Hello my dear friends! Welcome back to yet another episode of Morning Cup of Sunshine and a very warm welcome to those who found me just now. I am so grateful that you chose to listen to my podcast today. Thank you for your time and I hope you enjoy and find value in this episode. Alright, without any further adieu, let’s jump into today’s topic. How to find inspiration when you need it the most? There are days when you find yourself just checking off all your checkboxes with ease. Workout? done. Meditation? done. Schedule kid’s dentist appointments? done, preparation for that crucial presentation? done, cooking ? done, that long pending phone call to a friend? Done. you are just cruising through your day like a champ. But, there are days when nothing seems to work on your side. Getting the smallest chore done seems like moving a mountain. Procrastination becomes your best friend. Getting into those workout clothes seems like the hardest task. You just don’t feel inspired enough to get anything done. Have you ever felt like this? Have you been to a place where you feel so uninspired that day just goes by without you accomplishing anything? I have been in that place many times, definitely more times than what I can count on my fingers. What to do to get out of that unmotivated, uninspired place where everything seems to be dark and gloomy? What is that elusive secret to find inspiration when you need it the most? Come, join me today, let’s find that secret together, shall we?
Before we start discussing any steps, I want to say just one thing, please don’t give up on yourself. Sometimes I wonder that once I was able to find the time and motivation to do the things that are now so difficult to accomplish. I was easily able to find motivation to workout for an hour in the beginning of the pandemic but now it is so difficult for me, I am not as much inspired as I was before. What is wrong with me? Why can’t I be as inspired as I was before? I am sure you must have felt the same way. Just change the name of the activity, replace workout with journaling or meditating or studying for your exam or remaining on top of your cleaning game. You were so good once, what happened now? What is wrong with me? I am sure you had these questions, doubts coming to your mind frequently. So, before you start blaming yourself, and going down the rabbit hole of self sabotage and self pity, let me stop you there. Do only one thing, don't give up on yourself. You are a human being, not a robot. Human beings are bound to be emotional and sometimes even irrational. We can not fit ourselves into a binary box of 0 or 1. Life is never black and white for us. So, don’t beat yourself up for falling off the wagon. It is okay to feel that way. It is okay to feel uninspired some days. Just take a quick break and try to regroup and refocus. Giving up on yourself will not solve even a single problem, rather it will cost you your progress that you already made before losing that inspiration. So, taking a break is okay and understandable but giving up all together is a complete no-no. Alright, are you with me till this point? Now that we have cleared this one big thing out of the way, let’s focus on only two simple steps to find the inspiration when you need it the most.
Find the inspiration around
As Paul Smith said, ‘You can find inspiration in everything, if you can not find it then you are not looking properly.’ Life brings you a new day, new opportunity every single morning, it is you who has to find the inspiration in it. Whenever you feel that nothing is going as per your plan, you are losing all the traction that you got before, you are falling off the wagon, then try to think where it all started before, what was that moment of inspiration. What was the moment when you decided to take that giant leap of faith towards your dream? Don’t think about the moment when it started to fall apart, rather think about the moment when it all started to come together. Clear your head and focus on the beginning and not on the beginning of the end. For me personally, taking a walk always helps in clearing my head. Nature is such a powerful force, nothing is perfect in nature but still everything is perfect, everything has order, everything has that calming, soothing effect. You take a walk down that lush green trail, just try to listen to the birds chirping, the music of wind. Try to breathe in that crisp air, feel your lungs with the freshness. Look at the lush green grass, the vivid variety in the colors of the leaves. I guarantee you that there is no better motivator or inspiring medium than nature. Nature has that claming, soothing and at the same time mood lifting power which is simply incomparable with anything else. But the next thing that comes very close is talking to a friend or someone who you deeply respect, care for and love. I have said this multiple times in many of my episodes. Showing your emotions is not a sign of weakness, rather it is your strength. You are strong enough to articulate your emotions, your thoughts and show them to someone else. The purpose is not to gain sympathy rather the purpose is to gain support and suggestions. Your best friend, your spouse or your sibling or someone who understands you without all those layers of complex emotions is the one who can provide you with real guidance. Talk to someone who you are comfortable with. Find your person and share your worries. Of course, you can always find inspiration by looking up to someone who you really admire. You might not know that person in your personal life but looking at their achievements or listening to their advice is what cheers you up then go for it. Listening to Rachel Hollis or Marie Forleo's podcast episodes always motivates me. It gives me the boost that I need to come out of that uninspired space. Of course you know me, I have to mention books right? What can give better motivation than a book? I am an avid reader and I love to draw inspiration from books. Recently, I was reading a book called Ikigai. I can not tell you how much I loved that book. This book talks all about a person's purpose of life, reason for living. It was so thought provoking. It talks about finding your purpose in life. It helps us think about what we love, what is our passion, what is our mission in life. It expands these concepts from me, my to the surrounding, to the world. It makes us think about the contribution that we can make about betterment of society, it makes us think about what the world needs from us. I was so moved by this book that I kept thinking about my purpose in life. I was so inspired to keep on doing what I love. It helped me get back on track with my writing schedule and that too not by giving me some challenge or tough love, rather it inspired me to pick up that notebook and let my thoughts flow fluidly. I really love the books for the power they hold over us. A nice book is like a dream that you can hold in your hands. They hold the power to inspire you, motivate you and give direction to your entire life. We live in the world of modern technology. If books are not your thing, the next thing that comes very close is some motivational videos or podcasts. I love listening to TED talks, so many inspiring stories unfold in front of you. You hear stories of people just like you but still achieving great things, doing amazing things in their life. What else do you need to find some inspiration? Sometimes, playing with your little ones can become your source of inspiration. I always find myself promising myself to be fit and healthy just to be able to play with my kids with my highest possible energy. They become my source of inspiration. I get inspired by looking at them. I get inspired to work hard towards my dream so that I can show them that it is okay to see big, bold dreams, at any age. I can show them that hard work and sincerity can take you to great heights. They become my ultimate source of inspiration. But if you are someone who can not find inspiration outside, from any of these mediums then you have only one choice.
