Personal and Professional Activities to Help Discover More Satisfaction in Life  

Not everyone wakes up every morning inspired. Sometimes, in fact, you have to set aside time to consider: What inspires you? At a recent Professional Women’s Conference, I attended several workshop sessions that covered a wide range of topics from work-life balance, career advancement, innovation, and finances all the way to the art of navigating a wine list!  For the session on work-life balance, and getting inspired about making changes in that area (if needed), women were asked to look at their current life roles and the amount of time they want to spend on them. We were then asked about what changes we want to make in our lives to live them with more satisfaction.

There is no magic formula or calculator that will make the right answer “spill out” for you.  Thus, making a decision on what your priorities are and the amount of time you will spend on them is a very personal decision. When trying to find answers to the work-balance question, some may tend to look outward for guidance when in fact one should, probably, first look inward. Look at your life in retrospect, and ask yourself what drives and inspires you every day.  Some of us may tend to overlook our own achievements and the big decisions that we make every day. We probably wake up in the morning to take care of our families or take that early business call, drop the kids at school, make critical business decisions, and at the end of the day run back home to fix dinner, take that spin class, or do the last load of laundry. (This routine does not even include whatever we may juggle during the weekend.)

The point is that we may tend to overlook those aspects of our lives that are the drivers to our own happiness and inspiration. Instead, make a conscious effort to stop and look at what inspires you every day. Ask yourself, what brings you joy, satisfaction, or recognition?  Remember that you are not alone. Many of us are also asking ourselves these same questions!

Here are some tips and activities I recommend you consider. Some of them could be fantastic opportunities to be inspired, while others may not work for you (it’s a very individual process!):

• Start your own Inspiration journal. Document how your personal or professional goals have been influenced — or not — by your own inspiration.
• Keep an archive of your best family moments.
• Keep an archive of your best work deliverables. They may serve as a great source of inspiration.
• Meditate. Find the time to relax and rest.
• Find time to exercise & eat well.  Some of your greatest idea may come while finishing the cardio cycle on that stationary bike.

These types of activities will allow you to look at your own life and work and find things within them that you can appreciate and that inspired you.  Finding your own, personalized form of inspiration life allows you to remember the type of person, professional, mother, spouse, friend, or citizen that you want to become.

Mentor Others, and Pay it Forward

Mentoring others can also be a source of inspiration. Having the opportunity to guide and provide your feedback to someone that is willing to listen can be very rewarding.  Mentoring can be done thru your employer, community, or on your own.

Many companies are making an effort to increase mentoring as part of their employee’s career planning and advancement.  Take advantage of these programs.  If you don’t have access to these types of programs, reach out to leaders of your community, a trusted friend or coworker, or your own spouse or partner to find ways to make this type of professional connection.

For some of us, mentoring is a source of inspiration because it allows us to share our knowledge, experience, and advice with someone that may be going through their own uncharted territory. Mentoring provides the mentee with the opportunity to ask questions that otherwise may go unanswered since they may not have access to someone with an experienced background. Recently, I had the opportunity to mentor an undergraduate student from a local university.  The student was the first member of his family to attend college, and the experience was very rewarding.

Consider mentoring others in your community. There may be local and remote organizations like high schools, universities, and community outreach programs that would benefit from having someone like you.  Don’t miss the opportunity to mentor, be inspired, and inspire others. It can be very – yes – inspiring!

Stay Relevant, and in Control of your Career

Your career may be a source of inspiration not only to you, but to others around you. Some of us tend to overlook our career planning and advancement due to current work commitments and deliverables. A career that goes stale or skills that are no longer relevant in the current marketplace can make anyone a target for a company work force reduction or cause them to miss out on new career advancement opportunities. This is the reality for those of us that work in the technology industry.

On the other hand, planning and developing your career will allow you to stay in control of it and serve as your own source of inspiration. Don’t let anyone else dictate your own future.  Here are some pointers:

• Make sure you align your career goals to your company’s goals.
• Assess your strength and weaknesses – then put a plan to enhance or address them.
• Learn to network. Find your mentor and sponsors.
• Develop new skills thru experience, exposure, education, and certifications.
• Explore job opportunities and learn what skills are relevant in today’s marketplace.
• Try to have fun and enjoy what you do. Be proud of who you are and the efforts you make to keep your career on track.

There are many resources and sources of inspiration that will provide you guidance on how to live your life well.  Just start by asking yourself, what inspires me?