MAWMonday Motivators 05/28/2017

by: Dr. Michael A. Wright In Blog, Coaching DiaryTagged , , , , ,

It’s Game Time: This is What Life Feels Like

Between the NBA playoffs and life’s daily grind, the tension is high. School has ended for many or is ending soon, a great achievement with the potential anxiety of that question. “What’s next?” It’s similar to de-tangling a box of Christmas lights while not knowing whether you want to put up a tree. Even if you aren’t putting up a tree, you don’t want a box of tangled Christmas lights sitting around you house. But, aren’t there other things to do that are more important?

This week, your opportunity for encouragement relies on this question of time and priority. Start with your dreams. Imagine the possibilities. Work through the process. Never give up. That’s what’s next. Decide if you want to put up a tree. Otherwise, leave that box of tangled Christmas lights for another time.

1. Time is Precious.

It’s a question you have asked if you realize the value of all resources. Money is not your only currency. Information, people, and time are also important. Each readily translates into money. Time, like the other three resources, reveals your priorities. It also returns differing value based on how you invest it. The first point is that you invest it in what really matters: life, learning, love, and relationships. The second point is that you respect time and your choices to use it with an urgency of being out of it. What if you had no more time? How would your choices be different? Every moment of every day, engage life, learning, love, and relationships as if you have limited time to enjoy them.

2. Start with your dreams.

Where do you start approaching time as urgency? Your dreams. Chase them. Engage others in them. Find yourself building space, scaffolding, business model, and residuals from your dreams made manifest. Your are not in competition. That motivation works for a time. But, when you realize and really own your uniqueness, you find that your goals are different and fundamentally of no comparison with those of others. You can impact the world in ways that no other can. That’s not conjecture. That’s YOU. Start there.

3. Imagine the possibilities.

Imagine what is possible. Not just because of your gifts and talents, but also because of the skills you have developed overcoming your deficits and trauma. Michael Jr. talks about his trouble reading during his youth. He found he had developed a skill of quick analysis and translation that he applies in his comedy today. Could it be that the process of working hard to correct, to achieve some normalization, to change has resulted in a unique and useful ability? Imagine the possibilities.

4. Work through the process.

I am a student of the process. I recently explored the career story of Ellen DeGeneres to add to my trove of icebergs. I am always surprised by the history that rests beneath the surface beyond the success and achievement we witness today. Ellen talks about how she stood up for her authentic self, and her show was cancelled. “The phone didn’t ring for two years,” she relayed in one interview on the subject. Then, after this low point, she was asked to do a talk show. The rest is the tip of the iceberg–the part we see. Enormous success, a large following, and tremendous social influence for authentic self. Never forget the portion that is unseen beneath the surface. The risk, the battling of fears, the insecurities, the work, and the work, and more work toward smarter work. That is the whole process. Expect it.

5. Never give up.

Never give up. But, that’s not the best part of this tweet. The best part is that you might be closer to your goal than you think. Two thoughts of encouragement come to mind right away. First, the work is nearing sustainable momentum. You’ve heard that the first million dollars is the hardest. After that, momentum seems to offer some metaphysical and real energy toward your continuation. The friction of your current situation can be replaced by inertia suggesting a continuation of progress if you keep going. Keep going.

Second, keep going! There is something magical about the simplistic, external encouragement to keep working. Listen to your mentors, your family, your heart that continually tells you to keep producing, keep revising, keep sharing, keep learning. Keep going and reach your goals. Find that you were successful all along. You had the power all along. Get to the point where you can hold it in your hands and share it with those you love.

Dr. Michael A. Wright received his Doctor of Philosophy in Social Work degree from the University of South Carolina - Columbia. Since 1997, Wright has led MAWMedia Group, LLC, a firm helping individuals and organizations tell stories and translate ideas into capital.