What Inspires Us?

What inspires us?

Firstly I think it’s important to differentiate between motivation and inspiration. To me, motivation is the drive to achieve something. Inspiration is often what gives us that drive.

People find inspiration in a myriad places. One thing I've noticed when considering this though is that often the thing that inspires us bears no relation to that which we wish to achieve. In addition to this, often people cite other people as their inspiration. Personally I think this is a flawed rationale. In my view it is not a person that is inspirational, rather their acts, words, accomplishments, values or examples. On that basis I don't look for inspiration in an individual. Aside from the fact that one individual is not fundamentally any different from the next one, if you believe you are inspired by a person, what happens if that illusion you have created comes crashing down?

Take Lance Armstrong for example. After being found guilty of doping offences then almost overnight, those people inspired by Lance Armstrong are left questioning whether they are happy being inspired by someone tarnished in such a way.

On the flip side, if you are inspired by his fight against cancer, his determination, attitude, dedication etc. Well the question of whether he is guilty or not becomes irrelevant. It’s my contention that we are not actually inspired by the person but as I have said, we are inspired by what they have done.

It could be a simple act of kindness or selflessness or a life devoted to others (Mother Theresa), it could be a single monumental achievement (Felix Baumgartner), it could be a fight to be accepted and allowed to compete on a level playing field (Oscar Pistorious). Or someone seemingly insignificant, or unknown who becomes an image of peaceful protest in the face of extreme oppression and violence (Tiananmen Square Tank Man). What I do know is we look to others to provide these things which inspire us.

Now I'm not saying we shouldn't do that. What inspires an individual is a very personal thing. For me inspiration has taken many forms but never human form. I recognised a long time ago that I am inspired by accomplishment. And in most cases accomplishment in the sporting arena. Most of my adult life I have striven to achieve, to be successful within sport. This is one of the reasons when, following my injury that ended my hammer throwing career, I spent the following years searching for another sport to excel at. Mentally I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Sport is where I had been successful so sport had to be the avenue for future success. I tried to draw inspiration from a number of sources (namely other athletes), often without it being much help.

It has really only been in the last 18 months where I have really given serious consideration to what I want to achieve. What inspires me and what my motivation really is. I’ve been able to answer these questions only very recently. Competition motivates me but now it is competition with myself. In an earlier post I mentioned how I am competing against my 18 year old self, striving to out-perform the personal bests I achieved back then and subsequently have come nowhere near to beating in the interim years.

As for my inspiration well during the 2012 London Olympics something struck a chord with me and I found it to be the most inspiring thing I've ever witnessed. It wasn’t a gold medal performance, not even a medal of any colour, so how is it inspiring?

It was 71 year old Japanese equestrian rider Hiroshi Hoketsu. This man competed in his first Olympics in 1964. His Olympic career spans 48 years over 6 decades. His highest ever finish was 9th. What inspired me was his dedication. Despite a career so long and requiring such dedication, he has never seriously threatened to win a medal, often finishing in the 30's-40's positions. This man clearly does it for the love of the sport. To be the best he can be. We could all learn a big lesson from him.

 Watching him compete and giving his all, really inspired me. It made me think hard about what I want. I have for years wanted to be the best and that simply put, meant winning, beating the opposition, being number one. Because I set my sights so high, I realised I was setting myself up to fail. I was making targets without making allowances for limitations. Thinking with the mind of a teenager, whilst living the life (with all the responsibilities) of a grown man and father. I realised that maybe I’ve had my day to take on the world and expect to beat everyone in my way (maybe not). Now my goals have changed. I want to be the best I can be for me and me alone. If that means I can be competitive at something then that is great, but if it doesn’t, then pushing myself to work hard and striving to constantly improve is something I will derive great satisfaction from.

As I said at the beginning, what inspires us is a very personal thing. But maybe you should spare a bit of time to consider what really inspires you and why. The more you understand about your sources of inspiration and what they stir within you, the more you will understand about yourself. I know that’s true of me.