This time of year inspires thoughts of rebirth and resurrection. Christians celebrate the emergence of Christ from the grave on Easter Sunday. Buds and bulbs spray pops of color signaling the arrival of Spring. Everything declares, "Wake Up! I'm alive!", yet we often chose to remain in hibernation. My father, Charlie "Tremendous" Jones, used to quip, "Many people walk around dead long before we're buried. But thank God he made it so we don't stink ‘til we're put in the ground." In other words, evolve or evacuate.
People come to me with two requests: how to script the next chapter of their lives or how to emerge as a more effective version of themselves. Two main factors determine the warp and woof of your life tapestry: forces from within and forces from without. These two elements tap into your unfilled dreams to make them come true. When these forces become a compulsion, when they must come out, that’s when you begin to take meaningful steps toward uncovering the greatness within.
The seasons repeatedly teach us a universal truth four times a year; exchange is the process of life. You depart one season to enter another. Whether you’re an evolutionist or a creationist, both agree everything is made from things unseen. Our inner motivation unlocks the potential to our highest self. The real value of anything is internal, not external. The previously unrecognized seeds within us are unlimited. Neuroscientists agree we can reprogram or renew our minds up until our last breath.
As we pass through each version of ourselves, we'll need new friends to help us grow in a new way. Your association and intimacy with people will change as you mature. The composition and character of your cohorts is the surest way to judge if you’re in fertile soil. My father used to say, “Hang around thinkers you will be a better thinker. Hang around achievers; you will be a better achiever. Hang around givers; you will be a better giver. Hang around a bunch of thumb-sucking, complaining, griping boneheads, and you'll be a better thumb-sucking, complaining, griping bonehead." Eliminating bad influences in your life isn’t just for teenagers. It’s a lifelong experience in pruning away the dead, diseased, or dormant. You need friends who are growing through grace and with a higher level of faith. You need teachers to give you wisdom and training in getting through the seasons.
Everything in life has potential, but it must be developed. Potential never happens without a catalyst. Motivation arises from a need greater than self. Motivation is about uncorking potential. You have potential, but nothing happens until something is put in you to act as an ignition source. Then it's up to you to ensure that seed is fed, allowed to thrive, and carefully tended so weeds don't strangle it out. This Spring, I hope you realize that everything you're searching for is already inside of you. It's up to you as the Master Gardener of your life to nurture your innate great until it bursts forth for all to experience.
Why do we keep recommending transformative books for you to read? Because motivation and personal renewal do not happen by osmosis. Because when you change what fills your inner mind, you’ll change your outward behavior. You must be receptive to revelation and willing to apply. You've got to stop looking to our old selves. You'll never transcend going backward. Keep studying, keep searching, keep connecting, and you will surely find the most tremendous version of you!
