Yes! Your Marvelous Motivation Takes You Sailing!
When motivation is present, you barely notice! While it is quietly fueling you forward, it seems effortless.
However, when motivation is missing, that’s a completely different story! It feels hard – very hard! You find yourself stuck and yearning for motivation…again.
I’m guessing you’ve experienced seasons brimming with motivation, as well as the discouragement that ensues when it’s gone missing!
Sailing
The beach – that is me and my husband’s favorite travel destination. While there, we try to book a sailing adventure. Even better if it’s a sunset sail! There’s nothing better than gliding across the ocean and enjoying a majestic sunset.
Most recently we went to Barbados to celebrate our 40th anniversary. And yes, we went sailing! This sailing adventure included swimming with turtles, viewing a ship wreck, and of course, a sunset, and Barbados has some amazing sunsets!
Without the distraction of motors, sailing is peaceful and relaxing…assuming there is a crew doing all the work. And sailing is work! Harnessing the wind doesn’t just happen, it takes skill!
I’ll be honest – I don’t have any skill when it comes to sailing. However, I’m thankful for a crew that skillfully sets the sails so that the wind takes us in the direction we want to go!
Now, the wind is rarely perfectly steady or coming from the direction you would choose, so being able to adjust and adapt quickly is essential! Misreading the direction of the wind or failing to adjust the sails appropriately could lead to disaster! Nothing kills the peace and relaxation of a sailing experience than a boat capsizing!
Sailing is a useful analogy for motivation!
The Sailboat
That’s your life. Just one boat! It’s tempting to think you have a “work” boat and a “life” boat, but you don’t!
The Wind
That’s your motivation or the wind in your sails! It’s the energy that gets you going, and ultimately gets you where you want to be – your destination.
As believers, our motivation is found in Him – the desire to live, love, and steward the gifts we’ve been given in ways that are pleasing to Him and impact the Kingdom. That’s high level, big picture, yet colors our smaller goals too.
The Sails
Even with plenty of wind, if you don’t put up your sails, you may drift a bit, but you won’t get where you want to go!
However, if you use your “sails” in ways that makes the most of your motivation, your chances of reaching your destination increase exponentially!
So, what are your sails? Your sails are your habits, choices, routines, and boundaries that you put in place; the actions you take.
Are you making the most of your sails?
The Sea
You can’t sail without water!
Even if the wind is ideal and your sail is set to make the most of it, if your boat isn’t in the water, you won’t go anywhere. You won’t even drift!
If you are going to sail somewhere, you need your boat to be in the water.
The Hebrew word used for sea in Scripture is “yam,” which refers to the ocean as well as other large bodies of water like the Red Sea or the Dead Sea. Yam was the chaotic sea-god’s name in Ugaritic mythology. In order to make a deliberate theological statement, the Israelites used the same word, yam, to emphasize that the sea was not only created by God, but that it was fully under God’s control, and one day He would calm it forever! (learnhebrewforchristians.com)
With that in mind, consider how Jonah was tossed into the “yam” (Jonah 1:15) while Jesus walked on the “yam” and calmed it in the Hebrew translation of Mark 4:39.
The sea symbolizes chaos and the forces opposed to God’s order.
Returning to our analogy, your boat must be in the sea! That’s what it was made for – the turbulent, chaotic unpredictable sea, but don’t forget, that God is still in control!
The Destination
There are literally a limitless number of destination options. You might desire to have better health, make a career shift, increase the peace in your life, strengthen your relationships, add more clients, or have a more fulfilling life. Whatever your goal or dream is, that’s the destination that you want your motivation to take you!
The Captain
Guess who the captain is? YOU! There might be plenty of wind (motivation), a destination (your goal or dream), and the sails (your habits, etc.), but if you don’t have a captain, you are in trouble!
The captain of a sail boat is not able to control the weather, the sea, or a host of other circumstances, but they are responsible for making the necessary adjustments along the way. It’s their job to ensure that everyone arrives safe and that the vessel is docked without incident.
As the captain of your life, you are the one in charge! It’s your responsibility to make wise decisions no matter what life throws at you and take the necessary actions that will allow you to arrive at your goal – your desired destination! Sometimes that means enlisting the help of a crew – people who take on essential roles because you can’t do it all. That might be a coach, a mentor, an instructor, or your team, if you are a leader.
When Your Sails Are Stuck
When the boat is pointed directly into the wind, it may cause the sails to flap, stall, or you might be “in irons” – the sailing term for being in neutral or stuck.
If you are a sailor, you know precisely what’s required! For those of you more like me, who lack the expertise, you must take action! It’s time to make some quick adjustments to things like the jib and the tiller, so that you can catch the wind again!
That very same bit of information applies to your own journey when you aren’t moving forward. You must take action and make some quick adjustments to your habits, choices, actions, routines, boundaries, etc. You must do something and it might be something different than what you have been doing!
Maybe you’ve been putting all your efforts into work and neglecting YOU! What if you were to engage in activities that bring you joy – just for the enjoyment of doing that activity? How might that fuel you in happy ways and ignite your motivation?
Perhaps there’s that one thing you’ve been dreading and putting off? How might your motivation return once that’s behind you?
Are you in need of easing the pressure you’ve been putting on yourself? Does your morning, evening, or work routine need a little revamping?
What if your way of thinking is in need of a makeover?
Stumped by what needs adjusting? Adding a coach to your crew might be an excellent first step!
What Motivates YOU?
Where my analogy breaks down is that wind is wind. What motivates me might not motivate you because motivation isn’t a one-size-fits-all. Let’s explore motivation from a couple of different perspectives.
Motivation & DISC (personality)
What motivates the four DISC behavior styles?
Most people fall into two of these behavioral styles with one of the two being more dominant. Have you spotted who you resonate with most in the graphic above?
It’s important to know what motivates you! And if you are a leader, it important to also know what motivates your people! How might you apply this information to increase the motivation on your team?
Motivation and Your Values
When life is out of alignment with your values it’s very demotivating! After all, your values are what is most important to you! If you haven’t identified your Top 5 Values I would urge you to do that now. Then when motivation dips, and it does, take a look at where your life might be clashing with your values!
Motivation and YOU!
What really makes you come alive? For me, I love to learn and what makes all that learning extra exciting to me is sharing what I’m learning with others.
One quick way to tap into your own personal type of motivation is to take the free Sparketype Assessment. It’s what gets you in the zone and moving forward! The beauty of your Sparketype is that it can be applied to whatever you do both personally and professionally!
Once again, if you are a leader, this would be a GREAT bit of info for you to know about your people!
Taking Time to Observe
What if you were to make one of those new “sails” the habit of tuning in and observing what boosts your motivation and what deflates it? I’ve been paying more attention to what’s motivating me recently. Some of what I’ve discovered is that I am more motivated when I am…
- Doing life at a slower pace.
- Taking time to do something I love doing every day.
- Trusting God.
- Regularly exercising.
- Getting enough sleep.
- Putting less pressure on myself.
- Savoring my morning routine.
- Connecting with the treasured people in my life.
What would be on your list?
Don’t make the mistake perpetually pushing yourself and not taking time to notice your level of motivation until after it’s gone!
In light of what I’ve shared, what action, even a small action, will you take to get sailing again?
Or maybe you’ve been sailing along, but you see the wind shifting. What action might you take to harness your motivation in a powerful way again?
Happy sailing!
