Contemplate the following questions:

Do you have an idea of what you Love in life?

Do you have an idea of something you’d like to create?

Do you have a speck of an idea of what you were put here to pursue?

If your answers are YES, great!  Now, go and DO IT.

If you’re not completely sure (and you will be, because we’re all YES’s), then continue the pursuit until the answer becomes a YES, and then go and DO IT.

Sure, it all may be much, much harder than outlined above, but who’s to say that it can’t be much, much easier than you ever knew possible?

This is why I ask whether you have an “idea,” not if you have 100% certainty of what you Love, wish to create, and were put here to do.  The difference?

Most of us constantly talk ourselves out of our Heart’s Desires because we don’t have a definite pull in one direction or the other, which leads to hesitation, which in turn leads to a paralysis of both Power and Purpose.  Hey, I’ve done it too.

But in this immobile state also lies the point…

In order to obtain that knowing of “Ah, this is what I’m to do next,” sometimes starts by placing one foot in front of the other and taking small action steps towards that idea, no matter how BIG or small it may be.  Guidance is extraordinary and the ultimate source of divine direction, but you’re not always going to have the time or “know” in every moment where to Act, when to Act, and what road to take next.

Sometimes you have to act first, and sooner or later, the Light will break through.

And when you do, that “trance of stuck” and self-created stress you put yourself through for such a long time suddenly disappears, and as it turns out, was never real to begin with.

Sure, it’d be nice to channel the MapQuest-specific route to our soul’s Higher Purpose at beck and call, but it’s not the only means to living and being one’s Truth in the world.  The key is to stay in motion.

By showing up, action can inspire guidance just as easily as guidance can inspire action.  Some days our Inner Voice will bless us forward, while others our will to thrive drives us towards progression.  They go hand in hand and feed off one another.  This blog post is a testament to that notion.

So what does all this mean? (Thinking:  Hmmm…what does all this mean?).  Oh yes, right.

Erase this from your vocab ASAP – I don’t know what I Love.  I don’t know what to do next.  I don’t know.  I don’t know.  I just don’t know.  Ahhh, stop it!  What did I just say?

Guidance is always there.  It’s just that every now and again we have to go Get It.

Ask yourself, What is something simple that I can act on today?  (And yes, renewing your license plates and paying your Visa counts too — it’s all energy).

Continue these small things for the rest of the week and notice the positive life force called Momentum that begins to pour forth and out into your world.  I’m telling you, it WILL happen.

Whether you believe you’re here for a reason or you simply create your own reason as you go, it doesn’t really matter.  Each case is the same: if you act, guidance can manifest, and that speck of an idea within you might just transform into a Higher Purpose.  The rest is up to you.

So, what’s it going to be?

And ACTION,

For most, there is little to no distinction between inspiration and motivation – they are one and the same.  Yet, these concepts aren’t only opposite sides of the coin, they’re completely different currencies.

Check it out…

Motivation is external.
Inspiration is internal.

I write to get famous vs. I write to free my soul.
Yoga for the 6-pack vs. yoga for the oneness.

Motivation needs results.
Inspiration yearns to feel alive.

To-do lists vs. vision boards.
Spreadsheets vs. spread the love.

Motivation relies on reason.
Inspiration simply knows.

Intellect vs. intuition.
The smart thing to do vs. the heart thing to do.

Motivation pushes.
Inspiration pulls.

Hard work vs. heart work.
More, more, more vs. the Law of Resonance.

Motivation attaches.
Inspiration lets go.

White knuckling it vs. open arming it.
What you ought to be vs. who you already are.

Motivation is manufactured discipline.
Inspiration is natural expression.

Blood, sweat, and tears vs. flow, rhythm, and grace.
Stressing vs. blessing.

Now, a bit of motivation is necessary to sustain life.  This we know.  Pay the bills, be on time, get the grade, grab the degree.  Sensible actions across the board.

And despite my pull to a life lit from Within, I cherish my motivated self as well.  6am wakeup calls.  Long drives to the doctor and kundalini.  Late night jogs because I know it’ll feel good.  Some grime and grind can certainly get the job done.

The liability with motivation, though, is its drift towards ulterior motives – those comparative, obligatory, always chasing, never-good-enough sort of tendencies.  It can be a fleeting satisfaction that clouds our lens.  Desires turned to bubbles that just might explode.

When I get more “heady” than heart-centered, it’s evident in everything I do. Life becomes a burden instead of an adventure.  I write from the top of my head rather than the bottom of my Heart.  I live with zero conviction and stall an omniscient guidance system.

