What Motivates You?

  

    Motivation has root causes. Different in each of us, money, power, pleasure... hell, even pain can motivate. Each day we get out of bed, there is a reason. It may be that bowl of Cheerios in the last seconds of a dream or something that makes you grumble, like the thoughts of rush hour traffic ahead. Whatever it is, something does drive us to do the things we do.

    
    I can't talk to the sciences of the mind. What the chemical or primordial triggers are to motivation is really not here nor there for me. I just know that things occur to me that cause a need to do - something.

  There are passions that inspire. Physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual inspirations which can drive us to the patent extremes of love and hate. We can become so driven by what motivates, that we begin to wrestle within ourselves to find right and wrong. The erudite will not be motivated below a line. The simple dreamer looks up, no line in sight.

   Motivation is the essence of free will.

   What about ulterior motives? Motivation to act based on compensation to another mean or end. Is acting upon a thought without regard to gain counter to the define motive?

   This can be an endless thought or one that causes internal doubt. Anarchy is motivation ill defined. Conservatism owns few changes in either dawn or sunset.

   I began thinking about this last night, when a knowledgeable friend's email asked me what I hoped to gain by posting interviews next month. Gain? Don't get me wrong, it was a fair enough question. I was asking for help getting the word out about my December format, and he has a huge audience to tap. It just never occurred to me that I would have to set a value to my interviews. In other words, what would I gain?

  Audience? If I'm honest with myself, the answer is yes. My guest list is enough for a few thousand more visits to my blog each day.

  Money? The answer is no. Even the book links are pulled from their sites, intact. So hits by anyone clicking them goes to my guests site.

  Ego? Like a friend told me not long ago, "Ah, there's the rub". Will I be absolutely jacked up happy if I get good responses from the interviews? YES. If I find that my efforts have helped authors sell more books, I will be flat out over the moon.

  The best thing about motivation is that it's innately personal. What drives me to write, blog or mow the lawn is purely mine. The things that inspire you are all yours, so keep what motivates you unique. Do what must be done according to heart and mind, just let your dreams into the decision making paradigm. After all, motivations that lighten the day, that add a smile, are the endless fuel you are blessed with to live each day as new.