The Quest for Motivation
Author: Lori Mofield
Original Publication Date in Love Notes: May 2003

We, as writers, must be self-motivating in order for us to reach whatever goal we set for ourselves, and goals must be realistic, attainable and modifiable. The goals not only allow us to feel a sense of accomplishment although we are yet to be published, but also to set a road map to publication. How does one become motivated when you tell someone you’re a writer and their response is, “Oh, how many books have you published?”

Well, ah, none, but I’m almost published and have been for years. That statement alone is defeating to my motivation.

It’s such a hard business to break into, and like a lot of struggling songwriters and singers here in Nashville, you must be at the right place, at the right time, with the right person and have lots of luck to even make your way out of the slush pile. How do you stay motivated when odds are unlikely that you will become a successful published author, and a billion to one shot that you may become the next household name? Motivation was slipping through my fingers like sand.

So many odds and then being a working mother of four sons, my oldest serving proudly for our country in Afghanistan and married, and myself happily married, it is difficult to stay motivated, especially when life so often gets in the way. So, I ask you, “What’s the use?” Especially after I received another rejection today, and let me think, that makes 102 of them. Whew, catching up to Stephen King pretty fast.

After polishing off a Domino’s pizza with extra cheese and pepperoni, I wonder why I bother. And that’s how I began my quest to look for the all-knowing, wise person who can tell me how to stay motivated with such overwhelming odds. So, being the shy person that I am, I began asking everyone what kept them motivated either in their job, hobbies or just life in general. Fortunately, I work and live in the city of Mt. Juliet, Tenn., as the municipal codes enforcement officer and auxiliary police officer and know many people around town. Using that network, I have documented my quest for the perfect motivation and thought I would share it with you.

***Day 1***

Melissa, who is the receptionist and small business expert, says that motivation for her “self-satisfaction.” Hmmm, yea, well, I agree with that. But for me, it didn’t make me want to run to the computer. I’ve just started my next novel and although I have self-satisfaction for completing the previous five, it didn’t move me. 

So I kept looking. I spoke to the court clerk, Liz, and she smiled and leaned back into her chair. Her blue eyes took on a sparkle and she looked around her small office, then leaned forward as if her statement held the secret and finally told me. “I’m motivated by my daughter, Chelsee. She’s the reason that I’m here.” 

I nodded, made my notes thinking of my own children, the four sons I have spent the last 19 years raising, who are four reasons that I work a day job, but not a motivation to write. So, I kept looking and found my friend Jennifer, the police dispatcher, and asked her. 

“Well, to keep me coming in here day after day is my family.” Once again, the children and the family are motivators to come to work, but it wasn’t what I was looking for to urge me to write. 

So, I kept on asking the question and found Sgt. Barlow and I asked him. “Well, why do you want to know?” he asked in suspicion. 

I smiled. “Always the cop, Greg! I just want to know what motivates you to do what you love.” 

He nodded and sat in the hallway chair quiet for a moment then looked up at me. “Well, let’s think about this. I love being a cop so that to me is my motivation. I look forward to coming to work each day, and miss it when I’m not here. Helping people to solve their problems and encouraging others to become motivated helps them to find fulfillment and satisfaction within their lives. That’s what motivates me, the opportunity to help.” 

I nodded and mulled over his prophetic words. But, in writing, the process is not immediate and although it does help me keep my sanity, it was not exactly what I was looking for, so I kept on.

I found our personnel director, Jill, and asked her to describe what motivates her. Her response was, “Drive to be a better person in life, a better employee in work and to be the best that I can achieve whether personal or business with the ultimate goal of success.”

“Wow!” I believe was my response for her articulated off-the-cuff answer, but again, no help.

 Our chief detective approached me and thought he could provide some sort of wisdom on my quest, so sitting with him in my office, I watched as he thought over my question. He smiled. “Being a police officer is motivation in itself. Solving a case which seemed impossible challenges me to find all the pieces and to offer justice to those who may not have it.” 

Again, wonderful words, and in a way applies to writing, scenes as pieces and the completion may take a year or several, just like a case. Well, certainly food for thought, but I needed more. So I continued. Surely within our city of 16,000 people, I could find the answer to this question.

On my way to lunch, I ran into Detective Mike who is on our drug task force. “I would love to say that motivation stems from a childhood surrounded by drugs, but I rarely think about that. What motivates me is winning. In the drug task force, you’re playing a game of who can beat the other to the finish and it’s usually me. They don’t know that they are playing the game and I will see them in court. Putting them behind bars and hopefully saving a child is my motivation.”

Although I liked what he had to say, it still didn’t fit what I was looking for, so when I met with my friend Carrie, who is our technical writer and PR person, for lunch, I threw out the question. She laughed at my question at first and then realizing I was serious, thought for a moment, then answered. “As far as what motivates me, I guess it would be to perform a job aggressively and efficiently and knowing that I’m helping someone by doing the best possible job, personal or business, that I possibly can.” 

That’s Carrie, my friend who would give you the shirt of her back if she thought you needed it. However, I kept looking for the answers; surely someone would have the right response and sudden warmth would wash over me like the ending to one of my stories in which tears run unknowingly down my cheeks. That’s the type of answer I want, how do I become motivated.

So, I kept looking. After a business meeting with the city planner, who is my boss, I threw the question out to him. And, as always, his response was intriguing and thought provoking (he may read this, kissing up doesn’t hurt), “To be on the right side of the road with unlimited potential for change.” 

Hmmm. “Thanks Bobby, don’t know if that is exactly what I am searching for, but it certainly gives me food for thought.” 

