429: A Lack of Motivation Isn’t Your Problem: Revealing a Major Misconception in Personal Development

Kevin Lowe: Where is your motivation? You're not going to achieve the goals you have without motivation.

Kevin Lowe: Well, my friend, that is where we are wrong.

Kevin Lowe: And that is why today we are addressing one of the most screwed up things in the world of personal development.

Kevin Lowe: And that is the comparison between inspiration and motivation.

Kevin Lowe: Now, the truth is they're both necessary. But where the problem comes into play is that people oftentimes screw up the order.

Kevin Lowe: Yeah, there is a specific order in which you use inspiration and motivation to your advantage.

Kevin Lowe: You screw up that order.

Kevin Lowe: Well, then you set yourself up for a failure. You set yourself up for probably like last year.

Kevin Lowe: Like the year prior, where you have big dreams, Big goals, big ideas, New Year's resolutions.

Kevin Lowe: And then by the end of January, You've already fell off the boat because you've been led down the wrong path by screwing up the order in which you.

Kevin Lowe: Use inspiration and Motivation to your advantage. So, my friend, if you are ready to make this year the year that it can be, well, today is the episode that's going to get you there.

Kevin Lowe: This, my friend, is episode 429 of Grit, Grace and Inspiration.

Kevin Lowe: Welcome back to Grit, Grace, and Inspiration. I am your host, Kevin Lowe.

Kevin Lowe: And my friend, if it's your first time joining me, well, first and foremost, welcome to the podcast. It's a pleasure to have you here.

Kevin Lowe: And in case you are new, well, then I would love to let you know that this podcast is here to serve you.

Kevin Lowe: My whole mission is to use what I've gone through.

Kevin Lowe: What my guests have gone through, To hopefully be a benefit to you. Now, my guests, they have all different kinds of stories, all different things that they've overcome.

Kevin Lowe: You're going to meet many of them soon enough.

Kevin Lowe: But for myself, it comes back to my story of back in 2003, waking from a life-saving brain surgery to unexpectedly be left completely blind.

Kevin Lowe: My entire life was shattered.

Kevin Lowe: So I thought, until I finally figured out how to pick up the pieces, not to rebuild what was, but rather to build something new.

Kevin Lowe: And in that something new, I developed a mission in life. And that is to use what I've gone through to inspire the world.

Kevin Lowe: And that includes you, to never give up on life, even when it May feel like life is giving up on you.

Kevin Lowe: There is no time that This is more relevant.

Kevin Lowe: Than the start of a fresh new year.

Kevin Lowe: We all put so much weight, so much hope, so much anticipation into this new year, the turn of a calendar, and we get our hopes up.

Kevin Lowe: But I believe that's for a good thing because I think we all need something to look forward to.

Kevin Lowe: We all need A fresh start in life.

Kevin Lowe: It's honestly why I love the morning so much.

Kevin Lowe: Is because every morning when the sun rises, it's literally a signal that a new day has begun, a fresh new start.

Kevin Lowe: What was yesterday is gone.

Kevin Lowe: It's all about what lies ahead.

Kevin Lowe: And so right now, Here we are in the midst of January, start of 2026, and you're ready to dive forward. You're ready to get moving.

Kevin Lowe: And all you know is what you've been told is that you gotta get motivated.

Kevin Lowe: You gotta stay motivated. You got to find the motivation.

Kevin Lowe: Well, baby, motivation is a piece of it.

Kevin Lowe: But that is the wrong place to start.

Kevin Lowe: Where you need to start is inspiration.

Kevin Lowe: Yes, my friend, inspiration is where it's at. And we're going to dive into exactly what I'm talking about, how this works.

Kevin Lowe: But I do want to let you know that.

Kevin Lowe: If you want An awesome free resource to help you along this journey that you're on, please be sure to check out the first link you see inside of the episode description, where I have left a link to my free Grit, Grace, and Inspiration Life Guide.

Kevin Lowe: It's literally a super cool guide to.

Kevin Lowe: Help you with whatever You're going through in life, whatever things you're dealing with, what challenges you're facing.

Kevin Lowe: I have past episodes of this podcast that address it.

Kevin Lowe: And are there To help you. So think of it like an old school TV guide where you can scan it, choose what looks good, leave the rest for another day. but it's for your own personal growth and development, your own inspiration and motivation.

Kevin Lowe: So again, check out the link inside of today's show notes for the Great Grace and Inspiration Life Guide.

Kevin Lowe: So to really dive into this topic, Let's talk about what typically happens at the start of a new year.

