Vanity and the Electric Motivator
I've got so much to do!
How many times have you heard someone say this?
The truth is you don't have to do anything.
Nothing.
Work? No.
Eat? Nope. (You will die if I don't but you don't have to eat. Ask Bobby Sands. He went 66 days without eating. Well, you can't ask Bobby Sands.)
Chances are we'll eat because we don't want to die.
Not like that anyway.
What's my point?
That's not rhetorical...help me out.
What the hell was I talking about?
That's it...
Motivation.
Bobby Sands didn't go 66 days without eating because he couldn't be bothered. He was bothered and he was motivated. He had a cause he believed in. He's an extreme example but...
That's all it takes.
I've got so much to do...it is a gift called motivation. Try having nothing to do if you don't believe me. Going out in the world to feed yourself and others takes motivation in varying degrees. This is a psychological gift. It's built in. Champions tend to have more of it*. Just as we can all run because we have a similar anatomical make-up, there are differences between me and Usain Bolt. Ultimately, he's got more fast twitch muscle fibres and he's very tall. That is his anatomical gift.
*I've been thinking about Lance Armstrong more than I should. I read Tyler Hamilton's book and the thing that I've taken away from it has nothing to do with the drug allegations it was a feeling of "Holy Crap! This guy was motivated to win at ALL costs." He was extremely pissed off and motivated. Morally right or not is none of my business and that is for him to balance.
Morally Right vs Vanity
I once knew a girl a long time ago that had a small picture on her wall that has stayed with me to this day. It was a picture of a skull and it just said "Vanity" underneath it.
To me this perfectly highlights the futility of vanity.
I try to remember it when I'm buying things.
Is this a necessary purchase or is it vanity?
Then I buy it anyway.
Life is too short.
Vanity is an excellent motivator. Careful, so is guilt.
Morally right to ride your bike on a family vacation? Hell yes. You paid for the family vacation. I think I struggle with justifying this because I'm the only one doing it. It feels selfish but noticing those feelings is perhaps proof that I do not have the motivational gift that Mr Armstrong has. Usain Bolt has his muscle fibres, Armstrong has his angry determination and I have my guilt. That is world class guilt and I am very thankful for it.
So you go and find a cause. You get motivated and you set about doing whatever it takes to feed your kids, win a race or chase happiness.
Feeding the kids - note to self
Even baby Bobby Sands had to eat. Feed your kids first you bum. You need to nurture them and give children all the tools they need to go out into the world to find what motivates them. Mr and Mrs Sands must be sort of hacked off about their sons choice. "Why did I bother slaving away to put food on the table..."
Chasing Happiness - note to self
By all means necessary don't be an ass.
Notice the happiness when you get it.
Sometimes when you are going somewhere in a hurry, you don't notice the steps you took to get there. Most of life is made up of "the steps it took to get there". Overlook these at your own peril.
Motivation Part 2
Which brings me nicely to the Autumn and the time of year that I start planning what I want from next year. I will pick out events I want to compete in, set a training schedule and motivate myself the best I can. This year I will try to notice the process more. I want to make sure I take it all in.
After all, it's the steps it took to get there and I won't be able to take them again.
How many times have you heard someone say this?
The truth is you don't have to do anything.
Nothing.
Work? No.
Eat? Nope. (You will die if I don't but you don't have to eat. Ask Bobby Sands. He went 66 days without eating. Well, you can't ask Bobby Sands.)
Chances are we'll eat because we don't want to die.
Not like that anyway.
What's my point?
That's not rhetorical...help me out.
What the hell was I talking about?
That's it...
Motivation.
Bobby Sands didn't go 66 days without eating because he couldn't be bothered. He was bothered and he was motivated. He had a cause he believed in. He's an extreme example but...
That's all it takes.
I've got so much to do...it is a gift called motivation. Try having nothing to do if you don't believe me. Going out in the world to feed yourself and others takes motivation in varying degrees. This is a psychological gift. It's built in. Champions tend to have more of it*. Just as we can all run because we have a similar anatomical make-up, there are differences between me and Usain Bolt. Ultimately, he's got more fast twitch muscle fibres and he's very tall. That is his anatomical gift.
*I've been thinking about Lance Armstrong more than I should. I read Tyler Hamilton's book and the thing that I've taken away from it has nothing to do with the drug allegations it was a feeling of "Holy Crap! This guy was motivated to win at ALL costs." He was extremely pissed off and motivated. Morally right or not is none of my business and that is for him to balance.
Morally Right vs Vanity
I once knew a girl a long time ago that had a small picture on her wall that has stayed with me to this day. It was a picture of a skull and it just said "Vanity" underneath it.
To me this perfectly highlights the futility of vanity.
I try to remember it when I'm buying things.
Is this a necessary purchase or is it vanity?
Then I buy it anyway.
Life is too short.
Vanity is an excellent motivator. Careful, so is guilt.
Morally right to ride your bike on a family vacation? Hell yes. You paid for the family vacation. I think I struggle with justifying this because I'm the only one doing it. It feels selfish but noticing those feelings is perhaps proof that I do not have the motivational gift that Mr Armstrong has. Usain Bolt has his muscle fibres, Armstrong has his angry determination and I have my guilt. That is world class guilt and I am very thankful for it.
So you go and find a cause. You get motivated and you set about doing whatever it takes to feed your kids, win a race or chase happiness.
Feeding the kids - note to self
Even baby Bobby Sands had to eat. Feed your kids first you bum. You need to nurture them and give children all the tools they need to go out into the world to find what motivates them. Mr and Mrs Sands must be sort of hacked off about their sons choice. "Why did I bother slaving away to put food on the table..."
Chasing Happiness - note to self
By all means necessary don't be an ass.
Notice the happiness when you get it.
Sometimes when you are going somewhere in a hurry, you don't notice the steps you took to get there. Most of life is made up of "the steps it took to get there". Overlook these at your own peril.
Motivation Part 2
Which brings me nicely to the Autumn and the time of year that I start planning what I want from next year. I will pick out events I want to compete in, set a training schedule and motivate myself the best I can. This year I will try to notice the process more. I want to make sure I take it all in.
After all, it's the steps it took to get there and I won't be able to take them again.
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