Who Encourages You?

It is the middle of the week. The weekend may seem far off yet, but that should not matter. Hopefully there are enough positive influences and encouraging forces in your life to push you not only through the rest of the week, but through all of life's challenges.

When thinking about encouragement, we too often make the mistake of externalizing the most important facet of this inspirational stimulus; the root from which all other encouragement can shoot branches and leaves. That root is yourself. 

People will not encourage you unless they believe you have what it takes to push through the obstacles. Then there are those who may be in need of encouragement, yet exploit it by transforming that positive energy from a moving force into nothing more than consolation. They misinterpret the intention and fail to absorb encouragement as fuel for the purposing of moving forward. Instead, they absorb that wasted energy and wallow in self induced failure. It's similar to putting gas in a car that has no alternator. An alternator converts mechanical energy into electrical energy and without an alternator, most, if not all, modern automobiles will not start.

Positive, encouraging energy may abound in your life, but if you do not convert that energy into fuel or metaphorical electricity, you are basically conceding defeat.

You are the foundation of what motivates and drives you forward. Sure, there may be high expectations or people depending on you to deliver high performance and awesome results consistently, but if you are incapable of looking in the mirror and convincing yourself that you are here, at whatever capacity or whatever role, for a reason, then you need to truthfully reevaluate what you are doing in relation to what it is you want to do.

Challenges have a limitless array of options in terms of the way they manifest themselves in our lives. When you believe you can overcome is when the external encouragement will latch onto your positive energy and turbocharge your outlook and ability to achieve.

For some, encouragement can only come from within. This may spur or even exasperate feelings of loneliness or abandon. But encouragement should always come from within first, regardless of who you are or whom ever supports you. Some just need to muster enough so that it sees you through the end of whatever challenges you are facing.

Remember, encourage yourself first. Then absorb the rest. You will be grateful you did.