Your company brings in a motivational speaker. The speaker goes on and on about how to improve yourself and your life and your work. Your coworkers are grinning and nodding and applauding, but you just don’t get it. There’s nothing more annoying than listening to someone tell you how easy it is to reinvent yourself when you’re feeling tired or discouraged or hurt. Why do they have to make it sound so easy?
Your best friend loans you a book she says transformed her life. You read it, but you just don’t get it. It’s nothing you haven’t heard before. The book says you are special, unique, strong, and powerful, you just need to believe it. Only you don’t really believe it, not lately anyway. Life is weighing you down, problems have piled on, and you don’t feel strong or powerful at all.
Your relative sends you an inspirational plaque for your birthday. It encourages you to follow your dreams, live your passion, be your best self. You know you should hang it up, but what does that even mean? You’re not even sure what your dreams are these days, much less your passions. And why isn’t your current self enough, anyway? After all, you’re doing your best.
I actually do believe we can transform ourselves and our lives. I believe we are constantly evolving and reinventing ourselves. I believe strongly that when we follow our passion, we do our best work. I believe there is a creative genius in every one of us. But I don’t believe it every minute of every day. And in those moments when I’m feeling doubt or frustration or fear, it’s harder to believe what I believe.
Those inspirational speakers and books and plaques that make it sound easy, the ones that suggest it’s simply a matter of choosing to be our best at any given moment, don’t allow much space for our human frailty.
So, if you’re just not feeling it right now. If you’re not in the mood to create or balance or improve, cut yourself some slack. The experts don’t have the answers, only you do. What do you need to hear or think or do to get yourself back on track? What rebuilds your spirit? What speaks truth to you even in your darkest moments? Find that. Follow that. It might be what worked in the past, or it might be the opposite now. Even the things that motivate us can change.
If a speaker or book or quote does resonate with you, listen. That’s your Higher Self tapping you on the shoulder and saying, “Did you get that?”
And if it doesn’t—even though everyone else seems to be on board—trust yourself. Trust that you are not alone. Somewhere deep in your heart, you know what message you need to hear. And if you can get to a place of patience and quiet, you might just hear it.
If you like this post, please share and credit “Bursts of Brilliance for a Creative Life” blog
