Reality Check: The Benefit of Small Inspirations

While cleaning my desk, I happened to bump the mouse, causing a video to begin playing on my computer.
This video is not a professional production. It’s a little wobbly; the product of somebody who happened to have their phone out during a memorable event.
And this was a memorable event indeed, worthy of being recorded. It captures a few minutes during a high school graduation ceremony when the principal, Dr. Marcus Gause, belts out an a cappella version of “I Will Always Love You” to his students.
In case you don’t remember this song, the lyrics speak of love, the necessity of partings, and wishes for love in the future.
The performance shows Dr. Gause’s love for the students in his care, his joy at their accomplishment, and his hope for their futures. Exactly the kind of message you want to convey to young people who are headed into a new phase, potentially scary but so full of possibilities.
It had been a while since I’d watched this video, and I noticed that I was smiling as it played. I had several uninviting tasks scheduled for the day ahead, and I’d been dragging my feet about getting started. (That could account for why I was cleaning in the first place, but we’ll save any analysis of “task avoidance by cleaning” for another time.) But after those couple minutes of watching Gause perform, I was a little more motivated.
Do small inspirations matter? Let’s say that we’ve gotten up to face the day, and we’re feeling pretty neutral about it thus far. No big positives to anticipate, but no big negatives to dread. Neutral.
The first thing we might do is turn on the TV for the news. It’s generally bad. Even when it has nothing to do with us, it sounds bad. How’s that neutral mood now?
Or, we might choose to start our day with a quick look through social media. Whether friends or strangers, there they are; people who apparently have lives that are much better than ours. Or much worse. Either way, what is the effect?
Our routine doesn’t have to be like that. We can choose differently.
Here’s a suggestion. Make it easy for positive, inspirational incidents to happen. Look at the environment you are in; where you spend your time. Maybe it’s your home, your workplace, your car.
Do the things you see, hear, or do tend to make the day better? Or worse? In my example, seeing Dr. Gause’s video improved my day. However, it only happened because I had made the video easily available to me.
Different people find inspiration in different things. That’s no surprise. For you, perhaps visual reminders, like photographs of loved ones or baby animals evoke a smile. Perhaps words inspire you; quotes, verses, poems. Or perhaps talking to a friend, family, or mentor is key to keeping you focused on what matters.
I’m not suggesting that we cut off all access to news that contributes to our unhappiness\
or that we reject social media because of its downsides (there are plenty of upsides too.)
However, we can pay attention to what we bring into our lives so that we don’t allow ourselves to get bogged down by a mindset of “What’s the use?” We can deliberately place small reminders of the good, the true, the beautiful, the inspirational.
Make it easy to be inspired.

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