You're Inspired! Now What?

My clever-minx friend Therese over at Message Gap made such a great point in a recent post about facing the proverbial blank piece of paper. She writes "perhaps you’re inspired to act by a charismatic chief executive but not sure where to bring all that energy back to the day’s work."

Here's what strikes me about this point. Put this into any context. Take someone who's just been inspired by a book or a talk or a song or a conversation or by surviving an incredibly rough journey that is on the upswing and suddenly this person feels magnificently motivated and inspired to do ...  something.

That something could be to sit down in front of a piece of paper and start writing or drawing; it could be to pick up the phone to have that overdue conversation or learn how to finally write that business plan or adopt a child or join the Peace Corp.

That first rush of YESness is so energizing.

The second eventual rush of NOW WHATness is so ... confusing. Even deflating, to the tune of "Ah, fughetaboutit."

Of course this is why people are going to coaches and counselors and joining common-interest groups and communities: to take that inspiration and make it into something over the course of time. Instead of letting another bloom of YESness wilt away, what if you listened? 

Don't discount a returning idea or vision or calling as just your imagination running away with you.

Write it down. Tell someone. Fan it, nurture it and love it by asking around to see who else might share your interest. Have you ever noticed that the second you discover a new interest or idea, everyone you talk to has something to say about it? When I first started writing poetry about 12 years ago, that's how it seemed to work. Instead of saying Oh, I don't write poetry, I told people I worked with I was curious about poetry. Suddenly: books of poets were stacking on my desk and the ACCOUNTANT of all people was emailing me his favorite poems. It was important stuff let me tell you.

Life gets filled with meaning, joy, and rich connections when you add to it pursuits that really inspire you.

So what if it feels hard and confusing. Anything worth doing well that brings the OH WOW rewards starts off with a big What the F--? In other words, it's effort, and there's fumbling but it's new and energizing too.

What's important is matching the right actions to the inspiration.

You don't feel like it?

That's okay. Nobody ever really wakes up like a super hero and charges to it.

People who live their conviction and make their visions come true do so by stringing together a series of actions that over time makes something happen. Think of a daisy chain of small efforts.

Be a creator. Show yourself what you're made of. And remember -- you don't have to do it alone.