You doubt yourself.
You feel lazy.
You want to give up.
Yet something inside you stays lit, the little flame that has not gone out completely. You may wonder if you are doing enough to manifest or make your dreams and goals a reality.
Here are 5 ways to tell if you have what it takes or if you should just join Cinderella in her chimney sweeping until prince charming knocks on the door with the other slipper.
1) You don’t feel the need to tell everyone around you what you are doing. You find satisfaction in the doing of whatever it is that is getting you closer to your goals and dreams. There are the talkers and the doers. You are a doer.
2) You will do anything it takes. ANYTHING. (well as long as it’s legal and aligned with your moral and ethical values).
Do or do not. There is no try. —Yoda
3) You take inspired action. Things happen. Plans don’t alway work out the way you want them to, but when you get an idea, or a sign that you should be doing something, and it feels good, you go for it.
I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination. —Jimmy Dean
4) You find yourself doing a balancing act between ‘if you dream it it will come’ and ‘taking the bull by the horns’.
5) You are grateful for what you do have, for what you are doing. Eckhart Tolle says that the only way out of suffering is by first accepting it. And as Oprah Winfrey says,
If you look at what you have in life, you’ll always have more. If you look at what you don’t have in life, you’ll never have enough.
So are you able to look around at your life and feel true gratitude for what you do have without letting the ‘but I want more’ sneak it’s way into your gratitude practice?
Here are 10 incredible women and some tips on how they stay inspired.
Check out their websites and follow what they’re doing - this is a great start at seeing what inspired women are doing.
1) As a woman in a leadership position I not only need to stay inspired it is my job to inspire others. Because of this, it is of utmost importance that I keep creativity flowing around me and through me at all times. It is important for me to stay vigilant in regards to the info and data that I allow into my vicinity.
One of the first things I have done to make sure that my inspirational juices continue to flow is to have a home that is full of art and reminders of people, places and things that inspire me.
I spend my time with women and men who inspire me. Of course, I totally understand that you can’t choose your family. However, you can choose who you spend your time with.
To stay inspired and able to keep in the flow of all things, I do everything I can to guard what my mind is exposed to. I read books that fascinate me and push my growth versus novels that are, for me, like eating junk food. (read more on her website below)
Cindy Anne~
Master Sensualist
Inspiring Women to explore their most intimate selves.
www.agirlsroom.com
2) I have commitments to show up for people other than myself that I am unwilling to cancel. In my every day, even if I wake up uninspired, before I get on a client call, I read their emails, look at my file on them and in “losing myself’ to being of service to them, before you know it, I feel inspired.
I truly believe in Picasso’s saying:
“Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working”.
I don’t wait for it, I do my work and inspiration inevitably follows.
Marija Parente
3) I take inspiration from people who manage to be both successful and kind. Whenever I feel stuck I watch video interviews with people who overcame all odds and fought for their success. Then I go back to whatever my obstacle is at the moment and see it as something I have already overcome.
Leah Gottfried is the founder of Dignity Entertainment and a filmmaker currently directing the hit web series “Soon By You”.
4) I stay inspired with everyday rituals that point me in a direction I desire to go, such as starting my day with gratitudes and ending my day with gratitudes.
I Choose my friends by who I enjoy and are assured that they are people that cherish me and light up when they see me I do the same with them.
I practice moving a step in the directions of my desires every day, so forward is the direction I feel I am going even if it is a micro step.
I Move my body mostly in community because it keeps me inspired and it makes me feel alive.
I Eat 15 to 20 oz of vegetables everyday to let the sunshine in.
Most of all, to stay inspired I take some time every day for solitude
Laura Jacobs
5) I keep myself inspired in many ways. I set expectations of myself daily, weekly and yearly. If you set expectations of yourself then you’re more likely to reach it and not just go along by winging it.
After my first year at Gebroe Hammer my boss asked me if I was proud of my sales. When I said I was, he said he expected me to double it the next year. That was the most powerful thing - that he had expectations. Now I have those expectations of myself.
I often think about a scenario - if the company I work for would be picking the top three sales people- would I be one of them?
I am inspired to maintain the success I have at the top. Do you want to be a failure or a success? It’s a decision. Do you ant to coast through and be mediocre or be successful? I want to get there, and anyone or anything in my way, move out of my way.
I am inspired by an obligation to provide for my family, and not in a mediocre way but to give them the best life possible. My nature is to do whatever I do well. You have to inspire yourself by having a clear path, and then work towards that path and not flounder.
3-4 years ago I could never have predicted that I would be as successful as I am, and what inspired me is that I see that I did it and it could be done. The possibility is there, I just have to work for it. It’s no longer a pipe dream, its attainable.
When I have a hard day or moment, I know it will pass because I have done it.
I also stay inspired by going to see a client that is nice and complementary towards me and it gives me some momentum back.
Real Estate Professional, Gebroe Hammer
6) I stay inspired by getting into a sensual state of gratitude first - by “sensual” I mean the heightened awareness of my senses. I focus on my breath and how it feels on my lips and in my lungs.
Then I look at the colors around me. I try to hear the insect wings, taste and feel the smells in the air.
Then I get curious about my surroundings and ask a metaphorical question that is inspiring. The leaves on that tree seem to be dancing, but are they dancing for me?
Simple can be rewarding!
Coltrane Lord
The Art & Science of Feminine Expression
7) Surround yourself with positive people. It’s so easy to get sucked into others negativity, and you truly become like one of the 5 people you are closest to.
Rita Litchfield is the mother of 11 children and over 50 grandchildren.
She is a Hypnotist and runs a business creating one of a kind handmade felted handbags.
8) I stay inspired knowing that everything I do is a link in a very long chain. The stronger my link is, the easier it is for more empowered women to climb up after me and advance to greatness.
Nancy Redd
“I talk for my living & I write for my soul; I learn by listening & I lead by example.”
Host of @So_MeTV on @FOXtv
9) I always have one of my mentors/teachers in the loop… I love to learn.
I stay inspired by working from home and having adventurous and luxurious work/play dates.
I also go to a 5 star hotel for a scheduled period of time (2 hours) to finish a project that I’m feeling resistant to and for business and brunch dates.
I’m inspired by the ocean. By being playful. Sidewalk chalk with my 3 year old friend. Bubbles. Surprises to and from my partner.
Love. Joy.Beauty.
Amber Valentyne
10) I stay inspired by following people who inspire me; folks I aspire to be like. Following dreamers who made it and are showing others how to make it too.
Katherine Hiraldo
I’m a writer and author and teach entrepreneurs how to connect with their clients, through blogging.
So what is it that inspires you? What do YOU want to accomplish?
Do you want to travel? Have an epic relationship? Start your own business? Make your current work satisfying to the point of waiting for the weekend to be over?
There are those that look around for inspiration everywhere and take the necessary actions, and those that don’t. Those filled with excuses, regrets, and totally legitimate reasons for shelving their dreams and goals.
Do the impossible. When you are at a dead end, turn around or jump over or climb behind whatever is blocking you. Choose another path. As yet another person that may have good advice. Read another book, watch another inspirational speech by Tony Robbins or whoever inspires you.
The end is not the end. That is the secret that those that stay inspired remember. There is always a way.
What is it that you want inspiration for? Put it out here in the comments or send me an email to info@estherfink.com.
As Winston Churchill says,
“Never, Never never give up”.
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