New challenges are new opportunities in disguise. Harvest your motivation!
Here's some motivation for you...
…because you need it. When I say that you need motivation, I mean that I need it. I write you instead of I in order to avoid being accused of talking to myself.
What do you do with the situation in which you find yourself? Harvest your motivation! It’s there for the taking.
Do you take control of the situation? Or do you let the situation control you? I know times are hard. At the very least, these times are strangely different and they bring with them a new set of challenges. Think about that question. Answer it for yourself. Then get out there and act on that answer. Well, not yet. I want you to read the rest of this first.
Challenge, or an opportunity to sweat out a little motivation?
Photo by Jukan Tateisi on Unsplash
I think that for each person walking this earth, there exists a separate and unique set of challenges. Within that plethora of unique challenges, however, there exists something that we all have in common.
We all have the ability to accept or deny the challenges that we face. The issues, the confrontations, the worries and the problems are there before you. It’s undeniable. Opportunity and motivation are right under the surface of the challenges you face in your daily experiences. So what are you doing about it? Try to look at these “strangely different times” as an opportunity. Yeah, I said it. An opportunity! This is an opportunity for you to pick up the reins and ride that wild horse, people!
Giddy up!
Now, I know it’s easier said than done.
I understand the winds of uncertainty are blowing cold (Sounds like a line in a Led Zeppelin song doesn’t it?). I also know that things can feel a little less tough if you’re a little more badass. “Badassery” is a great coat with which to shelter yourself from that cold wind of uncertainty. You possess badassery when you knowingly have a “more-than-most” level of self-confidence. That self-confidence and badassery qualifies you as a Life Warrior who is fit to take on life’s challenges, and you are a Badass Life Warrior when you do just that – TAKE ON LIFE’S CHALLENGES.
Challenge: You are fat and out of shape and need to do something about it.
Well, if you’re home from work during these days of quarantine and job layoffs, then you now have the opportunity to turn that challenge into an opportunity. Start training in your garage or living room. Buy a set of kettlebells and get to work on turning that challenge into an opportunity. It’s pretty linear, actually, like straight forward math. Think of it as an equation that looks something like this:
New challenge = opportunity → new result
Challenge: You have always wanted to be a writer or a painter, or have wanted to monetize a hobby, and think you don’t have the time.
If you’re not working at the moment, then you now have the opportunity to change how you use time. Imagine what you could get done if you took the hours that you used to spend at work, and you put it towards writing or painting, or whatever hobby you may have. Get on it! Remember:
New challenge = opportunity → new result
I believe that everyone has a story to tell, so tell yours.
Are you a hobby artist or painter and recently lost your job? There are ways to monetize that art hobby of yours. If you’re good enough, people will buy your work. At the very least, you will feel the satisfaction that comes from focusing on yourself and doing something that you enjoy. Jump in it, and find out what you can achieve.
Have you been afraid to put your art on display? Find out how you can put your art on display. Here in Norway, the art world can be very exclusive and closed off for the unknown artists. Get started with a web page. Take some quality photos of your art and post it there. Bypass the galleries. I know that’s not optimal, but it is a start, and again, you will get a rush of satisfaction during the process of “putting yourself out there”. Heck, I’ll post and promote your art on my website! Drop me an email at , and you could be a featured artist on my page. Turn that challenge into an opportunity. You ridin’ that horse yet?
New challenge = opportunity → new result
Recognizing the fact that you can turn challenges into opportunities demands a new mindset for some of us.
Gaining a new mindset doesn’t have to be difficult. It can be difficult, but it doesn’t have to be. Change brings on new opportunities to alter your mindset. Just the thought of that gives me a rush of motivation! Use these crazy days to gain a new mindset. Start that process by making the conscious decision to remake your body and mind at the same time. Most people agree that our physical and mental states are strongly interconnected.
Think about it: Whether or not you are an elite level athlete, you’ve had moments of greater or lesser physical fitness throughout life. You’ve also had greater or lesser degrees of mental and emotional stability throughout your life. Think it through, and recognize that your physical and mental states very often match up. There is a connection there. Recognize it and enhance it. Enhance it and tighten it up like it’s a guitar string that you can adjust and tune to be played as you desire. Become a master of your new instrument. Rework your body and mind. That can be a daunting challenge, but that challenge is pointing you towards a huge opportunity.
New challenge = opportunity → new result
Saddle up that equine. He’s a wild one, however, so are you.
I powerlift.
Reps reps reps. Training is motivation is training is motivation.
My gym and my power-lifting club are closed down. I won’t waste a single second on bitching about that. Instead, I am motivated and taking that challenge (the fact that my gyms were closed down) and turn it into an opportunity. I look at this as an opportunity to train in such way as to significantly reduce my body-fat and to rest my joints. I don’t have the equipment here at home that would allow me to do heavy powerlifting, but I do have some small weights, a TRX band and an elliptical machine in my garage. To say it mildly, I am putting them to good use. I do not complain about not being able to train the way I ultimately would like to train. I choose to make a new set of health and fitness goals for myself instead.
New challenge = opportunity → new result
I’m not trying to preach at y’all. Look at it as if I’m sending out a little motivation, because you (I) need it.
So are you motivated? I am. This isn’t an attempt to minimize your struggle or negate your life experience. It is rather my shared statement to you which displays that I am truly motivated and I feel a sense of impending opportunity in the air these days. Am I an over/driven maniac? Maybe. Just call me a guy who does not fear the challenge, and chooses to see the opportunity at the edge of it all.
New challenge = opportunity → new result
