Finding self-discipline and motivation can often be hard. That is true for every individual, regardless of how it may seem from the outside. We all need personal inspiration.

I’m naturally and impulsively a quite driven person. I always find my motivation to get through a day of work. However, being a human, there are mornings when I wake up and it takes a lot of energy to push forward on my agenda and get things done. This is natural and as stated happens to all of us (if someone tells you this isn’t so, then they are flat out lying!), especially at times when there is something within our daily schedules that takes the wind out of our sails. This lack of wind can be from anything. Whether it’s due to a loss of passion, a frustrating situation, a never-ending load of work, routine, etc. Lots of things can get in the way. Period.

Nevertheless, let’s dive into a different aspect of this topic today. It’s not just about self-motivation or accomplishing tasks on your to-do list. Every decision we make in life carries consequences, and as adults, we must exercise self-discipline and motivation to navigate our daily routines.

The thing we as adults don’t actively put ourselves into is setting us up outside the comfort zone. As children and kids growing up we try, discover, and “don’t really care” until we slowly get put into a mold. See as adults we all tend to get up in the mornings and “do what we need to do” for the sake of doing it – ie: the sub-conscious motivation is to pay bills, work towards a holiday, etc. Hence, we get through the day but are not motivated to elevate our day to day to the next level – ie: hone our skills, develop personality, increase our knowledge, and so forth. This is because we are content with who we are, which is a good thing, however, this puts you in a comfort zone. And don’t get me wrong here, taking that course on LinkedIn or certifying yourself in lean six sigma, is a good thing. Your honing skills. But we need to hone skills continuously and not just drag through the “every day.” That could be your professional skills, like learning how to code even if you work in customer service, or upskilling your excel skills – just because. It could also mean learning how to speak with your children in a different tone of voice in certain situations. It could be anything.

So Why The Title “Personal Inspiration”?

And…..that is the queue where personal inspiration steps in, at least for myself. You need to inspire yourself to try new things, experiment, MAKE mistakes, and learn. I know it often can be difficult to step out there and expose yourself by taking risks, but if you don’t, you’ll start killing the rest of your day and at some point whither on the inside. Think about that.

As adults, we upskill, learn new things, but in any given situation we are often afraid to fail and make mistakes, especially in front of others, because society teaches us to fit a mold and be judgemental. But if you learn to break free from those shackles and give a f*** about what other think, then you’ll learn to go beyond yourself.

I have been thinking about where I derive this inspiration from that keeps my momentum going and gives me the thrust I need on a day to day basis. The answer is very straight forward and might sound stupid to some, but it’s the heart, my passion, and my ambition for life. There are days, where life throws me on the tracks and I find it difficult to “self-generate” this inspiration and I just log along task after task – that’s its own post, but a majority of my days are blessed with progress.

Thinking about this more in-depth you come to realize that inspiration is all around you. It is not limited to anything specific or certain space. It is everywhere! It is always there. All the time. No matter how frustrating it may be not to find that specific marketing pitch – it’s there – something will spark that inspiration.

Here are a few things that inspire me to continue making mistakes, learning, and improving on myself:

• Looking at both my kids developing and how curious they are about the things that I’ve long accepted as a given, inspires me to keep an open mind. Always. Instead of being so darn opinionated, stubborn, or set in my ways, they inspire me to want to experiment and try new things (without historical prejudice). If you have kids, give that some thought.
• My wife who is always looking to learn and develop herself in every area. I’ve seen her literally diving into the deep-end on a lot of topics, from her professional life to creating a fashion label to becoming a mom, and she’s just taught herself to swim on the way. Just surviving is fantastic, but the fact that she’s looking like a semi-professional swimmer in every area is quite a feat. She is a constant reminder to me that I should never find myself in the kind of comfort zone that becomes a rut.
• Family, whether it’s my dad that that goes on 50km walks or 1-week bike trips to my mom and in-laws that consistently push themselves for the better. One of my brothers who literally had a 365 day per year job executing what he loves doing. (Don’t get me wrong, they too are human, but it’s great to see accomplishments)
• Friends, work colleagues, and mentors who despite not seeing each other often inspire me to push myself in my walk of life through the things they do. That “mental” accountability. Through our Whatsapp/Telegram groups, to weekly calls or the occasional email.
• Nature…

The list I have learned goes on and on and on. The point I am making here is that no one should have an excuse for not having the inspiration they need to improve. There is a load of inspiration to be found in all things. And as silly as it may sound to you when are you the most passionate or motivated? Be honest with yourself – when you are inspired right? Hearing that one speech, or watching a movie based on a true story, reading a book, taking a hike in nature, going for a bike ride, watching your toddler take their first steps. The list is endless. Learn how to identify those bread crumbs of inspiration for your life.

With that being said, I encourage you to surround yourself with inspirational people and at the same time inspire others (don’t be greedy. Life is not a competition, albeit many adults seeing life this way until they get older and wiser). Be kind, because in the end we all have one life and we might as well live it for the better. The way I’m doing that is by making sure that I’m inspired enough to keep making mistakes, learning from them, and using it to extract a better outcome in the future, all while trying to inspire others to do the same.

Be inspired. Continuously improve on yourself, develop, and don’t fear the outside, because the inside is what counts.

Life is beautiful. Make it happen.