WORKPLACE WELLNESS
Inspired attitude fills life with greater joy
Defining intentions
helps clarity A participant in my morning Qi Gong class is an avid surfer. In a discussion about his passion, Kyle observed that learning how to surf
is 98 percent about reading the ocean, and the willingness to surrender to it without resistance. “When the wave comes you either ride it or it passes you by,” he says. “If there is no commitment to the wave, there is no ride.”
I connected Kyle’s observation to those from a recent lecture I attended by Lance Secretan, author of INSPIRE, what great leaders do. Secretan has developed a
holistic business philosophy called Higher Ground Leadership and has worked with several Fortune 500 companies as well as the Calgary Flames. Secretan
inspires. Among the many ideas he shared during the evening, sponsored by UBC’s Sauder School of Business, I was particularly moved by his distinction between the seemingly synonymous words, inspiration and motivation.
Inspiration (from the Latin spirare) means spirit or to infuse with an encouraging or exalting influence. It is the act of breathing in, and to animate, to stimulate by divinity. It is genius, an idea or a
passion. Inspiration comes from the soul. Motivation, on the other hand, means to provide a motive, to induce, to incite. According to Secretan, motivation
comes from the ego and is forced upon us, or by us, from the outside. Motivation, he said, is rooted in fear, and our society is filled with it. We fear war, sex, death, love, keeping up in the rat race.
It is no wonder that so many Canadians experience a lack of stamina. In the view of Chinese medicine, fear depletes kidney energy and the kidneys store our vitality.
According to a 2003 Gallup Poll, 33 percent of Canadians have difficulty sleeping and 49 percent have difficulty concentrating on the job. Many people do not look forward to going to work.
When I ride my bike on the seawall I often witness a manifestation of the difference between inspiration and motivation as I observe joggers with whom I share the
path. Some seem to labour under a cloud of effort as they will their bodies forward with each plodding step; there is much struggle involved. Their
motivation, it appears to me, is to “get in shape” or to “lose weight,” and they lack joy in their movements. Others move with grace and usually a smile upon
their faces. These people, I assume, run with pleasure, with the added benefits of being fit or maintaining a certain weight. This class of joggers seems inspired to run.
Jogging is, of course, not the point. My preferred methods of physical activity are hiking, swimming, biking and yoga. I enjoy each not as a way to stay fit, but because there is something inherently
pleasurable in each endeavor. Is there joy and ease in what you do? Are you enthused with the morning light? Are you inspired and engaged in you life? If you
answered “no” to any of these questions, then your life is likely imbued with a sense of duty or heaviness. You would probably rather be somewhere else, doing something else, with somebody else; at this moment you are not present. It may
not be what you are doing that is the problem, but the way you are engaging with it. Take some time to define your intention with the many aspects of your
life. Why are you here on earth? How will you be? What will you do? These questions are part of the strategy developed by Secretan to help align desire, skills and action. Answering them is the first step in helping to define a deeper
sense of how we perceive ourselves. Answering these questions will also foster a connection between our inner sense of purpose and our work, as well as bring
authenticity to our being. The answers will awaken, inspire and yield a sense of clarity that will spur effective action. Once you have achieved this clarity,
surrender to the ocean and catch the wave. Committing to the wave frees you from the struggle of working against the natural flow. To find out more about
Secretan’s vision visit www.secretan.com |
