Aspire to Inspire . . . Before You Expire

It’s having the ability to hitchhike by whatever possible means

all the way up to the sky – the sky being the limit.

(By Paul Chong)

In essence you are who you are, but depending on your life’s experiences, education, ambition & determination, & the career you have, you can, as the captain of your ship, steer yourself out of stormy seas towards the fulfilment of your dreams. We all live in a world of “dreams & aspirations”. There’s always the “greener pasture” yonder – no matter how nice a car you drive or a big house you live in, there’s that constant yearning for something even better. It’s the “betterment syndrome” I would say.

Aspiration, as can be seen, refers to the tangible or the materialistic things. Inspiration has to do with the intangible of things like driving the urge, filling the spirit with desire, the courage, tenacity, the determination & perspiration towards the attainment. Symbolically, aspiration is the cart drawn by the inspired horse.

A child first learns to crawl before learning to walk. By the same token, a leader must know or learn to aspire before he can have any credibility to lead & inspire. A good leader leads by his own personal example. In the process, the question of personification is thereby duplicated by his team. Heroes are held in high esteem & placed on pedestals because of their aspiring great deeds. People emulate heroes not cowards.

It’s not easy to stay inspired all the time. Life is full of twists & turns, ups & downs, and the motivational battery runs low depriving you of the steam to propel you on. By & large the world is negative. You can’t help yourself being constantly bombarded by negative thoughts. The road of least resistance finds the less courageous dropping out along the way. If the thought of giving it all up cropped into your mind, just remember what Thomas Edition had to say about success: “One percent inspiration . . . ninety-nine percent perspiration”.

It’s time like this when you are feeling dull & down, discouraged & frustrated, losing your confidence . . . that you need to renew or rejuvenate yourself. By renewing & recharging yourself with focus on your vision, goal & dream, & the vital ingredient of a burning desire, you then venture on. There’s no turning back!

You take bath everyday. Though the freshness & exhilaration of the bath wear off in time, that does not stop you from further baths. Motivation & inspiration is the same. Like they say, when the going gets tough, the tough gets going!