THE company I worked for some three years ago recently closed down, possibly because of reduced revenues and ballooning operating expenses, the greatest of which was energy costs.

One of my closest friends, an employee there, was about to be without work in an economy with a job market as fruitful as the Sahara Desert. I was concerned about his predicament and expressed this to him. But though he had no immediate job prospect, he had a graceful ease about the whole matter. I wondered if he knew something I didn’t for, as we all know, the only thing that moves faster than Usain Bolt in Jamaica is the exchange rate.

Out of curiosity, I asked why he was so blasé about the matter, to which he replied that he was not motivated or happy to be there anymore. He went on further to say that he was inspired to do something he has loved for a long time and this is the perfect time.

After this discussion, two of his words stayed with me — motivation and inspiration. My professional curiosity got the better of me and I consulted the oracle. Yes, Google! My idea of motivation was performing consistently at an acceptable standard in spite of internal or external circumstances. From a Third-World perspective, this sounds accurate, but to most workers in high-income and First-World countries, this may come across as industrial piousness.

So, what did Google say?

“Motivation is a process that initiates, guides, and maintains goal-oriented behaviours”.

When I look around, I think very few people are motivated; most getting by on psyching themselves up to get through the day.

Making money can be a motivator, especially when one considers that bills, rent, and other living expenses need to be met. But what if you had all the money you’d want to cover all your bills and related expenses for the rest of your life? What then? Would you cease to be motivated?

I see most people in the eight-hour humdrum scratching their heads as they have no immediate answer for this question. I guess most workers in the modern era are motivated for the wrong reasons and that’s the problem — one which is more insidiously damaging to the person behind the desk than to the corporation. Don’t believe me? Ever noticed that most people who spend eight hours (11 for those trying to make overtime) a day for 60 years usually have the hardest time detaching from the lie they’ve lived for all those years? The lie of talking yourself into staying in a job merely to sustain a game of musical chairs to pay bills. When the proverbial music of employment stops and retirement sets in, can you look yourself in the mirror and say you’ve done what you truly wanted to do for eight hours each five- or six-day for 60-odd years? I’m not an overly religious man, but I have the strong proclivity to quote I Timothy 6:10 — ‘For the love of money is the root of all evil’.

I mean, why sacrifice your time and humanity for eight hours every day, 264 days per year (not including weekends), motivating or psyching yourself up to do something just to pay bills?

I suggest to you that inspiration is what is lacking and the modern workforce needs a lot of it.

But what is inspiration? One source says it is the instilling [of something] in the heart or in the mind. It suggests that inspiration is an internal state of being almost overwhelmed with a desire to the point where it has to be shared.

It’s not my intention to be hyper-religious today, but there is a case in point in Amos 3:8. The prophet states that he was overwhelmed with inspiration to the point where he had to speak. Similarly, Carl Jung, in the greatest of perils and subjected to sub-human conditions in a Nazi concentration camp, was inspired to do his greatest work. A concentration camp, as you know, was no Shangri-La, so Jung’s desire or inspiration came from within.

Inspiration is often linked to self-fulfilment. It requires less effort than motivation, which requires fuel (and yes, fuel is costly). When one becomes inspired, life feels effortless, passion burns steadily and doesn’t flatline. A vast amount of mental space is occupied; there is no vacancy. You feel called to do whatever you are doing and the feeling comes from your core; you feel it in your bones (paidtoexist.com).

Motivation is not always positive. It is required when you’re not aligned with your highest values. Motivation is the push; inspiration is the pull, according to Natalie DeBruin. Since there are clearly some distinctions between motivation and inspiration, with the latter being arguably more profitable, how can we become and remain inspired?

My only advice comes from David Henry Thoreau, who said: “Direct your eye inward, and you’ll find a thousand regions in your mind yet undiscovered. Travel them, and be expert in home-cosmography.”

Be inspired!

Joseph Robinson is a Human Resource professional.