I looked the word inspiration up in my beloved hardback, my yellowed and aged thesaurus. Just by reading the string of inspirational words in print, my mind went into picture painting mode.
Mirriam-Webster also led me to continue research with their definition of inspiration:
- a divine influence or action on a person believed to qualify him or her to receive and communicate sacred revelation
- the action or power of moving the intellect or emotions
- the act of influencing or suggesting opinions
- Inspiration is the springboard for creativity.
- Inspiration facilitates progress toward goals.
- Inspiration increases well-being.
This is also thought provoking: Inspiration is not the same as positive affect. “Inspiration is more related to an awakening to something new, better, or more important: transcendence of one’s previous concerns.”
Inspiration is incredibly important to us as people, as business owners, or in any role that is part of our walk in life. Without inspiration we fall short of growth. We forget to connect to our value system. We lose creativity. We stop settings goals — we do not feel driven to meet goals that we’ve already set.
So, how do we seek inspiration? We know when we’ve become inspired. We recognize that stirred up or awakening moment. But, if we don’t feel motivated, how do we find it?
Step Away and Take a Break
It is difficult to find or recognize positive inspiration when you are in the middle of beating yourself up. Step away, take a break, and do something different. Go somewhere — get into a different environment. Take a walk. Take a drive in the car. Go to a movie. Dig in the garden. Just go somewhere other than the place where you were frustrated and looking for inspiration!
Have Faith in Yourself
Sometimes it feels impossible to piece it all together. This is especially true when we are trying to reach our end goals and feel as if we cannot connect the dots to get there.
Remember this, we can look at where we have been, and connect our path from there to the present, but we cannot connect the dots to where we are going because we aren’t there yet.
If you feel lost or confused, with the feeling that you cannot make sense out of where you are going, it is okay. It is okay to shift gears. To is okay to rewrite action steps that move you towards your goals.
Walt Disney said it well, “We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing things because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”
So, whatever your stuck point is. Don’t sweat it. As long as you keep moving forward, even if moving forward includes taking a break, or taking in music, art, gardening, or a nap, inspiration will return.
Reliance Outsourcing 