Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 369 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Let’s Get Motivated

With the beginning of our 2^nd year of Wisdom-Trek as of June 1^st, we have made some changes to the frequency and format of Wisdom-Trek. We are creating three themed treks per week, which will be Motivation Monday, Wisdom Wednesday, and Philosophy Friday. Each daily trek will be approximately 12 minutes in length, so slightly longer than previously but still easy to listen to in one session.

Thank you for joining us for our 3 days per week, 12 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 369 of our trek, and today will be our Motivation Monday episode. Each Monday our trek will focus on motivating and inspiring you for the week.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. Our renovations and outside work at The Big House continues as we incrementally make progress. We mowed the lawn again, and I was able to apply a coat of polyurethane to the 2-foot gliders. I am ready to sand the upstairs hallway and stairs this week.

We had the privilege of watching four of our grandkids on Friday evening, which is always enjoyable. Of course, Gramps is transformed into a monster while they are visiting, and we all get great exercise as I chase them through the various rooms in pursuit of their capture. I am motivated to invest time with the grandkids so that I can be a living legacy to them that they will carry on into future generations.

Now it is time to set out on our trek for today as we head up the Trail of Motivation as we consider what motivation is and how to stay motivated positively each day. While some people may say that motivation does not last as my virtual mentor, Zig Ziglar said, “I’ve heard it, too: ‘Motivation is temporary,’ and I agree. But then, so is bathing and eating, but if you do both of them on a daily basis, you will live longer and smell better in the process.”

Let’s Get Motivated

Motivation and enthusiasm is manifested through your desire and interest and becomes a driving force that pushes you to take action and pursue goals. However, it often happens that you have the desire and interest, but you lack the motivation. This is a frustrating situation since you have goals and objectives that you would like to accomplish but cannot get enough inner strength and motivation to act.

There are many reasons for the lack of motivation. It could be due to a weak desire, laziness, or shyness, and it could be due to lack of self-esteem and self-confidence. In some cases, the reason is a physical or mental problem, which may require professional help.

Lack of motivation and lack of enthusiasm are two of the main reasons for failure and of living a mediocre life. You cannot blame other people if you lack the enthusiasm to take action to follow your goals and desires. Motivation is always an inside job. In other words, you must motivate yourself through an internal drive. All external motivation is temporary at best and usually completely non-effective.

Lack of motivation and enthusiasm can show up everywhere, at home, at work, in relationships, in pursuing goals and in everything else. This often creates indifference, unhappiness, and dissatisfaction.  On our trek today, let’s explore the signposts that will help us to navigate this area of your life.

1. Reasons for lack of motivation and enthusiasm.

• Lack of faith in your abilities
• Fear of failure due to failure in the past
• Fear of what others might say
• Fear of success – Yes, this is a real fear that many struggle with which stems from a feeling of unworthiness.
• The habit of procrastination
• Laziness
• The feeling or belief that there are other more important things to do
• Being too stressed or nervous
• The absence of enough internal and/or external stimuli or incentives

The reasons mentioned above stifle motivation and enthusiasm and are only excuses for not acting. You must learn to overcome and disregard them by becoming aware of them, acknowledging them, and understanding that you can change the programming of your mind by changing the way you think.

Sometimes, you may have short bursts of motivation or enthusiasm. You start acting enthusiastically, but lose interest and motivation after a while, because you find it hard to sustain motivation or enthusiasm. We all struggle with this at times, but you cannot let it control you.

If you wish to improve in any area of your life, you need to wake up the sleeping giants of motivation and enthusiasm. They are powerful and effective, but only you can rouse them from their slumber. Your internal desire to accomplish goals and dreams must be greater than the consequence of not achieving what you desire. Continually remind yourself how much you lose if you allow them to sleep and how much you gain by forcing them to assist you.

The best way to accomplish your dreams, especially those that are large is to break them down into small manageable pieces that can easily be accomplished. This can be done, no matter how large your dreams are.  Remember that the only way to move your mountains is by carry away one stone at a time. Otherwise, laziness, absence of energy, and procrastination will set in. Think about how small an ant is, and yet in comparison to their size they are true mountain movers. As Proverbs 6:6-9 reminds us,

Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones.
    Learn from their ways and become wise!
 Though they have no prince
    or governor or ruler to make them work,
they labor hard all summer,
    gathering food for the winter.
But you, lazybones, how long will you sleep?
    When will you wake up?

Instead of suffering and feeling uncomfortable and passive, it would be much better to wake up the motivation inside you to take action and do things. This will make you feel much better, happier and more satisfied. As an example, it is similar to what I experience nearly every morning. I would rather stay in my warm bed covered with blankets than force myself up to exercise and run for 70 minutes. So, why do I do it? My internal motivation is to remain healthy and fit physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, so I get up to make that happen. That desire is greater than my desire for a few more minutes of sleep.

