Happy From 9 to 5

What do you do when you are uninspired?

For several reasons, lately all I’ve done is work, eat and sleep. Ok, add to that commuter time, hygiene and a rock concert.

The fact remains that I’ve been utterly uninspired to write. I’ve been reading way too many technical things and all I could write about was just more technical stuff.

When you are unispired to do what you do for a living, a.k.a. “losing your mojo”, even temporarily, we have a problem.

You can find inspiration in everything going on around you. Every single thing can be related to a topic, to an experience, to a learning opportunity. However, the last 10 days my brain hasn’t picked up anything inspiring, which brings me to the subject of perception.

In PR school I was taught that perception is everything and we had countless courses about it. Why do you notice certain things at a precise moment and not another? There are libraries written on that. The research is fascinating, pointing to how the brain saves energy focusing consciously on certain aspects while your unconscious focuses on the whole.

That is very informative but, how do I consciously go back to finding inspiration in the events that surround me?

This week I have been exploring it and my findings are these:

1. be conscious about what is going on that drains your inspiration energy

2. consciously change your focus

3. force yourself to go back to what inspired you in the past

4. make time for reflection

I’ll go one by one.

1. Be conscious about what is going on that drains your inspiration energy

It could be that you’re working too much, or that you’re going through extraordinary circumstances. Do a mental inventory of all the events cluttering your life. In my case it’s been filling my coaching practice after launching a new business venture (nevermind I have a day job). This new business fills me with a lot more joy than my previous ventures so I’m naturally drawn to working a lot on it. Also I’m remodelling my flat and since I live alone, I’m the only one to deal with contractors.

2. Consciously change your focus

When you are clear on what is keeping the energy away from you, it is a lot easier to get the steps to deal with it. You can organize your schedule differently, you can choose to stop doing certain things, you can delegate or even find help. Instead of focusing on what you still have to do, you could focus on all you have accomplished so far. Just like seeing the glass half empty or half full. I chose to focus less on work and more on things that make me happy. Take yesterday: I didn’t have dinner while preparing more food, I actually sat down, in silence -no TV, no radio, no nothing- and focused on chewing. It’s called mindful awareness.

3. Force yourself to go back to what inspired you in the past

People get inspired by a variety of things, for example, a sunset, a dog in the park, a person on the train. Others get inspired by movies, books, quotes. There are certain activities or objects that were useful to draw inspiration in your past. Use them. Don’t try to find new sources as a muse, go that way only if the old tricks don’t work. If your brain is too overwhelmed, starting with familiar things will ease the stress. What I did? I read some inspirational blogs I like, like Zen Habits and The Happiness Project. That alone inspired me again. In fact, Leo Babauta’s post on inspiration, inspired me to write about… inspiration! See how it works?

4. Make time for reflection

What is all the money and fame worth if you don’t even realize you have them in the first place? If you are operating on automatic pilot, you cannot rave in your successes simply because you don’t have time, and maybe you don’t know you’ve “made it”. Take time to reflect and to ponder upon your accomplishments. Feel the joy of a job well done. Bask in the way you’re helping people, how the world is a bit better because you are in it. Does it feel selfish? Then embrace being selfish! Being uniquely you and doing things right is great in a world of copycats and cons. Enjoy being you.

Getting inspiration is not a matter of  ”doing” things but more about “being” yourself  in the midst of a cluttered life, of finding what brings joy to your day and applying it consciously.

Are you temporarily uninspired?  How important is it to get your mojo back?