Do you rely on inspiration to get everything done in life? If you do, you are making a mistake. Here are the reasons why inspiration is a trap and what you should do instead!
Inspiration – the inner fuel to confidence and self-esteem!
What’s the first thing that comes to your mind about this process?
Powerful stories, ideal jobs and relationships, or a hopeful future for everyone, right?
But inspiration is deeper than we think. It’s quite complex and has many layers that impact our behavior, attitude, and perception. However, we prefer to stay at the surface and don’t dive deep to weigh its pros and cons.
Just like every coin has two sides, inspiration can also do more harm than good if you overdepend on it. In some cases, it’s better not to seek inspiration but rather use other useful traits to do your job.
So, what are these traits, and how do we use them? That’s where we come into the picture!
Today, we’ll reveal the hidden secrets of inspiration. We’ll see how this process lures you into its embrace and what you can do to get out of it. So, let’s understand why inspiration is a trap!
Why Inspiration Is a Trap!
Disclaimer: Before getting into this, let’s get one thing straight! We aren’t targeting anyone with this article; we’re just sharing some disadvantages of seeking inspiration. Now, let’s proceed!
People have worked without inspiration for many years. Wonder what helped them? A routine-based lifestyle and healthy habits! They created great times for us to live and cherish our present.
Then, why do we seek inspiration today? Where are those habits that made us who we are?
We gave up on them as our lifestyles changed and fell for our emotions and temptations.
Remember this quote
“Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”
– Warren Buffet
It sums up everything wrong with our society as people don’t think far ahead anymore. And this is how inspiration has cost us our consistent lifestyle! That said, here are ten reasons why inspiration is a trap and what you can do to avoid it!
1. It Makes You a Master Procrastinator
Procrastination is a reason why inspiration gets a bad reputation. This trait is one of the roadblocks in personal development and often invites trouble.
But how does it relate to inspiration? Here’s the logic behind it!
Let’s say you want to go on a long drive with your friends. But the weather spoils your plans at the last minute. Now, you don’t wish to leave until you see a clear and sunny sky. The problem is that the weather is going to remain the same for another three days. As a result, you give up on your plans altogether!
That’s what happens when you rely on inspiration. You wait for the clear skies of this process to get a headstart. What you don’t realize is that you can’t wait for motivation to strike you. Instead, you have to act even in adverse situations to get your tasks done on time! This is where inspiration is a trap!
Studies suggest that people achieve more when they don’t depend on inspiration for every step. They take an active approach to work, keeping their goals in mind. This helps them get the desired results. You can also follow this tip to become a master of action and succeed in life!
2. It Affects Your Consistency Levels
“It’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives. It’s what we do consistently.”
– Anthony Jay Robbins
The best quote about consistency comes from Mr. Robbins. Sadly, inspiration doesn’t work that way. Here’s an example to understand why.
Let’s say you’re lost in a dense forest, and you’re desperately trying to find your way out. After lurking for about an hour, you manage to find an old trail that may get you out of the forest. You follow it until you see a mysterious light shining through the trees.
The trail goes much further. However, you think you’re close to a civilization and decide to forsake it. You start following the light only to realize it’s coming from someone’s left-out torch.
The same thing happens when you rely on inspiration. It’s like an automatic on-and-off switch. You work on short bursts of energy, and then you don’t work at all. Ultimately, you get nothing done and feel lost and isolated. Inspiration is a trap in this case.
And we aren’t making this up! Studies suggest that people who rely on motivation often feel stressed and anxious. They are often swayed away with inspiration. As a result, their productivity decreases, and they fall victim to frustration and self-doubt.
If you don’t want to end up in this state, adopt a stable and structured approach. This will help you win in the long run!
3. It Creates a Dependency on External Factors
How would you feel if you had to rely on others to finish your tasks every time?
It doesn’t sound good, right?
You end up feeling like a parasite! That’s what happens when you rely on inspiration and submit yourself to your situation.
It’s like the plants kept in a greenhouse. They get the required sunlight, temperature, and nutrient-rich soil. This helps them grow and flourish.
But what happens when you take all these factors away?
They can’t keep up with reality. Winds, storms, droughts, and grazing animals crush and ruin them.