Kevin Lowe: January arrives and you want change.

Kevin Lowe: You want growth. You want something different than last year. Yeah, me too.

Kevin Lowe: So what do you do?

Kevin Lowe: Well, you wait to feel motivated.

Kevin Lowe: But what happens? Motivation, it's not showing up.

Kevin Lowe: Maybe it does show up, but it's briefly. It certainly doesn't last long.

Kevin Lowe: And so then, of course, The negative self-talk begins. Why can't I stick with anything?

Kevin Lowe: Why can't I do what I want?

Kevin Lowe: Why am I not able to follow through on my goals, On my dreams?

Kevin Lowe: What is wrong with me? But my friend, there's nothing wrong with you.

Kevin Lowe: You've done nothing wrong.

Kevin Lowe: There's nothing that makes you less than. No, it's just the simple fact that you've started in the wrong place.

Kevin Lowe: You've started by trying to find motivation.

Kevin Lowe: When the place you Need to start is by finding inspiration.

Kevin Lowe: Inspiration, that is what sparks movement.

Kevin Lowe: Inspiration is what sparks change in our life. Think of inspiration as the spark, the curiosity, the pull towards something that you want.

Kevin Lowe: It's the quiet voice inside that says, oh man, I want this.

Kevin Lowe: Basically, if.

Kevin Lowe: You want to Use a really good example, think of inspiration as the spark plug.

Kevin Lowe: It's the thing that sends that little spark, that ignites with the fuel, that lights it all on fire, that gets the engine cranking. That is inspiration.

Kevin Lowe: It is literally the spark that you need to get everything kicked into gear.

Kevin Lowe: And nothing happens.

Kevin Lowe: Your car doesn't move forward. You don't get to work on time if the spark doesn't happen. It's the same thing in your life.

Kevin Lowe: You are not going to get anywhere if you fail to be inspired first.

Kevin Lowe: So here at the beginning of the year.

Kevin Lowe: Or at any point In your life when you are ready for a change, you need something that lights you up, that gets you excited, that fires you up, and that has you ready to start pursuing it.

Kevin Lowe: To start putting in the work.

Kevin Lowe: That is exactly where last week's episode comes into play.

Kevin Lowe: Where I talked about ditching New Year's resolutions.

Kevin Lowe: And instead creating your big dream list.

Kevin Lowe: Yes, that is a perfect example of finding inspiration.

Kevin Lowe: It's the things that are big, that are exciting, that light you up, that spark that fire inside of you, that gets you excited about moving forward.

Kevin Lowe: So now here's where people fail is.

Kevin Lowe: Because if they Focus on inspiration alone, they're not going to make it because you can't let inspiration be the only thing that carries you forward.

Kevin Lowe: Inspiration is the spark.

Kevin Lowe: It's the thing that gets everything going, but it's not the thing that's going to sustain you.

Kevin Lowe: It's not the thing that's going to continue driving you forward when the times get tough. And that is exactly where finally motivation comes into play.

Kevin Lowe: Because if inspiration is the spark, motivation is the fuel that you have to use to fill up the tank to keep you moving forward.

Kevin Lowe: Because when the road gets long.

Kevin Lowe: When the travel gets weary, when you're tired and you feel like quitting, my friend, that's When motivation comes into play. Again, think about it in the car analogy.

Kevin Lowe: you don't fuel a car that's just remaining parked.

Kevin Lowe: No, you fuel up a car that's been moving. You had to drive to the gas station.

Kevin Lowe: You got places to go.

Kevin Lowe: It's why you need gas in the first place.

Kevin Lowe: That is the motivation. And so the Powerful thing that I want you to grasp here is that motivation is what shows up after you get moving.

Kevin Lowe: You have to get started in order for motivation to show up, for motivation to take hold.

Kevin Lowe: When you try to get started with motivation alone, it's just not there because you have to have that spark that starts it all.

Kevin Lowe: Motivation is then Just going to fuel the journey as you go.

Kevin Lowe: What I want you to understand, Again, just trying to hit home, is that when you try to motivate yourself before you're actually inspired, you end up just forcing everything.

Kevin Lowe: You're going to push. You're going to grind.

Kevin Lowe: You're going to do the hard work.

Kevin Lowe: But eventually, you're going to quit. You're going to run out of steam.

Kevin Lowe: And it's not because you're weak. It's not because you are lacking something, but rather because you.

Kevin Lowe: Didn't have a Why. Inspiration is the answer to why. Inspiration is the answer why.

