19 Jul Craving Inspiration? Surround Yourself with Crazies
I’ve been doing a lot of self reflection over the past few weeks . I have been thinking about all of the things I’ve done, the decisions I’ve made, the cool people I’ve met and of course what the future holds. We all go through it. Asking those ever important questions:
Am I doing what I am meant to do?
Should I be at a different place in my life?
How can I better serve others and change the world?
So, what do you do when you find yourself in this place of self-discovery? Some try to shut it off (if you figured out how, please let me know how you accomplish it), others play out the same conversation with themselves over and over in their head and some actually take such massive action they probably don’t realize what they’ve even done until days later.
While everyone has their own method of figuring things out and deciding what their next move will be, I tend to reach out to my creative friends who are doing cool things. Fortunately, I know some amazing individuals who are not only doing what they love, but are also changing lives in the process.
My friends Nick Mohnacky and Chris Callahan are two people I reach out to when I need some creative energy and inspiration. Not only did they create SurfrApp, but they also co-founded Startup Palm Beach, an entrepreneur resource center. Yeah, they’re pretty much amazing and I feel lucky that they pick up the phone when I call, or more likely, tweet.
Two nights ago, they hosted an event with special guest Jason SurfrApp (yeah, that’s his last name – click here to find out how that happened), speaker & author of Creativity for Sale. Jason talked about his crazy awesome journey as an entrepreneur; from getting paid to wear t-shirts for a living to selling his last name to raising $75,000 to write his first book (before he wrote a single word…um….how awesome is that?!)!
During the discussion other entrepreneurs in the room chimed in to share their opinions and experiences. It was awesome to be surrounded by other people going through the journey of being an entrepreneur. The ups and downs and complete craziness of it all sometimes.
We talked about when to make a shift, how to stop doing something you know is no longer serving you, how to make it through the most difficult times, why relationships are key and where to find some helpful resources. It was such an inspiring evening.
I felt awesome on my ride home! Hearing those stories and being surrounded by people who believe in the idea that they can do anything, get through the challenging times, and never give up on their dreams is absolutely inspiring.
Whether you are currently an entrepreneur or you are working a day job and pursuing your passion on the side, my hope for you is that you keep moving forward. Take action and believe in your vision. Your direction may change and you sometimes you may do something that feels like taking a step backwards, but as long as you have a clear vision and are always taking some kind of action to move forward, you will get to wherever it is you are meant to be. The course probably won’t look the way you think it should, but hey, that’s all part of the process, so embrace it and just have fun!
When you feel like giving up and are craving some kind of inspiration, find some crazies; the people who are hustling and fiercely pursuing their passion. They get knocked down and get up with a smile on their face. They believe in you and your vision. They believe that they can find a way, create a new path and have no time for negative people.
Who do you hang out with when you are craving inspiration and know you need to take action? What else do you do to get yourself in the mindset of getting your work done? I would love to hear from you so comment below.