The Big Picture

In the "Spoiler Alert" post, I asked myself questions like, "What is all this for anyway?  Why am I working so hard?  What was it that made me so excited about college in the first place?"  It all leads back to a sense of purpose in what you do. Without a sense of strong purpose what's the point of being motivated?  Things like persistence and confidence are great qualities and important skills, but they can't stand on their own.  They need that sense of purpose to back them up. This post is sort of an extension of the post on gratitude.  In that post, I said it feels like you're running in place if you don't have the motivation you need.  I suggested that gratitude can help you find that motivation.  Gratitude is an important link in the greater purpose of everything you do.  Things that I am thankful for, my family and friends, my pets, music, literature, the opportunities I'm given, all make me motivated to do my best in college.  The things I'm most thankful for remind me of what's most important to me, and so inspire me to persist in the work I'm doing at TLU.  Being reminded of the bigger picture, and the purpose and meaning behind what i do serves as the motivation I need to make it through my college work.

Another big motivation for me, is thinking about my future.  The dreams I have about getting a master's degree, starting a career, and moving to Austin among other things help me put things in terms of this bigger picture.  It reminds me that things don't end here, they are only beginning.  This helps me push through all the hard work and tough days when I ask myself the questions I mentioned earlier.  Looking ahead to starting a career that I love, makes working through my homework seem totally worth it like I know it is, and thinking about getting my master's degree makes the work that I'm doing now seem much easier and worth the extra time I give to it.  When I think about the bigger picture, I realize that everything I'm learning now is preparing me for my bright future ahead!  this is the greater purpose that I'm working towards, the reasons behind my motivation!