It was 3:00 AM. I walked to the kitchen and felt for the switch. My fingers groped the wall in complete darkness. Suddenly, I felt the plastic button under my fingertips. Click! A sudden flash filled the room. A faint electric buzz reached my ears as the light turned so bright it now illuminated the entire room, allowing me to continue my nightly snack trip with delicious canned tuna.
What just happened here was an act of inspiration and motivation at play.
Inspiration is the spark that occurs when the halogen light is switched on. Like igniting the halogen bulb, it can trigger creativity, insight, or a new direction. Because halogen bulbs are somewhat delicate and can be affected by oils and impurities, inspiration is a fragile state that needs the right conditions to flourish.
It took a while for the light to reach full brightness. After the initial spark, the light slowly reached its maximum intensity. Similarly, motivation may require time to build up and reach its full potential. It may need nurturing, clear goals, and regular reinforcement. Motivation has an ongoing and cyclical nature and can maintain steady illumination for a long time.
While inspiration is required in the beginning, it alone doesn’t take you far. Motivation, on the other hand, plays a crucial role when aiming for grand achievements.
Without the proper motivation behind you, you may face a lack of direction, reduced performance, a hard time overcoming challenges, increased stress, impaired personal growth, poor collaboration, limited adaptability, and even very negative effects on your overall well-being, both mentally and physically.
With the right kind of motivation to back you up, the previous list can be turned upside down, and thus your success in the task at hand is nearly inevitable.
Now, as we’ve zoomed into this vital building block of success, the next question you may ask is: How can one acquire this vital spirit called motivation, and what is needed to sustain it?
There are several practical methods you can use in your life, both on and off the job, to achieve this. From my personal experience, a good personal coach is the most effective way to incorporate these motivational building blocks into one’s individual circumstances.
Next time, I’ll share tips about these motivational building blocks from which you can pick the most appropriate ones for you, and start building a pathway for a brighter future. After all, it’s already 3:45 AM now, and the tuna awaits me!