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Remember your early days, when you greeted each day with ardent exuberance, your eyes glinted with twinkling joy, your feet tapped to the melody of life, when you hummed happy songs, when hopes soared high and fears were unknown and doubts were kept at bay by rock solid beliefs.
Those were the days I heard nostalgic comments around me from friends and peers many times and I wondered if this zest for life called ENTHUSIASM is really related to age the way it is envisaged to be or maybe they are inversely proportional the older you get, the less enthusiastic you become. I refuse to accept!
“Nobody grows old merely by living a number of years. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.“
― Samuel Ullman.
A child is not scared to reach out to the flame, because his mind does not know the pain of a burn yet but as we grow older, we learn gradually the dos and don’t of life, the unsaid rules the society expects us to follow, we lose hope, get misunderstood, face criticism and encounter failures.
Slowly we realize life is not a carnival and there are things we need to accomplish to lead a good life. then starts the race. The race to be in the forefront, the race to outshine others, and the race to keep racing.
So what happens…on the path of growing up, struggling with unwarranted expectations, fighting external negativity, accepting the harsh realities of life, and nurturing fears of failure we lose the sparkle of enthusiasm somewhere along the way.
But have you wondered why being enthusiastic is so important?
Benefits of Being enthusiastic:
1. Helps You Achieve More:
A high zeal for life makes the hardest of tasks feel like a joyride and turns hard work into pleasure.
“There is a real magic in enthusiasm. It spells the difference between mediocrity and accomplishment.“ – Norman Vincent Peale.
2. Makes You Popular and A Favorite with People:
Enthusiastic people radiate energy that is contagious. They attract similar energies around them. Being enthusiastic is like wearing a beautiful perfume….you rub it off on everyone around you!
“What I do best is share my enthusiasm.”
― Bill gates.
3. Sends The Message Across:
Enthusiasm leads to effective communication. Enthusiastic people send powerful messages leading to better communication and eventually leading to increased productivity of the work group or team.
“A mediocre idea that generates enthusiasm will go further than a great idea that inspires no one.”
– Mary Kay Ash.
4. Turns Adversity into Opportunity:
It is difficult to fail when you refuse to acknowledge failure. Even the most negative situations can be turned around with high spirits.
“Daring enthusiasm and abiding cheerfulness can accomplish everything on earth without fail.”
– Sri Chinmoy, The Jewels of Happiness: Inspiration and Wisdom to Guide your life Journey.
So here is a list of actions YOU can do to regain that tint of zest in your life. They are not life-changing actions, just a few simple things that we need to remember mostly stuff you already know, just need to be reminded of it. Start with one, move on to the next, and slowly adopt the full list one step at a time!
1. Be Passionate:
This is the most natural way of generating enthusiasm. Doing things that we are passionate about is a great way to motivate yourself. Press the rewind button…..remember what hooked you in your school days…arts, communication, sports, debates, writing, music, stitching, cooking (you got the drift). Research states that the things we liked doing most in our childhood are most often our best traits. Find out what it is for you and welcome it back into your life!
“Passion is a feeling that tells you: this is the right thing to do. Nothing can stand in my way. I’m going to follow my bliss and act upon this glorious sensation of joy.”
― Wayne W. Dyer.
2. Be yourself:
I am most efficient when I am myself (and the most fun too!). Remember your most fun moments…..they were when you were the person you really are without any pretense. Set yourself free, be at peace with yourself and stop pleasing everyone. Do what makes you happy, speak your mind, share your views, open your heart without the fear of being judged.
People will always have a point of view no matter what good or bad you do. Stop letting it affect you, rise above the bashing and the compliments to understand who you really are.
And for the naysayers, tell them to go take a hike (except your boss and your spouse, you really don’t want to mess up there!).
“Don’t you ever let a soul in the world tell you that you can’t be exactly who you are.”
― Lady Gaga
3. Be creative:
Remember the ART/SUPW class in school where they gave you 10 small nothings and asked you to create your own work of art with it? Life is no different, it’s full of a lot of sweet nothings that look insignificant on their own but are put together and turn into a masterpiece.