Enter inspiration – an energy made to expand.

The word inspiration literally means “breathed upon” or to be “in Spirit.”  It’s the oxygen of our creative center that connects us to a much larger life service.  There’s nothing to go get or reach for because the car is already built.  All we have to do is turn the key.

Pay attention to where you’re creating from.

Are you motivated?
Are you inspired?

Does it feel forced?
Do you feel free?

There’s no right or wrong,
but there is a Sustainable you.

own the glow
Live your Light,

You’re wondering, right?

I know because I’ve been there.

Opinions from every which direction, so many soul-promptings, so little time. The questions and commentary never seem to end.

So you wonder…

Am I really following my light or simply playing my societal role?

How does one truly know when traveling the illumined road?

From my experience, the only true knower of such uncertainties is the seeker themself.  With that in mind, there are some certain essentials to consider along the way.

Let’s take a look…

1.  When it arrives, you don’t feel ready.

I have to speak as well as Oprah.
I have to write like Thoreau.
I need a website designed by Michelangelo.
I need 1,000+ Twitter followers.
I need a library of blogs to stay ahead of the game.
I need said amount of dollars in the bank.

You know where all that got me? A little town called Nowheresville.  Population: me.  Rather than launch and learn from day one, I let preparation turn into an overanalytical concept called perfection.

You think Thomas Edison would have invented the light bulb without thousands of failed experiments?  Nope, but he started anyways.

Every single one of us is learning life on the go.  So if the inspiration is there, you’re ready.  All you have to do is show up and shine.

2.  Life is speeding up.

Ideas, acquaintances, expected and unexpected opportunities – everything is happening at once.  Why is this?

Because you’re open.

Through the simple acknowledgment and ownership of who you are (saying YES to your journey), and thus following through on its guidance, be prepared for a benevolent Youniverse to bow at your feet.

Just remember to qualify your road – i.e. give your intentions the qualities you’d like it to convey.  I enfold all of my activity in love, freedom, and an efficient grace for all parties involved.

There’s no such thing as being too clear.

3.  You’re not comparing your adventure to other’s.

And do you know why you’re not?

Because you’re lit from Within.

AND…

It’s none of yo’ damn business.

Comparison is assault on the soul.  Every Authentic Adventure manifests in it’s own time.  Maintain your course.

4.  Creation, not competition is the goal.

This goes hand in hand with comparison.

If bettering your friend, neighbor, colleague or family member is your agenda from the get-go, it’s like building your house on quicksand.  It simply will not sustain.

My advice:  Abolish any and all mental debris associated with competition.

We are simply here to create and to help others in their pursuit. Competition is separation, and separation closes the door on Youniversal flow.  Ergo, your only rival is you.

That business selling the same product as you that’s kicking major ass?  Their success is actually blessing your Authentic Adventure forward, not hindering it.

Shift the paradigm.

5.  You recognize that the Youniverse might have better plans.

Case in point, Christopher Columbus.

He was looking for a western route to India and instead found a nice piece of property called America.  Can you imagine if he said, “Nope, this isn’t it. Back to the ship boys.”

Our cerebral self can’t even begin to process the limitless streams of possibility on this planet.  There’s no right or wrong step on an Authentic Adventure.  Just opportunity and a few divine reroutes.  Don’t get bent out of shape.

Stay open.  I can’t emphasize that enough.

6.  You’re but a shade of your former self.

The biggest decision is the decision to begin.  Once made, not only is an avalanche of momentum at your disposal, but a fresh set of decisions are presented.

“You begin to realize that buried deep in your unconscious mind there is someone much more interesting and adventurous and more open to the world and to new experiences.”  -The Alchemist

If you’re on your Authentic Adventure, this is you in a nutshell.

7.  You haven’t a clue of what will happen next.

There’s no such thing as a so-called “safe” life.  Life can’t be planned.  It’s mysterious by nature.  But isn’t that the intoxication of it all?

The unknown – now that’s a beautiful space to be.  One filled with our deepest fears and our deepest fulfillment.  Which will you let triumph?

A soul that ignores its Authentic Adventure is never fully alive.

8.  You’re not wondering if it’s begun…

…because you simply are it.

The adventure and the adventurer are one entity.  There is no past or future, only the present and the opportunity it bestows — that indescribable and intuitive knowing that supersedes any and all conventionality.

Your soul was custom-carved by the hand of the Youniverse.  Allow the journey to merge.

9.  That thing called L-O-V-E is your flag-bearer.

As the ancients said, “A soul is only realized in love.”

Enough said.