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Terry Blog

Choosing Your Fuel

6/28/2017

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Picture

The work is difficult. Overcoming obstacles, facing rejection, exploring the unknown--many of us need a narrative to fuel our forward motion, something to keep us insisting on the next semester, on better results, on pursuing work that matters even more.

The fuel you choose, though, determines how you will spend your days. You will spend far more time marinating in your fuel than you will actually doing breakthrough work. Richard Feynman was famously motivated by the joy of figuring things out. His scientific journey (which earned him a Nobel Prize) also provided him with truly wonderful days.

Here is a partial list, in alphabetical order, of narratives light and dark that can serve as fuel to push us to do work that others might walk away from:
  • Avoidance of shame (do this work or you'll be seen as a fraud/loser/outcast)
  • Big dreams (because you can see it/feel it/taste it)
  • Catastrophe (or the world as we know it will end)
  • Competition (someone is gaining on you)
  • Compliance (the boss/contract says I have to, and even better, there's a deadline)
  • Connection (because others will join in)
  • Creative itch (the voice inside of you wants to be expressed)
  • Dissatisfaction (because it's not good enough as it is)
  • Engineer (because there's a problem to be solved)
  • Fame (imagining life is better on the other side)
  • Generosity (because it's a chance to contribute)
  • It's a living (pay the writer)
  • Peer pressure (the reunion is coming up)
  • Possibility (because we can, and it'll be neat to see how it works in the world)
  • Professionalism (because it's what we do)
  • Revenge (you'll show the naysayers)
  • Selection (to get in, win the prize, be chosen)
  • Unhappiness (because the only glimmer of happiness comes from the next win, after all, we're not good enough as is)
​
They all work. Some of them leave you wrecked, some create an environment of possibility and connection and joy. Up to you. 
  
by Seth Godin
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  • Home
  • Prospective Scholars
  • Current Scholars
    • Scholars By Year >
      • Meet the 2011 Scholars
      • Meet the 2012 Scholars
      • Meet the 2013 Scholars
      • Meet the 2013 Transfer Scholars
      • Meet the 2014 Scholars
      • Meet the 2014 Transfer Scholars
      • Meet the 2015 Scholars
      • Meet the 2015 Transfer Scholars
      • Meet the 2016 Scholars
      • Meet the 2016 Transfer Scholars
      • Meet the 2017 Scholars
      • Meet the 2017 Transfer Scholars
      • Meet the 2018 Scholars
    • New Scholar Information >
      • New Freshman Survey
      • New Transfer Survey >
        • Transfer Scholar Tips
      • The Terry Letter Story
      • Welcome Week >
        • Instagram Scavenger Hunt
        • Video Scavenger Hunt
        • Library Information
      • Foundation Information >
        • Foundation Scholar Portal
        • Study Abroad
        • Recruiting
      • Texas Tech Information >
        • Housing >
          • Best Space
        • Social Media Tips
    • Student Org >
      • Achievements and Activities
      • Meet the Officers
      • Committee Involvement >
        • Connect
      • Calendar >
        • Orientation
        • Banquet >
          • 2011 Banquet
          • 2013 Banquet
          • 2014 Banquet
        • Picnic
      • Academics >
        • Academics Challenges >
          • SESSION 1: Academic Leadership
          • SESSION 2 : Master Plan
          • SESSION 3 : The Classroom
          • SESSION 4 : The Syllabus
          • SESSION 5: The Professor
          • SESSION 6: Resources I
          • SESSION 7: Study Groups
          • SESSION 8: Resources II
          • SESSION 9: Resources III
          • SESSION 10: Study Methods
        • Tutoring
        • Campus Involvement
        • Resumes
        • Success Tips
        • Goals
        • Letters of Recomendation
      • Intramurals
      • Fundraising
      • Leadership >
        • Leadership Book Club
      • Mentor Program >
        • Mentor Program Mission
        • Traditional Mentor Application
        • Traditional Mentor Report
        • Transfer Team Application
        • Transfer Mentor Report
        • Mentor Post-Year Survey
        • Mentee Post-Year Survey
        • Tech Terry Day
      • Personal Wellness >
        • Physical Fitness
        • Recipies
      • Public Relations >
        • All About
      • Service Projects >
        • Regional Service
        • Statewide Service Project >
          • Service Project Sponsorship
      • Social Activities
  • Parents
    • Move In Weekend Family Dinner
    • Terry Family Tailgate >
      • Sponsor
    • Farm House
    • Parents Only Blog
  • Alumni
    • TAP Program
    • Brunch
  • Shop
  • Blog