I find that I am not always at the top of my game, I have my ups and downs just like everyone. When I'm up though, I'm fucking on top of everything and it's amazing. When I'm down I'm usually not even sad or depressed, I just don't feel inspired. Inspiration is what gives passion for life and for success.

Here's a few things that really inspire me to do my best:

- Helping someone in need

- Setting a goal in sight and working to achieve it

- Encouragement from people I respect

- Meeting new amazing people

- Partying with my friends

- Music festival that only comes once a year

- Running/attending workshops

Now the problem I've found with the things that inspire me, is that most of these are external and I don't have control over them. That's something that really bugs me because in order to truly have control over your life, you have to be in control of what puts you into resourceful and unresourceful states. I think this is one of the few last areas that I don't have control and am curious if any of you have things that you can control in order to give you that inspiration and passion for life when you desire it?

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"The 'Brick Walls' are there to allow you to prove how badly you want something!" ~ Randy Pausch

~ Rye

I have the same problem, most of my inspiration comes from work and going out with other puas but playing music with others, surfing and a good book usually get me back in a good state of mind

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Well I guess the things that really inspire me have to do with my own personal evolution as a person. It can be some thing as simple as learning the meaning to a word I just learned or some thing physically or mentally taxing, such as a few things I have accomplished at work. My top four inspirational things are...


-Writing a new song.

-Finishing a book, challenging or otherwise.

-I'm always inspired by recognition of my skills or achievements.

-Definitely music as a whole.


The best part for me is typically if I'm inspired in one area of my life it bleeds over into the other parts. I might have taken your post out of context but heck I tried.

I find that the times that I am "not feeling good," although low energy, can be equally as wonderful and dazzling as your highs. Its about attitude and how you come across. No doubt energy helps though.

I like what you have Rye Lee. Those are some very good and positive things. That's basically what I have developed.

My philosophy is not to have any particular goal in mind except to have fun wherever I am. I try to be more concerned with making my environment awesome by interacting with people, and making them feel good about themselves. I laugh and only opt to look at things in a positive light. I am only concerned with what is happening at the present moment. Awkwardness is not an option, anger, hate are not an option. I understand this innately when I understand that nothing in this world is really personal, any inspiration you give it is yours and YOU CAN DO ANYTHING! Getting laid is secondary. But in the end isn't happy what you want to be? Best get my mind in the game, ye?

I use my understanding of my own neurology and psychology to overcome nonconstructive emotional states. I understand the causes of things like anxiety, depression, anger, or other negative feelings. If you experience a feeling of anxiety or anger and leave them unchecked, then you will develop states of stress or sadness (respectively).

In my opinion it is always best to deal with feelings right away before they can manifest themselves into something more negative. To deal with these I just make a positive decision and perhaps going out of my comfort zone to harness these feelings in a constructive way. External stimulus can not 'make' you happy or inspired, they are only a means for you to give yourself permission to awaken that feeling within yourself. I personally feel it is unhealthy to be chasing validation or metaphorical drugs that will make you feel better, as that will lead to addictive and dependent behavior.

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There are no failures, only feedback.

Well put Pleth, I totally agree! That's actually exactly why I posted this thread.

Like I said, I've gotten to the point where I have the ability to take control of my state and decide how I want to feel about just about anything in my life now at this point. I understand the whole thing about limiting yourself by deciding when you give yourself permission to feel happy, attracted, etc and how that conversly works for when you feel sad and everything else.

My problem lies in the fact that I haven't yet mastered deciding when I'll be motivated and inspired to do things. Usually my inspiration and motivation comes during times of stress and when a lot is going on. At the moment I don't have anything taking place and everything is just a matter of me forcing myself to work on things that aren't forcing me to work on them. The problem is that to work on them I need inspiration to drive me to do good (they're all writing projects!). Now if someone posts something I can write pages and pages for a reply, yet when I have to sit down and write something up myself, I always draw a blank, even though I know what I want to write about! It's infuriating!

What I need is to figure out what triggers that spark of inspiration I get when I reply to someone and help them answer/solve their questions and problems, so that I can harness that and change when I give myself permission to be inspired. I want to be able to turn it on when I desire, so that I can work on things without waiting for things to press on me and force me to work on them. Telling myself I'll complete something just doesn't seem to do the trick though...

