WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU ARE IN SEARCH OF MOTIVATION BY @ruthjoe

Hello steemians,

I welcome you all to my blog. How are u all doing? Am excited to be here and i want to appreciate @steem-ghana for hosting this contest. I also appreciate @njaywan @appongk and @nattybongo for your great work in this community. Thank you so much.

I will be sharing with u all on the contest topic what do you do when you are in search of motivation

There comes a time in our lives when tough times sets in. As long as we live here on earth, we must have some challenging times, sometimes it could last for days, weeks, months or even years. So what then keeps us going? Or what then makes us overcome this trying and challenging times? Its called motivation.

What then is motivation?
Motivation is the willingness to move on no matter what one goes through or is going through, which is usually inspired when hope seems to have been lost. The willingness could be inspired by an external factor such as environment and people. Or it could be inspired by internal factor such as yourself.

It is also important to note that challenges will not end as long as we are on earth, and one amazing things about it is that it most times helps us become a better version of ourselves depending on what we make of it.

I have had my own share of life challenges, where i felt like giving up and needed motivation to move on. It was not a very pleasant situation.

I remember back in 2012 when i was still in the university. My parents stay in a different city from where my school was located, in fact my parents stay in the northern part of Nigeria while my school was in the eastern part. I didnt have any one around me like relatives and the distance from home was a whole long journey.

I began having issues with school. Issues ranging from finances, peer pressure and then the big one which was my inability to comprehend properly what the lecturers were teaching. My financial inabilities in school affected my academic comprehension because instead of listening in class i would be thinking of how to raise money to pay for one text book or settle a fee. I could not even call home to inform them of the issues i was having, because i already knew that the response would be. So this lead to depression. I decided to start skipping classes sometimes just to seat in my room and cry or think.

Well, my issues continued until a friend of mine noticed i was always moody, and skipping classes. She visited and saw my present state.
Hmm she was sad after i narrated my story to her.

She encouraged me with her words and made sure i was fine that day. She got food for me to eat and took me to her place to spend the night. All through the night she kept telling me i will come out of this issues . The next day she placed some calls and got me connected to a place where i can work part time to earn some money in other to settle some of the financial issues i was having.

This kind gestures motivated me so much, that i wondered to myself so there are still some nice persons on earth"? I started working part time, and i resumed back my classes.

Wow! That motivation made a lasting impart in my life that even today i still remember it. It really shaped me especially my mindset about helping people i come and across. To help people here does not just mean with actions alone but also with my words.. The words of my friend that very day did alot to me. So it showed me that my words can be used as a medium to also help people in need even if i do not have what it takes to solve their problems, saying the right words to them will make a difference.

So i have learnt to say the right words to people no matter where i find them because i do not know what exactly they are going through, and my words could just be all they needed.

It has also shaped my life in the area of helping others, regardless of who they are to me, they may not even be related to me but when my help is needed i render it. And guess what? Sometimes i share with people the little i have or give all i have and end up having nothing with me but am still happy doing so. Am fulfilled seeing and knowing that everyone around me is fine.

Because life challenges does not end, there are just a few ways i get motivated whenever i feel the going is getting tough.

Firstly, I have made a few friends whom i trust. These friends gives me motivation. I can talk to them about what am going through any day and anytime. They have proven themselves as real friends. They motivates me with words of advice, bringing up ways to help me solve the problems am facing.

Secondly, i get motivated when i pray. Praying helps me and serves as motivation for me. I talk to my God about what am going through and even cry, then i feel comforted instantly. Even though the issues may remain, i have strength from my prayers knowing that am not alone in that issues.

Thirdly, when i feel like giving up, i get motivated by speaking positive words to myself. I have learnt over the years that everything on earth has ears but living and non-living. So when i wake up every morning, i stand in front of my mirror and i say nice and positive words to my self. These words i say remain in my mind, when i step out and find a situation trying to stop me from moving forward, those words i said to myself flashes back to my memory, giving me hope to move on. More like energy.

Life and challenges are like siblings in fact twins. So sometimes you will always see them together. The best motivation is self motivation. The motivation you give to your self is what works. There is no need giving up when you have come this far! Rise up, dust yourself and move on, face that challenge head on.