Is FEAR YourMotivator

There are many reasons why we feel motivated to do something. As a student, we may need to complete a course to obtain certification or a degree so we are motivated to study. Obviously, when we're adults, we need to generate an income to pay for our living expenses so we are motivated to do something (sometimes ANYTHING) that will provide us with the necessary cash. It's that "ANYTHING" that creates problems for us.

I'm sure we all know people who are willing to spend 40+ hours each week doing something they absolutely hate - just for the pay-cheque at the end of the week or the month. Why would anyone do that? Maybe they need to maintain a standard of living they've become accustomed to. Perhaps they need to work that many hours to cover the minimum cost of living.

No matter our "reasons" for what we do, the ultimate is always Fear. The fear may be disguised as family obligation, or responsibility, or dedication, or even greed, but fear is still the basis. Let me explain.

One of my biggest challenges in this life has been money - or the lack of it! This has been a major motivator for me and led me to do things that didn't always serve me. I seemed to manage to convince myself that "this is the answer" when I was introduced to a new network marketing business, for instance. I told myself, "Everyone else is making a ton of money with it so why shouldn't I? I'm as good as they are (ha-ha). I'll work hard and study and learn, and I, too, will make money and pay off my debt." It never worked! I just got deeper into debt. Can you imagine what that did to my self-esteem?

It took me years to figure out what I was doing wrong. It took a great deal of inner reflection to understand that with all my attempts to make money, I was trying to solve a problem - the problem of not having enough money and my accumulating debt. I learned that wanting to make money is NOT a good motivator. It never has been and it never will.

Why is that? you may ask. The answer is: DOING ANY THING TO SOLVE ANY PROBLEM IS ALWAYS BASED IN FEAR. It may be the fear that we will be left homeless, that we or our family will starve, or a really big one, that we will be judged by others (and our self) as not enough. We all fear that to some degree of another. There are very few people in this world who can honestly say, "I am enough"... and mean it.

Society generally judges hard work as a positive thing (even greed is often secretly admired if the person is wealthy), but the problem is that we're not living authentic lives. We may work all the hours God gave us, but if we're not passionate about what we do, then we can never reach our full potential.

In 2004 I wrote a book titled Joy Makers: My Tools for Self-Empowerment. Even then I subconsciously knew what I was passionate about, but I ignored it and got sidetracked doing all sorts of other things - particularly network marketing.

Please understand, I'm definitely NOT against network marketing. In fact, like Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki, I believe that it's by far the easiest and cheapest way for individuals to empower themselves financially and become financially free as the business start-up costs are so low. Right now, I am an Associate with Amega - one of many network marketing companies with integrity. A great deal of money can be made with companies such as Amega, but the only people who are successful are those who are truly passionate about what they're doing.

The "need" for that pay cheque may force us to work at jobs that are anything but fulfilling. If we ignore our passions, we will never be truly happy. But if we can identify our passion, THAT will be the true motivator that leads to a joy-full, authentic and creative life. One tool that helped me to realize my passion was Janet Bray Attwood and Chris Attwood's book The Passion Test: The Effortless Path to Discovering Your Life Purpose. It's a really good starting point if you would like to make some changes to your own life and start using passion as your motivator.