I choose to be inspired.

I looked at my calendar with surprise. June is just around the corner.

Where did the first half of the year go?.

Even before 2020, the “half-year milestone” was a hard one to get to. The energy we had in January is slowly draining up and the finish line is not yet in sight. It’s safe to say, this mid-year feels harder than ever. How do we keep ourselves motivated? Why is it important to remain inspired, and how do we achieve that feeling? This might not surprise you, but the key resides in our emotions.

It’s easy to think that our emotions could be our enemies at the workplace. There’s a belief that they get in our way, they obstruct reasoning and rationality. But it doesn’t make sense to pretend that it’s possible to keep our emotions and work life separated. The truth is that we, as humans, can’t shut off our humanness when we come to work. Emotions play a leading role in how you succeed in business due to how they influence your behavior at work and the effort you put into it, impacting motivation and inspiration. This last point is essential to keep us moving on, at work and in life.

Bestseller author, Dan Pink, explains that 3 very simple things drive nearly everyone to feel inspired at work: Autonomy (The desire to direct our own lives), Purpose (The feeling and intention to make a change in the world), and Mastery (The urge to get better at stuff).

If these three things play well together, we achieve what it’s called “inner work-life balance”. Inner work life is what’s going on in your head in response to workday events that affect your performance. So, how does our brain deal with emotion and connect it to such practical results as motivation and inspiration? Well, the parts of the brain that deal with emotions are connected to those that deal with cognition.

“Negative emotions like fear or sadness lead to brain activity and thought patterns that are detrimental to creative, productive work: avoidance of risk; difficulty remembering and planning; and rational decision-making.” (Alice Isen, US Psychologist)

We settled that the way we feel has a direct impact on the way we work. Now, how do we power up our inspiration, especially at this time of the year in this new work reality? Well, here are some simple useful tips to boost that creativity:

1. Change your environment. Working at the office or from home, changing the view will also change the way we target an issue. So, switch your desk every once in a while, or move your chair to face another window at home. It’s easier than you think!

2. Learn something new. Have you ever wanted to learn to play an instrument? Or maybe perfect your cooking skills? Give it a chance! Learning new things - work or not work-related - can boost your endorphin production and increase your satisfaction levels.

3. Surround yourself with inspiring people. Inspiration is contagious and, unlike other contagious agents, this is something we definitely want to catch and spread. Who inspires you in life? Find those inspiring characters at work and share an inspirational coffee break.

4. Exercise. Endorphins again! Whether is a whole routine or just a 15 minutes’ walk, your body and brain will thank you. Breathing some fresh air (even from your balcony) will get you a new perspective.

5. Start before the inspiration strikes. The best way to defeat that blank sheet is to just start. Write your ideas as they come, let the flow start, ride it, and give it time to bloom.

Creativity, positivism, and Inspiration are muscles that must be trained. Feeling inspired could be hard, yet not impossible. The key is to start. You’ll be amazed by the results!

Last, but not least, one important remark: inspiration and creativity should be essential in any job position. No matter what you do, feeling inspired and wanting to be creative are two key factors to enhance your skills, develop yourself, and grow. So, stay curious, and inspiring and kick off this second half on a high note!