I continued on my quest. I turned to the codes and zoning assistant, Amber, and asked this petite, cute 18-year-old girl what she thought. “Well, I think making a difference in my community and leaving a mark that you know that I’ve been here.” 

I smiled at her, loving her statement for someone so young. Does it apply to me? Maybe, maybe not, but I was certainly going in the right direction. So, I continued and discussed this with a very successful 71-year-old man, Harold, who I’ve come to admire and respect during the years that I have known him. 

His response is one which provided a small vision into a man whom I only knew through business. “My childhood,” he began, “in the projects gave me the desire to become a success in life. Although I am not a self-made man or what I would consider to be one, because there were many people who helped me along the way, but, with each success, I was motivated to continue to do more. At 71 years old, I still feel the urge and excitement of knowing that I can go further, move with honesty and integrity. That I will always be thought of as a good man.” Harold’s words were a perfect ending to my quest for the day.

***Day 2***

The next day, I began again to try and find the answer. I did this for several reasons, but mainly because writing is a necessary part of who I have become, no matter if I realized it at 10 years old or 30, it is as important as sustenance is to my body, words and stories are for my sanity, which some question at times. But, I had to find some way to improve or even at times, find my motivation. I must let those voices in my head which are constant and nagging, wanting their lives to continue, living within my imagination and dying to come out with strokes from my computer keyboard come out without finding something else to do like clean bathroom toilets. Sometimes I believe that finding the motivation is to let go of the guilt. You know how it is, working all day, making dinner, laundry, driving my boys around to activities, worrying about my son in Afghanistan, and is my 17-year-old son okay? He’s late. Sometimes I really wonder if I am being selfish by writing, there is so much else to do and it takes time away from family, offering me another excuse not to write, embedding the lack of motivation into my daily life.

So my quest began anew and I sought out the chief of police, Kenny, and his response was, “What motivates me are happy people, solving problems and being sought for your opinion and knowledge, makes you feel useful and wanted. This with my family and friends motivates me to excel in everything I do.” He smiled and nodded. “Did I help?” 

“Well,” I responded, “you confirmed what I’ve known about you all along is that you are inspired by everything around you good and kind.” He left me heading toward a meeting humming through the hallway. 

Happy people, he said. Well, I write romantic suspense, they can’t always be happy. And, a mom of four, I am needed enough, thank you. So, what works for the chief doesn’t necessarily work for me. So I continued and saw my friend Chris, a cop who has offered me assistance on occasions when I needed him without question and now I consider my friend. He asked for some time to think over his response and when he returned, he glanced to the side. 

“I don’t know exactly how to say this, but here goes. Motivation for me is knowing that I provide guidance, prevention and order in our community as a police officer. As a public safety officer, knowing that I helped save a life today adds to my desire to be a success in my job.” 

I smiled at him. “You said it very well Chris, thank you.” And he walked out of my office. Well, I destroy order and tranquility in my novels in order to place two people together, so that won’t work and I certainly enjoy the murder part far more than saving lives, of course, unless it’s the hero and heroine.

So I continued my trek through the motivation quest to Sgt. Hamblen of the police department. This tall (maybe 6’2” or 6’3”) man who reminds me of a handsome Bailiff Bull from the Night Court sitcom years ago, said the hero words of a police officer in my opinion. 

First he did the cop thing. “Why do you want to know?” 

I smiled and explained. Then he nodded and looked up and down the hallway, ensuring we weren’t going to be overheard. He does have a reputation to maintain, after all. 

“Well,” he began, “I am motivated by knowing that I make a difference. That may be by helping people, understanding their situations and treating them with respect that I may help people. It offers me the hope that possibly one day in the future, someone who was a troubled teen grew up into a successful adult and when they saw me would say, “Hey, if it hadn’t been for you, I would’ve never made it.” 

Hero words if I ever heard them, gonna have to use that statement in one of my novels.

However, I wondered if I if would ever find the perfect statement to answer my question? So many of the people I know have found the answer, why am I the one still looking? I sat in my nine-passenger van that resembles more of a daycare bus than anything else, affectionately referred to as Big Bertha, and mulled over all that I had learned and realized they had found the answers specific for them. But what about me? What if I never found motivation and simply worked day by day at the same pace? Oh well, not a bad way I suppose, but I was dumbfounded that I couldn’t find the answer.

We arrived at karate at the community center. My boys jumped from the van and ran into the building and I quietly followed, still confused at my lack of success as we stepped into the dojo. The boys looked excited to be there as they stood at attention and the teacher spoke encouraging words as my mind wandered. Why had I failed? I asked everyone that I could in two days of lunch hours, wasted all that time and my question still remained unanswered. I sat in the grey metal chair, discouraged as the karate class began to recite their student creed. I found that although I have heard it hundreds of times, for the first time in two years, I truly listened to the words they spoke loudly in cadence form.

I will develop myself in a positive manner and avoid anything that could reduce my mental growth or physical health. I will develop self-discipline in order to bring out the best in myself and others. I will respect and support and offer hope where I can. I will use common sense before self-defense and never be abusive or offensive. This is a black belt school: we are dedicated, we are motivated, we are on a quest to be our best. I will persevere no matter what the odds and will never, ever, allow someone to tell me something is not within my reach. I will reach for the stars because winners never quit and quitters never win; and I choose to be a winner!

Warmth spread over me and I closed my eyes as realization overcame every thought, every goal and every action of my life. Motivation is not a question that can be answered from anyone else. It comes from within; no one person can identify what motivates you to do the things you love, hate or that become mundane in your day-to-day activities. I have found the answer, finally, and it is within me. I choose to be a winner no matter what the odds. 

I smiled, opened my eyes and glanced at the clock. I couldn’t wait to get home and begin the next chapter.

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