Inspiration

Inspiration is the first step of the journey. It begins with the suspicion of possibility.
"That guy says I can do more, be more, that I can get from here to point B; is he right?"
The process that follows is based on a couple of assumptions. First, the source of our suspicion is credible to us and second, what they're suggesting I can achieve is something that matters to me.

"You can only depend on yourself. The cavalry ain't coming."
The man is Christopher Gardener, CEO of his own stockbrokerage firm, Gardner Rich & Co, based in Chicago, Illinois. His life is the subject of the movie "The Pursuit of Happiness" starring Will Smith. Gardener grew up poor in a household surrounded by violence, child abuse, fear, alcoholism and illiteracy, things he determined would not be part of his adult life. He struggled with failed relationships, betrayal by prospective employers and homelessness on the streets of San Francisco before reaching his point B, success as a financier.

Is this guy credible to me? You'd better believe it! Anything I've suffered in my life…forget it! Chris suffered, I was merely offended. Life beat him mercilessly; it slapped me on the wrist. But I notice this guy has two arms, two legs, a head and I bet he gets naked before he showers just like me. Credible? Absolutely! Point B worth shooting for? Yep, no doubt. And to ice the cake he even said something I glom onto philosophically:
"Find something that you love. Something that gets you so excited you can't wait to get out of bed in the morning. Forget about money. Be happy."
Happy sounds good to me.

I now begin to suspect that what my inspiration source has suggested is possible for me.

I'm ready to acknowledge the possibility before me and my interest in obtaining it;
"I'll bet I could be/do/have that!"
But before proceeding I need a reason to do so as well as confidence in my ability to reach the desired end. These two steps are not necessarily linear; while we're only capable of thinking one thought at a time we will give both of these aspects sufficient consideration before moving on. Enter pain and pleasure.

Sigmund Freud suggested that every action we humans take is based on either our pursuit of pleasure or avoidance of pain.

 (I have given his "Pleasure Principle" a great deal of thought and have found no exception so I will proceed as if his theory is indeed fact.) And these are the things we will consider; what pleasure awaits me if I reach point B? What pain might I experience if I get there? One's evaluation may take a form similar to "If____then____but." For example:

"If I jump out of an airplane then I'll feel a freedom unlike any I've experienced before. And it will be the adrenaline rush of a lifetime. And my friends will think I'm a gonzo wild man and tell stories to their grandchildren about me! But the 'chute may not open in which case I'll plunge to a gruesome death."

"If I become a doctor then I'll make lots of money and join the country club and cure people who will then see me as a hero. But I may not like the job after investing lots of years and thousands of dollars."

"If I get sober then I'll become a better father and spouse, and I'll hold down a job and join the country club like the doctor across the street. But if I fall off the wagon it will give me another reference that I am and always will be a drunk; frankly, I'm afraid of trying and failing."

Who will win, pain or pleasure?

Of course there is no way of predicting but it will depend to a large extent on which side of the "but" you focus more of your attention. And to complicate things there are "likelihoods" to consider. Frankly, the sky diver has a statistically better chance than the drunk--but only they can decide whether or not to proceed. Let's assume pleasure wins out and our subject proceeds. Does he have the "right stuff" to reach his point B?