Procrastination, laziness, indifference, and passivity cause unhappiness, weakness and lack of satisfaction. Being enthusiastic, motivated, and active brings a sense of joy, strength, and power. By getting motivated, you take action, do things, take your mind off problems and difficulties, and focus on finding solutions and achieving success.

2. Find out where you really need motivation.

This means finding out what really matters to you and what actions would bring benefits and improvement into your life and into the life of the people around you.

Think deeply, and discover what is your real purpose and related goals in life, but also don’t forget to focus your attention on the little things of life, where just a little motivation is needed to keep you going.

If you need additional skills, get the skills you need to take you to the finish line in whatever you do! Get the extra push, energy, and perseverance to accomplish any task and to reach any goal.  The next two sign post provide us with simple methods anyone can use.

3. Start to overcome lack of motivation in the little, everyday affairs of life.

Start by doing small or not so important tasks, which you usually avoid doing. This can help you increase your inner strength and wake up the motivation giant. When your inner strength grows, you will be able to push yourself to accomplish greater tasks, even if you are not motivated enough to do them now.

When this happens, you will possess the ability to focus on what you want to do and awaken the energy you need. Here are a few examples of some small tasks:

• Wash the dishes now, instead of later.
• Take out the garbage now, instead of later.
• Turn off the TV and take a short walk.
• Clean and arrange the contents of one of your drawers.
• Decide on a book to read and start reading even if you want to do other things.

4. Tips to keep moving forward with enthusiasm and motivation.

Short spurts of enthusiasm or motivation are not enough to accomplish anything of value. You need to keep your desire and inner flame alive and focused on your goal. So what can you do about it?

• Devote 10 minutes a day to reading and thinking about the benefits of what you want to do or accomplish.
• Every day read about people who achieved success by being consistent and persistent.
• Every day, find a quiet place and for several minutes visualize yourself acting with enthusiasm and motivation.
• Every success requires dedication, time, perseverance, and tenacity. Do not give up quickly.
• Keep repeating affirmations that empower you and inflame your enthusiasm and motivation.
• Never consider what you are doing as drudgery. Choose a mindset and attitude that you will enjoy the tasks at hand. If need be, tweak the process a little and make a few changes, and you can turn it into a pleasurable activity.
• Once you decide about anything, go on with it, even after you lose enthusiasm and desire. Don’t give up even if what you are doing seems to be a burden and drudgery. Don’t give up even if you feel bored.

Keep focused on the finish line. Keep telling yourself about the benefits of what you are doing and keep thinking and visualizing what it will be like after accomplishing what you have set to do.

Remember, this is your own life, and you are responsible for it. Don’t allow yourself to succumb to laziness and negative programming. Life is not always easy, and there are obstacles on your trail. Expect that, and manage your expectations. Keep thinking about how satisfied you will be after achieving success. Visualize how your life will change if you overcome laziness, negative thoughts, and negative programming. Plant with the harvest in mind.

Don’t rely on spurts of enthusiasm to carry you to your destination. You need to stand up, not give up, and then wake up those sleeping giants that reside in your mind. Never give up even when you want to quit. Keep going on, even when the trail is rough and strewn with rocks and debris. If you keep going, soon your desire and enthusiasm will grow, and the progress will become easier.

The Trail of Motivation will not always be easy, but with consistent persistence, you can achieve your objectives and reach your summits of life. On each of Monday’s treks, we will hike the Twin Trails of Motivation and Inspiration that will provide you with the right start to each week. Our next trek will be Wisdom Wednesday where we will dig for the nuggets of wisdom found in Proverbs 11.

Remember to join me in the Proverbs 30-day challenge. For each day of June, read the chapter in Proverbs that corresponds to the day of the month. On day 30, read the final two chapters. It’s not too late to catch up. In less than five minutes per day, you can take your daily wisdom supplements, which if repeated each day, will make you healthy, wealthy, and wise. It has certainly worked for me, and it will work for you also. Let me know if you accept my challenge at guthrie@venturecg.com

The three themed podcasts each week will motivate you, give you wisdom, and allow you to philosophize about life, so encourage your friends and family to join us. Then come along on Wednesday for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.

That will finish our trek for today. Just as you enjoy your dose of wisdom, we ask you to help us grow Wisdom-Trek by sharing with your family and friends through email, Facebook, Twitter, or in person and invite them to come along with us each day. If you would like to listen to any of the past daily treks, they are available at Wisdom-Trek.com. Don’t forget to subscribe to Wisdom-Trek on iTunes, Spreaker, Stitcher, Soundcloud, iHeart Radio, and Google Play, so each trek will be downloaded to you automatically.

Thank you for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and most of all your friend as I serve you through the Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal.

As we take this trek together, let us always:

1. Live Abundantly (Fully)
2. Love Unconditionally
3. Listen Intentionally
4. Learn Continuously
5. Lend to others Generously
6. Lead with Integrity
7. Leave a Living Legacy Each Day

This is Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Every Day! See you on Wednesday!