Creativity is the glue that will put them together. It is also the fastest way to be enthusiastic (more like a shortcut to enthusiasm). You can accomplish anything you want if you think out of the box and execute it with enthusiasm.
Try your hand at different things, rouse your inner daydreamer and life will be a rainbow full of varied colors.
“Creativity is a natural extension of our enthusiasm.“
― Nightingale, Earl.
4. Be in Awe:
We encounter a lot of wonderful experiences in our life, but our pre-trained minds (busy in following agendas and making things happen) do not allow us to relish their true beauty. A beautiful sunset, a lovely picture, a song that stays in your heart, a mesmerizing landscape.
Life will bring you a lot of breathtaking moments your way, you just have to be fully present in your senses to be truly inspired.
‘He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.’
― Albert Einstein.
5. Learning Everyday:
Keep yourself open to new learning and pursuing new interests. You don’t always have to do things you are good at, make it a habit to learn something new and do something different every year. The life comes with no manual and you are still living it right!
Learn to play a new instrument, go hiking, learn a new language, and design your own recipe. Life is a continuous process of learning, enlightening and improving yourself and demands you to be in a constant state of evolution.
Knowing that you are, each and every day, becoming a better person is a wonderful way to create sheer enthusiasm.
“Look around you. Everything changes. Everything on this earth is in a continuous state of evolving, refining, improving, adapting, enhancing…changing. You were not put on this earth to remain stagnant.”
― Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free.
6. Constant action:
Ever noticed how you were bored, lazy, and ready to hit the bed on a free Sunday afternoon and your friends forced you to join in for a drive? From the moment you changed into a new outfit to the time you hit the road, you had forgotten how sleepy you were, your lethargy had turned into renewed energy and effervescence. You were ready to have the time of your life!
That’s the power of the mind. Tell it that you have nothing to do and it tells you that you are sleepy, assign it a task and it propels you with tons of energy and zest.
Inaction spins drudgery, be in ACTION constantly. Avoid procrastination, pursue goals and take timely actions. Sometimes all you need to do is ….TO JUST DO IT, rather than ponder on it and while away time. Any action is better than no action. Being active will increase your enthusiasm which in turn will drive you towards more action…..it is a happy cycle that you need to fall into.
“Always remember to take your Vitamins: Take your vitamin A for ACTION, Vitamin B for Belief, Vitamin C for Confidence, Vitamin D for Discipline, Vitamin E for Enthusiasm.!!”
― Pablo.
7. See The Positive Side of Things:
I looked at my broken cellphone lying on the floor and was stuck with grief when my mother popped in my room, saw my intense look….calmly smiled and said…Finally……now you can have the new smart phone you always wanted. Suddenly I was no more mourning over the broken mobile phone instead my mind was busy shifting from one model to the other planning my next buy…..Every situation no matter how bad it seems has a brighter side.
It is upon us to find it. Practice every day this trait to be optimistic and to find opportunities in adversities. Slowly you will see your personal strengths growing. You might even end up being an inspiration for others.
“When things go wrong, don’t go with them.”
― Elvis Presley.
8. Be Around with Other Enthusiastic People:
If you had been to a live concert or an exciting match you would know what I mean. Enthusiasm is contagious. Enthusiastic people reverberate positive energy and enigma. They bring out the vivacity in us and inspire us to be our most spirited self.
9. Be Energetic:
Enthusiasm is closely related to energy levels. You can’t really be jumping with joy if you are exhausted and tired. Get into a healthy lifestyle, eat right, take plenty of fluids, and exercise regularly and chances are you will be brimming with energy and enthusiasm every day.
“Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. Be active, energetic, enthusiastic, faithful, and you will accomplish your objective. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson.
10. Let Life Surprise You:
Some of us are great control freaks, we want to know everything beforehand and have a hands-on on everything that is going around.
“Would you like to know your future? If your answer is yes, think again. Not knowing is the greatest life motivator. So enjoy, endure, survive each moment as it comes to you in its proper sequence — a surprise.”
― Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration.
It is good to plan and execute control but it is equally important to allow to be surprised once in a while. Leave a door open for life to sneak in and surprise you when you least expect it to.
Let life happen to you!