Kevin Lowe: Motivation, it answers how. And in order for you to have the life you want, you have to have both.

Kevin Lowe: You have to have the why and you have to have the how to make it all come true.

Kevin Lowe: They truly work hand in hand, but again, only when used in the correct order.

Kevin Lowe: So right now, here we are.

Kevin Lowe: The start of a new year.

Kevin Lowe: We're in January. And.

Kevin Lowe: Again, if you're Listening to this later on in the year.

Kevin Lowe: My friend, January, March, June, July, it doesn't matter.

Kevin Lowe: When you're ready to start something new, This is relevant for you.

Kevin Lowe: I want you to realize that right now, It's not a time to immediately start grinding harder, to immediately start going into action mode.

Kevin Lowe: January, the start of something new, It's about lighting the fire.

Kevin Lowe: And so I want you, Again, I referenced back to our previous episode about dreaming.

Kevin Lowe: That is literally The perfect place for you to begin to understand what inspires you.

Kevin Lowe: Because I want you to get clear on what is it that inspires you.

Kevin Lowe: What do you want? when you can figure Out what you want out of life.

Kevin Lowe: What you truly want and why you want it. Well, my friend, there's your inspiration.

Kevin Lowe: Yeah, you say you want to get fit and get in shape, but why do you want to get fit and get in shape?

Kevin Lowe: You say that you want a new job, But why do you want a new job?

Kevin Lowe: What is that going to do for you? That is the deeper level that we're going for.

Kevin Lowe: It's that is the thing that's going to Fuel us forward.

Kevin Lowe: That is the thing that's going to spark everything.

Kevin Lowe: And then as you start moving towards achieving that goal, getting that dream, motivation builds as you progress, as you keep going, then you can start to build the motivation.

Kevin Lowe: Then you can seek out sources of motivation.

Kevin Lowe: And my goodness, my friend, Look at this podcast, episodes I have coming up, episodes I've done in the past. Look at any.

Kevin Lowe: Of the past Interviews I've done.

Kevin Lowe: And you will find motivation simply by listening to other people who've already done it.

Kevin Lowe: I have now over 400 episodes of this podcast.

Kevin Lowe: This May will be six years that I've been doing this podcast.

Kevin Lowe: There are plenty Of examples of people who have overcome, people who have done the thing that will surely motivate you.

Kevin Lowe: But again, you first have to start with something that inspires you so that you have that deeper level of why driving you forward.

Kevin Lowe: So my friend, I want to wrap up today by simply reminding you of This basic idea.

Kevin Lowe: Inspiration, it starts the engine.

Kevin Lowe: Motivation keeps you moving.

Kevin Lowe: It is the fuel you need to continue on the race.

Kevin Lowe: But first, you got to turn the key.

Kevin Lowe: You got to press the gas.

Kevin Lowe: You got to put the car into gear. Then once we get moving forward, once we get you on the highway.

Kevin Lowe: We can then work On fueling up the tank to keep you going forward.

Kevin Lowe: So again, I don't want you to start shaming yourself because you don't feel motivated.

Kevin Lowe: Instead, I want you to forget all about motivation.

Kevin Lowe: And I want you to focus on inspiration. If you need Ideas for how to get inspired.

Kevin Lowe: Well, my friend, Look at this podcast. Check out other podcasts in the same category.

Kevin Lowe: Find people who have been there, things that they've done that you want to do, or maybe go old school, find a book, find a magazine.

Kevin Lowe: If they still make printed magazines, well, maybe go grab one.

Kevin Lowe: Find anything that might stand a chance at getting you excited about life again.

Kevin Lowe: That is where inspiration comes into play. And again, I'm gonna reference our previous episode because it just lends its hand perfect to this conversation.

Kevin Lowe: Go back and Listen to the previous episode where I talk all about dreaming big.

Kevin Lowe: It's better than New Year's resolutions.

Kevin Lowe: It's better than goals. It's dreaming big dreams for your life, which are the perfect source for.

Kevin Lowe: The inspiration you need To get you moving forward.

Kevin Lowe: And then at that point, We can start working on the motivation. My friend, I'm your host, Kevin Lowe, and this was another episode of Grit.

Kevin Lowe: Grace, and Inspiration.

Kevin Lowe: Last little note, If there is somebody in your life who you feel needs to hear what I just told you, well, please be sure to share today's episode with them.

Kevin Lowe: It would mean the world to me, And hopefully it will mean the world to them. Until next time, just get out there and get inspired, and we will work on motivation as we get going.