Find the inspiration within
Nobody can inspire you like you can inspire yourself. Inspiration comes from within, you just have to look for it. There is a new, fresh beginning waiting for you to be inspired every single day. Just take a leap of faith and trust yourself. You can do anything that you put your mind to. But if you find it hard to really get anything done because you are too unmotivated to take any step in the direction of your goal, I would suggest you do some soul searching. Simplest way to do so is by writing your journal. Let those thoughts flow, let those fears come out, let those emotions see that day of the light. Journaling helps you gather your thoughts, see what is going wrong and what needs to be done to get back to the track. Just a couple of days back I brought out my vision board from my closet. It has been shoved inside the closet ever since we moved into our new home. I never hung it. But a few days back, I brought it out and kept it near my elliptical. Now I look at it every time I workout. It is a wonderful reminder of all the things that I want to achieve. It gives me the warm feeling , like a pat on the back looking at the things that I was already able to achieve from that vision board. It inspires me to keep on going. End of the year is approaching, start thinking about your goals that you want to work on next year, and be grateful for the things that you were able to accomplish this year. Vision boards provide you the motivation to keep on going. Looking at your dreams in front of your eyes is one of the best motivators. It inspires you, it helps you to push through. Consider creating a vision board if you lack the motivation to stick to your goals. I have created an episode all about Vision boards at the beginning of the year. I will link it for you in the show notes. I highly recommend you to listen to the episodes about journaling and vision boards. You will get many ideas on how to create a vision board. Same thing about journaling, that episode will definitely motivate you to journal. Another way to find inspiration is to try to remember that feeling when you were inspired and getting things done. How did you feel? Did you feel accomplished? Did you feel fulfilled? Try to remember that feeling and try to hold on to that feeling. That will become your inspiration. You work towards your dream to feel the same way. One of the best ways to find inspiration is simply disconnect. This is my favorite one. Take a mental break. No distractions, no gadgets, no social media, no calls. Just take a break and enjoy your own company. Listen to your own thoughts, try to appreciate how far you have already come. No matter what you think when you are not inspired, admit that you are at least trying and that is the beginning. Blank canvas, I have talked about it so many times. It is extremely powerful. You get inspiring ideas when you actually listen to yourself. You get a sense of calm from all that chaos to do something, achieve something when you listen to your own thoughts. That is, my friend, is the best way to find inspiration. No one else can inspire you as much as you yourself can but for that you first need to listen to yourself. Once you get ideas that inspire you, try them out, see what you actually like, what you enjoy and what really sticks. Maybe a new hobby that you always wanted to try but thought you will be terrible at, give that hobby a shot. Try those new ideas, pick small and manageable ideas and let them fill your heart with inspiration. Feel that sense of motivation within you. That charged up feeling, that determination, that passion will lead you to greater things. Inspiration is a very personal emotion. Everybody has their own way of finding inspiration. Sometimes it is very easy to find inspiration but sometimes, you feel lost and uninspired, that is the time when finding inspiration becomes the most important. Finding inspiration when you need it the most seems like a huge task but if you start looking inward you will find a reason, why you started the first time, why you want to keep on pursuing the same thing, why you feel the urge to get back on track. All these reasons and solutions lie within you, you just have to look inward to find it. Everyday is a new day, a new beginning. Everyday brings you a new set of opportunities. The day is filled with small gems that help you find your lost inspiration. Sometimes, it is found within you and sometimes, you have to look around to find those gems. Celebrate your journey even though it is filled with challenges, celebrate your small wins. Do at least one thing everyday that you love the most. Do at least one thing everyday that scares you the most. Inspiration will find you if you choose to find it. Inspiration will knock on your door if you choose to keep working towards your dream. Just remember, ‘Every single desire can lead to a dream and every single dream has the possibility to become reality, you just have to keep looking and keep finding inspiration to pursue and most importantly find the courage to inspire others !!
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