You make a living by what you get back, but you make a life by what you give.
: Winston Churchill
Motivation is something that most of us are seeking, but if the truth be told, motivation is one of the most over- used and over- valued words in the English language.
It’s no coincidence that that the word motivation begins with the letter M, as nine times out of ten– motivation comes from what we put in our pockets – Money.
Money is certainly important, but it has been well documented that money does not create happiness and health.
Once a person acquires a certain level of success, money ceases to motivate any more.
People move on to seek Happiness through seeking Success – coupled with Significance.
And they go on to seek Greatness through
Sustained Success and Significance – the 3 S’s of Human Greatness.
Now , this might not apply to everyone, as many people are simply trying to make ends meet monthly, but it does give us great insight into what determines happiness and health – something that we all seek.
AB de Villiers is a great South African example.
To a point, AB may be motivated by match fees and contracts, but for him it’ about something more – about being
Inspired to do
Inspiration is not what we put in our pockets, but what we put in our
Hearts and Head
It’s the powerful cocktail one gets when one closely connects one’s passion with one’s purpose in life.
AB’s passion is to play cricket.
His purpose, as with many great sporting champions who reach the pinnacle of their career is:
To Entertain, Educate and Enrich the lives of others
Sport teaches us many things. It teaches us most about winning and losing.
But, when one’s focus is placed on one’s higher purpose in life, one never actually can lose. AB might be on the losing end of any one game, but he never misses the opportunity to fulfill his purpose – to entertain, educate and enrich the lives of others.
And it’s mostly in defeat that sports stars educate others. When we win, we learn how ‘human talented’ we are – but when we lose we find out how ‘human smart’ we are.
AB de Villiers scores highly when it comes to inspiring himself – and inspiring others in both victory and defeat.
The moments that challenge us most – define us : Lewis Pugh
Jonny Wilkinson also understands how sports stars educate others by their actions
It’s tough to take, but the measure of any player is how you react to the worst of times as well as the best of times : Jonny Wilkinson
Inspiration is what keeps the great sporting champions going through good and bad times.
And Inspiration is a word closely associated with a potent human emotion called gratitude.
Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, and confusion into clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow : Melody Beattie
Rob Opie is a Brand Strategist, Key Note Speaker, Author and ‘The Brand Coach ’to organizational teams and individuals
- Rob’s latest book: The Game Changers: Good to Great to Greater is available FREE to readers as an instant digital download on his site : www.thegameplan.co.za