Inspiration doesn’t help you adapt to the changes around you. You may get a supportive environment today, but that won’t happen tomorrow. This is where inspiration is a trap.
Research suggests that when people rely too much on external factors, they fail to adapt to the challenges. They need a good environment and supportive people to help them in their tasks. This makes them prone to anger and disappointment.
You have to be self-reliant and get past your comfort zone. And you can do this with focus and resilience to face life head-on and seize the day!
4. It Sets the Bar Too High for Achievement
You can’t take success and achievement for granted!
Every success story you have heard or listened to stresses why you shouldn’t get overboard with your expectations.
So, is it bad to have them? Not really! Let’s understand it better.
What happens when you gradually climb a mountain to reach the summit? You feel breathless and tired as the air gets thinner and the slope steeper. Likewise, when you bank everything on inspiration, you lose sight of practicality. You raise the bar too high for yourself, only to fail and fall back. That is when you realize inspiration is a trap!
The path to success is like stairs. You don’t climb them through inspiration. Instead, you take everything one at a time and sort out the challenges carefully. Your growth is slow yet firm and puts you in a better position than most people!
Research studies on positive psychology say that having too high expectations can cause disappointment and also make you delusional in extreme cases. As a result, a proper growth mindset with a planned approach is necessary to set achievable goals.
If you expect too much from your life, stop and reset your goals again! Be rational about them and chart your course with confidence.
5. It Accompanies a Fear of Failure
Fear of failure is a common problem among young people today. Whether it’s college or workplace, you face this paralyzing fear every time. Public speaking is a good example of how this fear controls your mindset.
But inspiration is also equally responsible for this! Let’s see how.
When a novice bird learns to use the wind to its advantage, it glides and soars high in the skies. However, it doesn’t focus on mastering other factors. So, when the weather changes and the wind doesn’t support the bird anymore, it faces the fear of height, which is akin to the fear of failure.
When you work through inspiration, you act like this novice bird. You aim to achieve your goals by reading some quotes or listening to a podcast. But then challenges overpower you, and inspiration doesn’t come to your help. As a result, you experience the fear of failure like the bird does. Hence, inspiration is a trap in this case.
Research suggests that when people experience a sudden downfall due to the challenges, it causes self-doubt and anxiety. As a result, the fear of failure kicks in and makes matters worse for them. This steep emotional fall can leave them confused and clueless.
That’s why you must try to be more resilient and stop relying on inspiration for everything. Also, you have to practice mindfulness and remain focused despite the challenges. Ensure to follow it to the T and the ball will be in your court soon!
6. It Makes You Compare Yourself To Others
Everyone has a story to tell. That’s why comparing yourself to others wouldn’t help you succeed in the long run. However, inspiration is also responsible for this tendency.
Let’s understand how!
For example, if you’re an aspiring swimmer trying to copy the best, you won’t succeed. A slight doze of inspiration doesn’t help you make a difference. You may get their techniques wrong and overwork yourself, causing sadness and disappointment.
In fact, this has been a common problem for years. What we don’t realize is that those best-in-the-business worked hard and were lucky enough to find growth opportunities.
Studies have always stressed the negative impacts of such comparisons. The process is explained through social comparison theory, which states that people start comparing their lives with others to validate their skills, opinions, and abilities. Inspiration makes you do the same thing but offers you a positive intent behind your actions. That’s how inspiration is a trap, and you fall for it!
So, what’s the solution?
You must learn to steer the ship of your personal growth through confidence and self-esteem. Stop following others and start working on yourself. That way, you won’t have to compare yourself to anyone!
7. It Takes Away Your Discipline
You can’t build discipline with inspiration. If anything, the latter is often a deal-breaker to the former. Here’s how!
A machine is a good example of how discipline works. It always follows a pattern and relies on your inputs to perform. However, when you replace it with a human, you see a major difference. When inspired, he works with the utmost dedication, yet he doesn’t develop a consistent pace.
What’s more?
He may or may not follow the suggested feedback and try to address the situation as per his understanding. As a result, he fails to get the required output. Hence, inspiration is a trap!
Machines aren’t better than humans. However, their fixed approach gets the best results due to the factors mentioned above. If humans practice discipline, they can scale new heights of success! However, relying on inspiration alone can be a roadblock in this process.