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"The 'Brick Walls' are there to allow you to prove how badly you want something!" ~ Randy Pausch

~ Rye

Interestingly, I just read a chapter in a book I recently bought (The Spirit of NLP) which deals with this very thing. It gives a technique to anchor the feelings of something you are compelled to do, to something you avert (ex. writing online to writing a paper). It involves using a swish pattern and heightening then changing submodalities. Obviously I haven't tried it on myself or others yet, but I trust it is effective.

By this time next year I will be an NLP master practitioner and provide forum therapy

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There are no failures, only feedback.

To achieve my potential. In a non-arrogant way, I know that I can be great at most things, I also know I am nowhere near as good as i know i can be yet.
That is what keeps me going, I dont want to look back on my life when i am 90 (or however old people live when i get that old) and think about all the things I WISH i had done. I dont want to regret not trying, not doing something, not seeing how far I can take it.
That strive for "perfection" is what keeps me going, I dont know how to get there 3/4 of the time.
Set yourself small goals, on the obvious things. However, to notice the big differences you just have to let it happen. Stick with it and one day it just clicks, the more you try and make it work the less likly it will.

Madals

Lyrics. Music with meaning brings me to tears when I want something bad enough. Not sad tears - angry tears because I want it so bad but I dont have it. Its more than a motivation or inspiration. Its a kick.
I have 2 images in my head that have been painted in my head through music. Both in Hollywood. One at night listening to disturbia going through the city with blondes all around me in my car. Street lights blurring my eyes.
The other driving down from beverly hills in the morning, sunrise, listening to im so paid on my way to a workshop with not just a wing, but my best mate webbo sitting next to me.
Call it gay but when I hear music thats expressive - really strongly - I can do anything better. Sometimes when I sarge I leave in one ear phone listening to fort minor - high road. Kills AA. And take it out if I want to IOI, showing that she has my attention - I usually do it while negging to get the push pulling active.
Anywayz mystery always inspires me. Because he is doing what I want to be doing. But Id be doing my own thing if I had it - not his thing.

All these things not only want OUT of this HELL HOLE they actually MAKE me get myself out of it step by step. Thats why I love mystery so much I guess.
Great thread.

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V1V

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the place where optimism most flourishes is the lunatic asylum...

i always found this scene from SPAM to be very inspiring for some reason:

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also i am a very religious Christian, so i find music like this to be particularly inspiring:

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I may have to chat with you about this sometime, I came from a musician background with psychology as a hobby and have started looking into how I can elicit moods and why it works. Also looking at music in the animal kingdom and how comparing that to human behavior explains things, anyways enough rambling

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Boxing

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I'm addicted to facing my fears.

Everything in my life stems from an attitude, which is not always the same. Sometimes (well hopefully most of the time) it's positive and sometimes it's more negative. What motivates me to do something is a natural instinct that doing that thing will make me feel good, whether that's in a short term momentary kind of way, or for a long term view of what is desirable. What makes me decide whether to do something is a tossup between these short term and long term mindsets. For the short term I want to be emotionally sound, but for the long term I want something more than that. And what's good is that sometimes to feel good NOW you have to be working towards something that will be beneficial later. We don't all work for the present moment. Instead we have an expanded point of view of our lives we try to come to terms with. Having the feeling that the rest of our lives will be okay is more important than fulfilling some fleeting desire to do something now.

L -I - F - E. You boys are so spoiled. If what you have been given doesn't give you a hard on nothing ever will. Think about that. Hit rock bottom and you will know what I mean. Go out and play in the snow. Roll around in the grass. Jump in a puddle. Enjoy life. That hardcore joy you feel for it will make you radiate. People will want to share in it. Think about it.

Life, Love, and Joy come from within. You boys are focused on the external. Focus from within. Screw the broads. Focus on you. Love you. Do this for a month. I promise you that you will become a human magnet. People will want to help you. I divorced myself from others for almost a year. Focused on loving myself. I swear to you with all my heart that it works. Try it.

You help others by helping yourself first!!! Let them share in your love and glory. That is why you don't "pickup chicks". You let them pick you up! Just think. Being attractive is nothing more than being a human magnet. We all want to hook onto the positive vibes. Be those positive vibes and they will fight for you.