Be a Boat Rocker

Douglas Clark
-Head writer, The Inspiration Engine

Sometimes, rocking the boat is just the shake up you need to get your life on a different course. Making a transition can totally alter your perception of life. It's a curious thing to realize that after getting so used to something one way, we can become so rigid and unwilling to try any other way. Life in our modern age is built on routine. This routine provides structure and a foundation we can rely on and expand.

However, if we become too complacent or dependent on that routine, we can become my lethargic and apathetic. I've noticed that as much as I love routine and structure, if I don't break it up a bit and deliberately introduce new challenges, I get demotivated. I think the desire to remain surrounded by the known factors in life can be so strong, it overrides the need to explore new things, especially since deviating from the known can result in great failure, personal pain, or professional setbacks.

Sometimes, however, disturbing up the apple cart is exactly what you need. The last time I switched jobs I experienced a serious amount of change. My morning routine, my workouts, break times, commute, and of course my basic job all changed. It scared me. How could I maintain all that I achieved by screwing with the status quo? Well, the status quo what is the exact thing that needed to change.

Doing the same thing over and over can help you accomplish a great deal, but eventually there comes a need to shift gears and try something new. Otherwise you will only get so far and then stall out. Making that change forces you to try something new, but it also exposes you to alternatives that you might not have ever considered otherwise. Don't let complacency fool you into thinking you are being responsible. Challenging yourself to grow is a reasonable course of action. 

For me, my mind began playing with the idea of waking up much earlier, going to bed before 10 p.m. (shocking right?), I even began thinking about how my diet and exercise schedule would change and how it would benefit me. Now I know change is scary, intimidating and hard, but focusing on the improvements it brings is what provides the motivation and encouragement we need to keep growing and improving.

No one ever changed the world by maintaining the status quo, so how can life get any better with the same old same old? Make a change for the better. It will be worth it.

Thanks for reading.

Questions and comments are welcome. 

DouglasHClark.com

Consistency Can Focus Your Passion

“Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative.”

Oscar Wilde

It may seem presumptuous to disagree with one of the accepted greats of English literature, but I’m going to do it nonetheless. Sorry Oscar. Now I know that inspiration, creativity, motivation, spontaneity and such are most powerful when they are unhindered by oppressive shackles, laborious responsibilities, and the mind-numbing drudgery of life, but without focus, none of those things can find their highest potential. The way I see it, being consistent helps a person form discipline. It provides structure and a framework to build ever greater things. Finding a proper outlet for creativity and imagination allows them to flow, develop, grow and expand. It’s also worth note to say being consistent with your art form helps build skill, experience and technique.

Consider, what good is it to be a talented painter, writer, composer, sculptor, etc. without contributing to the craft? Having talent and creativity is great, but if you don’t bother to express it on a regular basis, that ability has gone to waste. Being consistent, however distasteful to Oscar as it might be, allows for expression to flow uninterrupted. So think about it, if you have a mindset where you can express yourself (through your art) on a consistent basis, you can focus on what you really want to convey and produce. Repeatedly coming back to your craft, working through the obstacles and barriers, both of the world and the mind, helps you gain valuable experience and develop a personal technique. Your voice, through your art will be that much more powerful because it is all the more refined and focused.

I’ve found that many times, I needed to push through the malaise of the mind, battle against apathy and distraction, literally forcing myself to write even when I didn’t want to do so. Some might say that isn’t creativity, or inspiration, and perhaps they are right. But I always looked at it as restructuring my mindset. It’s so easy to get distracted and say something else is more important because it needs to be tended to ‘right now’. If you let it, everything in life will distract you from your passions. Being consistent in refocusing your mind on your passions is the only way to make sure life doesn’t run rough shod over you your entire life. Remember, it’s not so much if you’ve done something, it’s how many times you’ve gone back to it after distractions pull you away that makes the difference.

Thanks for reading. Comments and questions are always welcome.