

Don’t let this become your signature.

It can happen in a heartbeat. Look back over the last week. How many times did you open a conversation (live or virtual) with some variation of “I’m tired?”

If it’s more than once, it is spidering its way into your personal marketing.

Life—and work—runs better with high octane fuel. The inevitable bumps in the road—frustrations with clients, partners and situations—are smoother when you’re burning the high octane stuff.

Need a better fuel source? Generate your own supply by connecting the deep purpose in your work with what you do every day. It goes beyond revenue and productivity goals. Dig deep to what really matters most to you as you build your business. Consider 3 success stories:

• Dad with a mission: A consultant and new dad is exquisitely clear on his motivation—building a bigger, better life for his family. It gets him through some long days and reminds him to take time out to play, laugh and connect.

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Sometimes, it’s not what you do or even how you do it, but how long you can keep at it. Case in point: Sunday night’s NCAA Women’s Final Four.

Baylor made an intense, no-holds barred 3rd quarter attempt to break UConn‘s 76 game winning streak. They thrilled the home field fans with their underdog heart and passion—until they hit the wall in the 4th quarter. Out of steam, they were no match for the Huskies' relentless energy.

Stamina. It’s not just for sports. It’s the fuel that drives you to keep at that client problem till you know it’s solved. To make sure the proposal is exactly right. To attend yet another industry event to connect with future clients. To blog and tweet and Facebook when you’d rather go to the beach.

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