Psychological studies suggest that discipline can help people focus on long-term goals. They learn time management and prioritize strategic thinking. Inspiration can only take you so far as to make you satisfied with your work. However, discipline can help you deliver the results and promote a healthy work habit. So, choose wisely!
8. It Increases the Performance Pressure
Have you ever experienced the performance pressure? It’s commonly felt during public speaking or while giving presentations. What’s surprising is that inspiration also contributes to this pressure! How? To understand it, let’s use an analogy.
Inspiration is like the wind that propels your ship. It gives you the thrust you need to cover long distances. But your success is short-lived as you see the high tides ahead, posing a threat to your journey.
These tides are nothing but people’s expectations of you. Now, you try to set your ship’s sales high to maintain the pressure. These sales are the desperate ways you perform under pressure. But you fail to hold off the impact, and your ship crashes.
Similarly, when you are inspired, you impress everyone by delivering as promised in that instant. But when people start expecting more, you realize that inspiration can’t help you with your troubles. Only hard work can offer you the desired result. That’s when you realize inspiration is a trap!
Studies highlight that such a performance can affect our mental health. In other words, people get anxious when they fall prey to other’s expectations of them. This pressure affects their confidence and self-esteem. As a result, they are unable to perform.
But there are ways to deal with this situation through practice and resilience. You can master your skills and develop mindfulness to be prepared for the unexpected!
9. It Makes You Overlook Skill Development
A common downside of inspiration is the lack of skill development. And without skills, you can’t deal with life’s challenges.
Here’s how inspiration pulls the cord on skills!
Your mind is like a fitness enthusiast who likes to have bigger and better muscles. When he is inspired, he starts with intense workout sessions, like performing HIIT or deadlifting on the first day. However, it takes a toll on his body, and he sustains injuries. He returns home with immense pain, realizing how inspiration is a trap.
You can’t rely on inspiration for every successful step. It makes you take a random call you aren’t prepared for. As a result, you have to suffer the consequences of your actions.
On the other hand, skills are like the tools to dismantle every challenge in your path. That’s why skill development works as a shield and protects you from unfamiliar situations.
Studies suggest that consistency can form neural pathways that help you develop skillsets. However, people who rely on quick bursts of inspiration don’t value the steady progress achieved through consistency. As a result, they ignore skill development.
If you want to hone your skills and experience long-term benefits, don’t rely only on inspiration. Instead, practice regularly and develop key skills.
10. It Causes Burnout and Mental Breakdowns
Mental health problems are becoming common these days. There are many reasons behind these issues. Overdependence on inspiration is one of them.
Here’s how this process causes burnout and mental breakdowns!
Let’s say you have a car with a powerful engine that can reach high speeds within seconds. You drive it every day for several miles and use it as much as you can. However, the engine loses its efficiency and wears out with time until one day, the car breaks down in the middle of the road.
The powerful engine here is your human potential, while the driver is the inspirational process.
You can work hard and test your limits with inspiration. However, this strategy doesn’t work in the long run, and you start losing your spark, which also impacts your delicate work-life balance. Hence, inspiration is a trap that makes you experience mental health issues.
Studies suggest that people who work relentlessly without considering their mental health are easily stressed. This reduces their mental and emotional resilience as they can’t keep up with the workload and experience burnout.
So, don’t push yourself too hard. Take a break and think about your mental health. You can also divide your tasks equally and complete them one at a time. This helps you prepare yourself for any unknown situations.
You can also check out this web story for a better and more immersive experience.
Don’t Be Too Inspired for Your Own Good!
So, we have come to the end of the article. Now, let’s recap everything we have learned so far!
First, we saw you procrastinating and being inconsistent at work. As a result, you couldn’t complete your tasks and started finding excuses for the lack of a better environment, all this while knowing that you set the bar too high.
Then, you fell apart with a fear of failure and started comparing yourself with others, wondering how they stick to the deadlines. Instead of taking a disciplined approach, you started complaining and couldn’t handle the performance pressure.
Finally, your project manager had enough and called you out for your lack of skills. You had to stay late and finish your job, which made you stressed and burnt out.
Inspiration is a trap and can affect you in discrete ways. If you want to improve your situation, you can develop consistency and strategic planning. These will surely help you to turn your life around!