The Inspiration Equation

Imagine the first person who was inspired to build a bridge across a river…

Not the Neanderthal who dropped a log across a brook, but the first individual who sat and pondered the mechanics of bridge-building.

They may or may not have understood the complexity of their quest: what materials would they use? How much weight would it need to support? How strong would the connections have to be? How would they ensure its sustainability?

What is truly inspiring is not that they overcame these obstacles or built the bridge to beat all bridges…

but that they determined the need for a bridge in the first place.

There is a saying in the world of Change Management that the newest kid on the block is often the best at identifying the problems in an organisation. They are like the late arrival at a party who is horrified by the dead body lying on the rug, while all those who have been there since the first cork popped stopped noticing it hours earlier and even began using it as a drinks table. Very quickly we absorb things into the landscape of our lives and stop really seeing them.

Put yourself in the shoes of the bridge-builder’s contemporaries. When he gathers them on the riverbank to unveil his creation, they would probably draw little circles in the air beside their ears. Why on earth had he used perfectly good fuel for the fire to stretch it across water? They probably even waded across the river to get a better look at it from the other side!

The Inspiration Process

When we consider the process of being inspired, we often think of Archimedes, the old Greek in his bathtub, working out impressive things about water and the volume of irregular objects and crying “Eureka!”

As a child when I heard this tale, I was less than impressed, for dirty bathwater and body fat did not sound like the stuff of inspiration.

It was only years later that the proverbial light bulb illuminated my dim skull: he built a bridge – before anyone knew a bridge needed to be built!

The Wet Greek and the Desperate Student

Working as a teacher, I often watched students sit and stare at their pen and paper, waiting for a Eureka moment.

They’d focus on their tools with the intensity of a snake charmer, willing them to merge and create a piece of brilliance.

Soon they would sigh and turn their attention to the window, thinking surely the rolling dunes or brilliant blue sky could inspire them. Eventually they would shuffle in their seat and do what we all do when inspiration deserts us: look over at the kid next to them and start copying!

Those two images - the wet Greek and the desperate student – are the real symbols of inspiration. Forget the mountain peak, the roaring waterfall, the lightning storm… these images are more about our sense of awe at God’s many moments of brilliance, than about the mechanics of human inspiration.

The Perspiration

Since the days of grown men taking baths, we have simplified many things. Sometimes this has led to greater clarity and efficiency, but it has also led to an expectation that all success is easy and within reach.

As many of us know first-hand, inspiration has more in common with perspiration than instant gratification. It is both the product of a lot of hard work and it as slippery as the wet Archimedes. Just because someone put inspiration on a bumper sticker, did not simplify the mechanics of a “eureka!” moment…

So what are these mechanics? What are the elements that lead to a real flare of brilliance? I have a theory - eureka! (Well, at least I have pondered it for more than half an hour and have some tips to offer…)

The Two Streams of Inspiration

There are two streams of human inspiration: personal and environmental

1. The personal stream is the muck flowing in your veins and between your ears. It is the talents and gifts you have been born with and those that you develop in your life. Think of this as the NATURE element.
2. The environmental stream is the world in which you travel. It is the support network and influences around you, the opportunities you encounter and the tranquility and sense of appreciation you feel. Think of this as the NUTURE element.

But both streams need to be strengthened and improved and this is where the perspiration comes in to play…

The personal stream

Our personal stream can be shaped and moulded to flow in any direction. We can feed it knowledge and strengthen its skills and we can reinforce all that we are until we can achieve great moments of wisdom and achievement.
In effect, we can become that bridge.

The elements of our personal stream are:

• imagination
• need
• self-belief
• positive thinking
• independence
• resilience

But before you sign up for that bridge-building course, understand that the second stream is just as important. There is an unavoidable connection: Just like the wet Greek, if we are to be inspired, we need to be sitting in the right kind of bathtub!

The environmental stream

Now imagine the environmental stream as the riverbank. You may try to erect your bridge onto a section of the riverbank that is too eroded or too far away. To ensure a successful bridge, we need the most approriate foundations.

The elements of our environmental stream are:

• aknowledgement
• tranquility
• instruction
• opportunities
• networks

Just as we have to work to hone our personal stream (the bridge), so must we seek out the most productive and beneficial environmental stream (the riverbank).

But enough of the strangled analogies!!! How does this help us with our own inspiration?

The Inspiration Equation At Work

We already know that inspiration can either be a physics theory or a bumper sticker. Obviously real inspiration has to be worked at. Who could argue with:

Inspiration does exist, but it must find you working.
Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)

• Question:

  But how can we really understand and apply these elements to ensure inspiration in our lives?

• Answer:

  I have developed a simple worksheet which allows you to apply the Inspiration Equation to your own life.

*** Download your FREE copy here ***