THE KEY TO MOTIVATION

“Never for a moment doubt that you can succeed, but never for a second believe that you can’t fail…” –ABL

This is my new motto in life. If I were to tell you something negative about me, it would be that I am a short-lived enthusiast. In a simpler description, I start something with much enthusiasm. But that would only take me about a month or so before I get bored or frustrated (whichever comes first), and leave what I started in a heartbeat.

Uh-huh! Bad habit, indeed. I knew I had to change that about me. So, instead of looking for inspiration anywhere else, I came up with my own maxim thus, the intro of this article. I thought that I would more likely to stick with this “change” if the inspiration came straight from the horse’s mouth.

Now, I’m not really an expert, but I managed to come up with some things that might help you succeed. If you’re starting a new hobby, business, or study habit, or trying to reach a dream, whatever it may be, this applies to all (at least I think it does) I hope this helps;

> Be Positive. When you’re beginning a new venture in life, you’ve got to know in your mind that ‘this will totally work out’. Positive thoughts are likely to yield positive results. Go figure!

> Expel all negativities. Whenever negative thoughts start pouring into your head, never entertain them. Try distracting yourself. I don’t know the formula of success, but I know that one sure route to failure is skepticism.

> There’s always a room for improvement. Even if you must consider yourself an expert of something, you’d have to come up with new ways to improve your craft. This will keep you from losing interest from what you do.

> Be your number-one critic. The most important opinion belongs to you. Although little negative criticisms from others won’t hurt, and can actually help you, don’t let these things get you to the point of discouragement.

> Do not try to please anyone. Whatever you’re doing, always be sure that you’re doing it because you WANT to, not because others want you to. Whatever makes you happy makes you a better person, and whatever makes you unhappy practically destroys you. If you think that what you do is worthwhile, then it will be worthwhile.

> Relax. Watch a movie. If you feel that you’re starting to get frustrated, that all your hard work amounts into nothing or you’re starting to say “This is not working at all.” Take a break. It’s just a phase. You’ll get over it. Instead if thinking how much more works you need to do, why not think of how far you’ve come. You wouldn’t want to let all those hard work go to waste, would you? Ever heard of the cliché “Try and try until you succeed”? Well, here’s what I think, it wouldn’t have become a cliché if somebody actually had a sense to try and follow the advice.

> The best source of Iron is liver. Don’t worry, you’re still reading the same article. I just want to prove a point. Iron is an important mineral in the body. There are a lot of food source where you can get iron like meat, fish, eggs, fruits, and green, leafy vegetables, etc. But the best way to get sufficient iron is through eating liver. Now get ready for this. In this analogy, you are the LIVER. The other sources that was mentioned earlier maybe your family, friends, special someone, etc., from which you get support and probably your motivation. But get this. Since you are the best source, there will be little need for you to get motivation from other sources. You don’t have to be dependent on them, because you, alone are sufficient. Yes, external motivation is very important, but not as significant as self-motivation. If you don’t have the latter, you won’t be able to learn to be independent in your endeavors. Even if you get enough motivation from other sources, it wouldn’t matter if you yourself have the faintest belief in what you’re capable of. You keep looking for inspiration in so many places when in fact the only motivation you’re ever going to need is the one you provide yourself with.

Maybe now you’ll be going like; “What in the world are you babbling about? I already know everything you just said!” Well, I think repetition leads to mastery. What’s the point of knowing all these information if you don’t put them to good practice. Like I said, I don’t have the formula of success. But who knows, I may hold the key to motivation.

Continue reading...

LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE IT

(I wrote this for speech class when I was a sophomore at the University.)

"Hakuna Matata",-- a phrase that might be familiar to you. Short... but full of meaning. It literally means "no worries", but what does it really imply? Have you ever stopped and think that you may be worrying too much about how to live your life? Aren't you just thankful that you're here... alive?

It's true that living life is not easy, that some are afraid to actually live it. I, for one, regret almost everything I've done in my life. Anxious about what to do because I'm usually bothered by how will other people think about me. Some of us live in hatred. I remember when I was in highschool, I had a bestfriend whom I treated like a sister. Until she pulled the greatest betrayal I could ever think of. You could only imagine how much I hated her. My hatred followed me through my first year in college, long after I have last seen her. Only recently did I realize that I failed to notice that my life has long been in a halt. My hatred had become the focal point of my life. I've been focusing so hard on her that I was missing the greater things coming my way. It only goes to show that you can never change the past, and there's no point in worrying about it. You just have to accept it for what it is, because everything happens for a reason.

The kind of people whom I'm most envious of, are the people who are free from anxiety. People who are living life as it is. People who are happy about who they are and what they have, or however their lives turn out. People who doesn't care about what other people think about them. People who have experienced downfall in life, but are strong enough to stand up, smile, and say... "I'm ready to face another challenge. It may be difficult, but there's nothing I couldn't bear". In short, these are the people who embrace life. And it's from these people, that I really learned that if you're too afraid to live, life is a ghost that will haunt you. If you give up on it, it's nothing but a game in which you couldn't work yourself through to get the grand prize. But if you learn to embrace it, it's a priceless gift that you learn to accept joyfully, for whatever makes you happy, makes you a better person. You cannot say that the path that you've taken seems to be not the perfect one for you. Life is not a matter of fate or destiny... It is a matter if choice, which means that if you are determined enough with whatever you do, you may and will very well succeed.

Life is simple, but very complicated. What does it mean? It's for you to decide. And so I say to you, live life everyday as if it were the last, for you might never know what lies ahead. But never regret anything you have done, because it will be the foundation of your future. Remember, that the strength of a structure will be measured through the disasters it had withstood. Don't worry about what might have been. Just look straight ahead, and you will see that life is good... so live it!

Continue reading...