I can categorically say that none of us is a stranger to the motivational platitudes and the all too familiar antagonism around it.

To motivate is to encourage or to provide someone with an incentive to do something. Considering how many struggles we all face in our daily lives, maybe some more than others; you will all agree with me that we all need a healthy dosage of motivation to kick start some of our ideas and sometimes to just get up and live. Motivation gives us this push to get up and keep going. Let us consider some very popular motivational quotes by some renowned people;

• “The best way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” – Walt Disney
• “The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty.” – Winston Churchill
• “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” – C.S. Lewis
• “It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up.” – Vince Lombardi
• “Security is mostly a superstition. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” – Hellen Keller
• “For every reason it’s impossible, there are hundreds of people who have faced the same circumstances and succeeded.” – Jack Canfield

The words from these people, who can be described as great achievers in their own right, have gone on to inspire millions of others to go after their dreams and to give life a fresh perception.

If motivation does these much, whether self-motivation or ones inspired by others, why then is it often easily dismissed by some folks in our society? This is largely due to the fact that many unaccomplished people attempt to motivate others when they haven’t imbibed what they preach.

Dear motivational speaker and writer, before claiming the words of accomplished men and women, do us all a favor by exemplifying these words in your lives first. Test these motivational words and own them. Words in themselves are powerless to motivate if not backed by evidence of accomplishments.

So, next time you hear or read a motivating piece, don’t be quick to dismiss it. Instead, take your time to read about the author, get to know their experiences, and learn from them. If the author’s life however still leaves you uninspired, take their words and make them work for you. What counts is the result the words generate in your life, nothing more.