Tao of Motivation

G'day.

I am feeling totally inspired right now. Why? Because I have some reasonably major life issues and these inspire the hell out of me that's why.

What issues? Well, here's a small selection of some of the most major ones.

I have drinking problem:

Not a drink-all-day-everyday-from-a-brown-paper-bag kind of problem, but rather a go-out-two-three-four-times-a-week-and-drink-'til-I'm-a-blind-Irish
-raving-loony kind of problem.

Now I know that most Aussie men would probably just laugh at me for calling this a problem*, but bugger it, my partner and I decided together that this is the reality, and at the end of the day it's my call anyway.

So why does this inspire me?

There's nothing more inspiring than admitting you have a problem and resolving to do something about it. After years of (unsuccessfully) trying to moderate my behaviour, I have simply decided to quit cold turkey. I did that with (my habit of occasionally smoking) cigarettes, so why not do it for drinking? It's been two and half weeks, which isn't long at all, but it's been a breeze so far. Maybe I'll screw it up along the way, maybe I won't; time will tell. I won't go into great detail here but I will later I am sure. Meanwhile wish me luck.

*There is a t-shirt I've seen around that sums up the Aussie attitude towards excessive drinking. It reads: "I'm not an alcoholic, I'm 'Straalian!" (It requires a working knowledge of the Aussie accent to get that kooky spelling.)

I am in debt:

I know people with more debt than me, but I have a nice wad of credit looming over me like a freakin' gorilla on my back. So at the age of thirty three, not only am I still faced with prospect of earning my financial security in this life, I am also faced with a period of just getting back to square one. Yowch!

So how does a credit problem inspire me?

Because I know that there are people out there who have shown how it is possible to get out of debt and prosper, no matter what age you are.

Because it gives me a sharp pointy stick a la motivation that pokes me in arse everyday and forces me to get amongst it all and give it a good go. If I was already rich, I might well just choose to do nothing much. Seriously I probably would, except that...

I live in a troubled world.

And as far as I can see I haven't done nearly enough to help with that. Sure I've done some things to help, but not as much as I could have. I've spent far more time indulging in feel-good activities (mostly until the point where they don't feel good any more).

So between now and when I am financially wealthy, I need to find ways to help people every day, and when I do become financially wealthy, I will need to keep earning a reasonable amount of moolah so that I can help out in money kind of way, as well as the former method, which I've no doubt rich people get satisfaction from despite their ability to give chocolate-kisses to bums in cardboard boxes (can anyone pick the film I am referencing?).

And to close, I'd like to add that none of the above comes from a non-Taoist, non-Zen I'm-all-frustrated kind of perspective. I am in fact very peaceful in my own skin, and this is the greatest motivation of all.

Except perhaps for the semen-retention! (See previous posts. And yes, I am still Master of My Own Domain!)

Flow Like Water...

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