Finding Inspiration

In his book "Be Inspired Before You Expire", Pepe Minambo says blessed are the inspired, for they shall make the world a better place. He adds that expired people are as harmful as expired products; we should therefore be wary of them because they can contaminate our dreams with the virus of discouragement and self-doubt.

I couldn't agree with Pepe Minambo more on the need for us to be inspired if we are to achieve our dreams. But one thing I have discovered about inspiration is that it comes and goes. If we rely on it, we will never get anything meaningful done.

Personally, I have suffered from lack of inspiration more times than I care to remember. When I was re-applying to three top American colleges in 2009 for instance, I would doze while revising for the SAT exam. Since the colleges stated in their alluring brochures that they only admit highly motivated students, is it any wonder that they all rejected me?

Then in 2010, I would sometimes run away from home to escape the boring menial tasks Mum assigned to me. I would lie to Mum that I was going to Nairobi to teach piano. But I would just idle in a certain room in downtown Nairobi, lazily waiting for 7:00 p.m. to reach and head back home.

And then in 2011 after I dropped out of the University of Nairobi due to financial constraints, I requested my family to let me stay in Nairobi. I planned to spend my days at the Kenya National Library to expand my intellectual bandwidth. After my family acceded to my request, I happily moved to a hostel in Nairobi.

But alas! Instead of enjoying my time in Nairobi, I found myself oversleeping at the hostel. And when I turned up at the Kenya National Library to study, I would sometimes nod off on the table. I just wasn't that inspired.

During some of the moments I have felt uninspired, I have wished inspiration was some sort of a gas I could inhale to get myself inspired. Maybe it is that same desire to feel inspired that drives some people to alcoholism and drug abuse.

With time, I found inspiration by engaging in my hobbies: jogging, walking, reading, writing, singing, meditating, listening to music and playing the piano. As a result of engaging in those hobbies, I have become a lean and charming young man.

God has somehow seen to it that I have the resources to pursue my hobbies. He has provided me with the reading materials, electronic gadgets and social connections I have needed to utilize my hobbies. Sometimes, He has even availed me things I never thought I needed till I got them.

My beloved reader, I challenge you to also find inspiration if you are regularly feeling down in the dumps. Don't make the mistake of waiting for inspiration to find you. Inspiration will come when you start doing something exciting. So I recommend you identify your hobbies and engage in them regularly. Ciao!

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed the above story on finding inspiration, you might also enjoy another one on "How to Get Your Mojo Back" which I wrote four years ago. Just click that link in blue to dive straight into the story.