Why Inspiration Matters (my response to "Why Inspirational Talks Don't Work") | Hacker News Reader

Why Inspiration Matters (my response to "Why Inspirational Talks Don't Work")

jasonshen.com

17 pointsjasonshen6 comments

I agree. I think what anyone needs for success or change (both personal and professional) is hope and grit. It takes hope to take the first steps in any positive direction. It takes both hope and grit to continue taking steps, even through tough times.

Inspiration matters because it creates hope.

I wonder if there can be a third side to this debate. How about Thomas Edison: "Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration."

Good to see you back at it! And nicely said.

I think the OP misses the point.

Inspirational talks don't work because inspiration is natural and emergent. Inspirational talks have often convinced me of an idea, but have never inspired me. Which is weird, because I have heard many speeches or talks that weren't inspirational talks, and yet they were inspirational!

You have to inspire people, not give them reasons to be inspired. There's a big difference, and all of the inspirational talks I've been to were presented as the latter.

My point is that when you hear stories of other people doing incredible things and feel that you can relate to them - it inspires you to be better, to act differently and to make changes in your life - in a natural and emergent way.

Books like Born to Run, talks like The Last Lecture and movies like Miracle and Hoosiers are inspirational and that's not at all a bad thing.

"Inspirational talks have often convinced me of an idea, but have never inspired me. Which is weird, because I have heard many speeches or talks that weren't inspirational talks, and yet they were inspirational!"

I think we are splitting hairs. A talk that inspires is an "inspirational talk". Some talks inspire certain people and not others, just as some foods don't taste good to me and some web apps don't do what I need them to.

Maybe you've just gone to the wrong inspirational talks.

Inspiration can't trump genes, or biology. You need inspiration to work with your genes to produce positive action. If you hate your work, and hate working hard, inspiration won't work. It won't help you lose weight when you hate exercise, and hate eating healthy either.

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