Santa Rosa Wilderness California USA
I hiked in the gorgeous Santa Rosa National Wilderness today.
Now I am typing these words from the Encinitas Library. We are gazing on the Pacific Ocean a little north of sunny San Diego California.
Bloggers tell me that I am lucky to be surrounded by inspiration. Blogging must be easy for me, right?
Wrong.
Well….both claims are partially wrong.
I appeared to get some lucky breaks but only because I consistently helped a targeted reader with content. Helpful bloggers become magnets to opportunities.
As for my inspiring surroundings, yes I live in some dazzling spots all around the globe. But does each spot boast thousands of highly established bloggers? No. I guess that inspiration does not originate from surroundings alone but within the mind. I also suppose that blogging is not easy for most because few know that fuel comes from within the mind not externals.
My Rags to Freedom Story
I appear to be free now.
But I did the “rags” thing nearly two decades ago. At least it felt like nearly two decades ago; I actually began blogging in 2008.
Anyway, I suffered through rough patches financially-speaking. My life appeared to look fairly bleak.
Imagine if I turned to bleak, broke surroundings for inspiration? I would have quit blogging in 2008 because the circumstances looked f*cking awful.
How did I overcome my environment?
I consistently looked into my mind for fuel. I looked within my mind for inspiration. I also looked past the appearances of:
- poverty
- relationship resistance
- the not too picture perfect postcard surroundings of suburban New Jersey (No offense to NJ people out there but no one confuses the place with San Diego!)
to my mind – often – to write blog posts, network and monetize for many hours during the lean times.
Look into the mind to look beyond circumstances.
Peer into the source not externals reflecting the source back to you.
The world is just your state of mind.
If you want to change the world the only sane choice is to change your mind, first and foremost.
Few Understand This Secret
The world looks to externals for motivation.
Since change is constant the motivators die off like mosquitoes on a bug zapper.
Being crestfallen, most bloggers quit.
The painfully common error hamstrings bloggers. Life seems rough. Attempting to overcome circumstances by trying to out work conditions makes no sense. Where your attention and energy goes, grows.
Why not look inside of your mind?
Eternal fuel resides in the mind.
Nothing can stop the mind.
Anything can arrest the progress of externals.
Look within; that’s your fuel.
The mind is without limit.
Inner fuel is without limit.
BUT…….
Moving to Preferred Surroundings Serves as Temporary Inspiration
Look at my tag line.
I guide readers on how to retire to a life of island hopping through smart blogging.
My visuals do inspire bloggers to challenge limiting beliefs from time to time.
We all possess preferences.
Choosing a particular environment is one such preference. Hey; we all need to live somewhere.
Temporary fuel flows from external conditions, like, the Mediterranean climate we enjoy here in the San Diego area. I probably would not feel quite as prolific while freezing my cajones off in 5 degree New Jersey winter weather right now.
As you set external goals just remember that physical locations are temporary but mind fuel is eternal.
Your mind is without limit but all in time and space is limited by default. Time expires. Space goes away too, eventually.
This is the spirit of the blog post.
Especially if your temporary circumstances seem rough to look past right now.
Set goals.
But look within to find an inexhaustible source of energy.
Perhaps you dream of living in the tropics. Imagining this warm, pleasant environment goads you on; you are hungry to live this life.
Where is the image? The dream sits within your mind.
Imagine if your worldly life-circumstances looked far different than living in the tropics. Picture living in a cold, snowy city filled with people, traffic and buildings.
You cannot blame your environment for sapping motivation. Circumstances come about from the mind then get projected onto the world. Everything happens within. The inner world previews the external world.
Changing your mind changes your circumstances.
Never look solely to circumstances for motivation because situations change.
A trained mind remains largely stable and always without limit.
Real World Example
My body feels tired now.
I drove from the desert to the Pacific Coast today.
Doing two hours of cardio, conversing with homeowners and settling in to a new location felt fun but tiring to the body.
But I decided to access the extra gear in my mind to write and publish this blog post, no matter the circumstances in my life.
I have every right to go to sleep now because the body feels exhausted.
But I looked into my mind to find extra fuel to get the job done.
My mind is limitless even if my body feels exhausted.
Look to the limitless source not the limited, ever-changing external.
Conclusion
Blogging is mindset.
Stop blaming conditions for your blogging failure.
Every pro blogged in less than optimal environments for a stretch before going full-time.
My practicing, skills and drive did not come from the environment.
Each flowed from within my mind to the external world.
Remember that to access unlimited energy for your blog.
Related Posts
How to Submit a Guest Post Successfully in 12 Steps
Blogger Motivation: 8 Tips to Get Out of a Rut
Should You Blog for Yourself or Others?
What Is the Best Approach to Get People to Comment on Your Blog?
1 Warning Sign that You Do Not Run a Blogging Business
Do You Undervalue Your Blogging Products and Services?