Aspire to Be Inspired: Find the Inspiration to Carry On

Photo by Vicky Sim on Unsplash
What drives us? Where do we find the inspiration to push through despite the hurdles? This is a question posed by many philosophers to try and understand what drives us as humans. We inevitably face many problems and hurdles in life. Books like Hurdles: Surviving Difficult Times remind us of the importance of resilience as we push through the hardships. Part of building resilience means knowing where to ground ourselves, which is why we need to find the inspiration on which we will ground ourselves on.
Why Is It Important to Find the Inspiration to Push Through the Hurdles?
In our world, filled with many temptations to drop everything and give up, inspiration plays a vital role in helping us push through the hurdles. Having inspiration gives us reason to push through and grounds us on what we view to be important and why giving up should not be the option or should be used as the very last resort.
How Do We Find the Inspiration to Carry On

Photo by Vicky Sim on Unsplash
Finding inspiration does not necessarily mean something extraordinary. It is found deep within ourselves and can be done by anyone. This means that finding the inspiration to push through the hurdles is innate—everyone can do it, not just those select few overachievers or type A personality types.
Understand Your Motivation
What is it that motivates you? Is it getting money out of it? Is it the glory? Is it because you want to help others? This is key to finding the actual thing that grounds you – your passion. This is because your passion innately motivates you.
Psychologically speaking, this is what turns your work into play – something that makes it something difficult more worthwhile and find it worth doing despite the hurdles. However, it is difficult to find the inspiration because we are also asked what truly makes us happy. Testing what makes us happy takes a lot of time and experience.
Some still easily give up after taking this path, and understanding inspires them. If this happens to you, ask yourself: Were your intentions selfish? More often than not, having selfish intentions and inspirations that are self-serving only brings a temporary sense of happiness. Having goood and selfless intentions help you reach a level of fulfillment and self-actualization to feel that you are important, worthy, or have made a difference in society. In this case, you should probably redirect your inspiration to something that is more selfless and helps you give a lasting impression of happiness and fulfillment with your life.
Know Your Passions
What do you enjoy? Knowing this helps you pinpoint your goals and incorporate them as much as possible into your life. Each person has a passion and can achieve the best of both worlds when trying to achieve something.
For example, you may love singing and making music. If so, you can make this your main job in the future and be assured that no matter what hurdles you face in the music industry, you will do your best to push through and continue.
However, not everyone will always have this privilege. There are times when what you love or what you are working on does not go together. Finding a time of the week to do this despite your busy schedule can be a way for you to do this. For example, setting aside your Saturday nights to bake and try out new recipes would help you keep motivated and find the inspiration to carry on and push through the hurdles.
Learn the Stories of Others
Sometimes, we do not find our passions and motivations right away. This takes some degree of self-reflection and experimenting on what motivates us. Because of this, learning from others about what inspires them or makes them happy plays a significant role in finding what truly grounds us. It also helps us understand how others can push through and overcome the hurdles they have gone through. Interested in finding books like these? Purchase Hurdles: Surviving Difficult Times to learn more about overcoming adversities.

Ric Vandett
I'm Dr. Ric Vandett, a retired educator with a 34-year career, including roles as Superintendent and teacher. I hold degrees from Appalachian State and Columbia Universities. I'm a Vietnam War veteran and active in community service.