I'm NOT a Motivational Speaker!

I was at the dentist a couple of weeks ago getting some work done and the dentist asked me what I'd been up to since I last saw him. I told him that I'd been doing quite a bit of speaking and training and had been traveling a lot.

He knows that I do some keynote speeches for various organizations, and he asked me what topics I spoke about. I gave him some examples, and he said it reminded him of Matt Foley, Motivational Speaker.

As I was now in a position of not talking (not that easy for me!) my dentist went on to explain how he had rented the SNL Best of Chris Farley DVD and proceeded to laugh at Chris' antics as the stereotypical "Motivational Speaker" who lived "in a van down by the river."

That got me thinking about what it is I do with my speaking, coaching and training. I have always been very clear, every time I give a keynote, that I see a huge difference between motivation and inspiration.

All Chris Farley joking aside, I really think motivation is more about external motive and is oftentimes based on fear. We become afraid not to do or be something based on external sources. Or we are coerced to do something we don't really want to do because someone else thinks we should. Motivation can get us results, but they're often short-term. Instead of motivation, I am called to inspire, which is to connect with the spirit that is already inside of the audience members. It's the distinction between a push (motivation) and a pull (inspiration).

Do you see a distinction in your own life? Is motivation working? What are the long-term results? There is a way to change the results in each of our lives - and it's fool-proof. If you don't like the results in your life, you need only change your mind about the thoughts that are creating those results. Inspiration is the key - NOT motivation.

It sounds simple - and it is. It's just a matter of determining how badly you want new results and what you're willing to do to get them. The biggest challenge is to overcome old thought patterns and stick to the new ones to get bigger and better results.

What are your ideas for sticking to new thought patterns and getting out of the old? What's worked and what hasn't? Let's share ideas here!