Nobody ever says, "I made inspiration" or "I planned inspiration".
We almost always say, "I was hit by inspiration."
Somehow, from out in the wide unknown, inspiration smacks you in the head, and you become its host, at least for a while.
It brightens your thoughts, sharpens your mind, and puts a gleam in your eye.
Thing is, inspiration doesn't always hang around. It leaves if you don't do anything with it.
According to one school of thought, it wants to be expressed, so it leaves a passive host to find another who will do something with it.
I don't really buy that, partly because it's too simplistic, and partly because it has the marks of a very human tendency - anthropomorphising the unknown.
But I do think that inspiration isn't entirely accidental. I think it hits those who have the potential to carry it out.
They just have to.
Carry it out.
Even in Terrible Situations, There Are Some Who Shine Brightly
When a market unfairly stacks the deck against sellers, you're certain to end up with sub-standard products and services, all to compete in a race to the bottom.
When the sellers actually play along and, in turn, plays the same game with their contractors / sub-contractors, you know you have a really problematic industry.
And then you take a step back and realise that this is tried in almost every industry, but there are sellers and providers out there who fight back.
These are the ones to learn and take inspiration from.
Thank you for showing us that we don't have to take unfair treatment, even if they are policies, and even if they seem like unsurmountable obstacles.
Failure Stories vs Success Stories. Which is More Useful?
Most of what we try, fails. And these failures aren't visible.
Successes, on the hand, are highly visible. In the age of social media, even more so.
And society demands that the image that we portray is that of success.
When you apply for a position, you are rarely asked about your failures. If they do ask, you are taught, even somewhat expected, to answer in a way that flips the answer into one about success.
When you introduce yourself, you don't tell people about the number of times you've started unsuccessful businesses or the number of unsuccessful job applications you've made.
When you screen a potential business partner, you don't ask about their prior failed ventures either. It seems almost rude to do so.
And yet, so many of these stories of failures contain such valuable lessons. And there are so many more of them.
Success stories can be inspirational, of course. But the real learning is in the stories of failures.
We really need to create spaces that are safe to tell these stories, so that more people can learn from them.