Wouldn’t you agree that a very significant portion of your happiness in life happens through inspiration?
I know that when I’m inspired, all of the right buttons are going off and I can most accurately point to what being fully happy and engaged in life is really like.
How often are you inspired?
Can you remember the last time?
For me, it was the last time I heard a great piece of music – just a few minutes before writing this blog post.
For most people, they are lucky to be inspired for a few seconds each day – in fact for most of you, being truly inspired happens once a month at best.
In fact, many of the people that have experienced breakthroughs in their lives after working through SNAP: 4 Part-System For Getting Unstuck In Your Life have told us directly that they live in a near constant state of inspiration thanks to that program.
Inspiration is such a powerful stimulus to our emotional and physical state.
Benefit Of Being Inspired!
Living in a state of inspiration…
- Lowers stress and cortisol levels in our body
- Obliterates anger, frustration and depression
- Changes our emotional state completely, “resetting” our mind to think, feel and do things differently
- Gives us a sense of attachment to society and those around us…a necessary and critical human need that is in short supply today as activities and pass-times become more independent
- Alters our own sense of self-confidence and self-worth…with inspiration comes renewed self-confidence as we internalize the ability to act beyond our fears
- Gets us to take action
- Fuels us to think beyond our limits leading to new breakthroughs and growth in life
- Improves our level of belief and certainty in what inspires us…two concepts critical to moving from plan to action to results
- Lowers blood pressure and normalizes our system functions as we let go of negative thinking and the associated stress on our mind and body
I bet you hadn’t thought of all the great things that happen when you are inspired.
Admittedly, being inspired once a month doesn’t give you a meaningful enough sample size to make a big impact on your life.
What if you could be inspired each day? What about each hour of each day?
Can you imagine the change in your emotional state, self-confidence, and physical health if you could be inspired often throughout the day?
Set Yourself Up To Win
I do many things each day to set myself up to win.
I get up early, meditate, watch what I eat, exercise, review my goals, give myself time to focus, get the important things done early, etc…
Just as important as ALL of this is making sure I consciously build inspiration into my day. I think this will really help you too…here are 5 things you can do to live in a near constant state of inspiration.
1. Wake Up With Gratitude. I have a “What Am I Grateful For” list right beside my bed, I review this list when I get up in the morning and before going to bed at night. Make sure you list inspirational things that you are grateful for (people you love, great teachers or mentors, nature, pets, etc…)
2. Visualization. Nearly 20 years ago, on the advice of someone who helped me get through a tough point in my life, I became acutely aware of the automatic negative thoughts and self-talk that takes over our minds. Even worse, that self-talk often combined with vivid imagery that reinforced the negativity. At that point I started programming my mind with scenes (visualization) of incredible, inspiration things. The ocean waves hitting the beach on a hot sunny day, someone you love laughing hysterically, you giving your time or money to a homeless person or someone else in need. Have 2-3 of these scenes programmed into your mind and replay them multiple times through the day.
3. Live In The Moment. Perhaps the absolute best way to be consistently inspired is to be conscious everywhere you go and look for the good and inspiring that often will pop up when you seek it out. Today, the opposite typically happens. You either move so fast through your day that you are really not present for most of it OR your mind chooses to seek out the negative rather than the inspirational. Constantly be asking yourself – “what is really cool and inspirational about where I am right now!” As this becomes a habit, you will notice that there is so much more to be inspired by in life
4. Contribute And Give. It’s no secret that the most inspiration comes from sharing, giving and helping other people. Musicians may enjoy playing for themselves, but they are truly inspired by sharing and impacting other people’s lives with their skill. Organize your life, hobbies, job, relationships around helping and sharing with others. The more of this you do, the more inspired you will be each day.
5. Sources Of Inspiration. Identify what inspires you most. Is it great music? How about inspirational stories? Learning and hearing about inspirational people? Working alongside others who inspire you? One of the greatest uses of the internet is that inspiration is now at your fingertips. Media companies controlled TV and Radio and preyed off of negative, with the internet you have the choice to only view inspirational videos, stories, discussion groups, and network with others who inspire you. Plan this into your day…I plan inspirational content throughout my day to ensure I am always feeding myself inspiration – just like you drink water and eat food
Living a happier, more productive, healthier and fulfilling life is completely within your reach and can be triggered by following these 5 daily inspirational practices.
How about you? What inspires you?
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