Antelope Canyon

Pretty much all of Southern Utah/Northern Arizona is gorgeous. 

Cruise Like a Norweigan

I really like this ad. To be fair, cruises are fun, but not exactly like this (remember there are 4,000 other people on the boat with you). But the ad itself  is very aspirational.

A Psalm of Life

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Tell me not, in mournful numbers,
Life is but an empty dream!
For the soul is dead that slumbers,
And things are not what they seem.

Life is real! Life is earnest!
And the grave is not its goal;
Dust thou art, to dust returnest,
Was not spoken of the soul.

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,
Is our destined end or way;
But to act, that each to-morrow
Find us farther than to-day.

Art is long, and Time is fleeting,
And our hearts, though stout and brave,
Still, like muffled drums, are beating
Funeral marches to the grave.

In the world’s broad field of battle,
In the bivouac of Life,
Be not like dumb, driven cattle!
Be a hero in the strife!

Trust no Future, howe’er pleasant!
Let the dead Past bury its dead!
Act,— act in the living Present!
Heart within, and God o’erhead!

Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;

Footprints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o’er life’s solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again.

Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labor and to wait.

Shackleton

"Difficulties are just things to overcome, after all."                     

- Ernest Shackleton

The ultimate example of survival and perseverance comes from the story of Ernest Shackleton and his crew aboard the Endurance. In a voyage to explore the Antarctic in 1914, the ship froze in the ice and was destroyed. Shackleton led his crew to rescue and safety after more than 18 months of desolation in the icy tundra. Miraculously, not one person was lost. I highly recommend the book, which includes stunning photography of the journey, as well as the movie starring Kenneth Branagh.

Dauðalogn - I can't pronounce it, but it's amazing

This video was Dauðalogn's winning entry for the Valtari Mystery Film Experient. Frankly, this Sigur Rós song is deeply inspiring in its own right. The breathtaking, time-lapsed footage of our amazing earth is just icing on the cake.

I want to die to this song. I'm serious.

Get Inspired Everyday

In 2008, I read a blog post by Seth Godin titled "Is Effort a Myth?" that inspired me. In the post, Godin argues that aside from the outliers (lottery winners etc.), effort is directly related to success. At the end of the post, he proposes deleting 120 minutes everyday that is spent wasting time, and instead spending it on a list of items designed to increase knowledge, productivity, and valuable skills.

In the five years since I've read this post, I've come back to it dozens of times for inspiration. But I haven't had the discipline needed to actually follow his recommended steps. Until now.

Today I am committing to following Godin's plan for at least six months. As part of that plan, I have started this blog to list one thing everyday that inspires me. This blog is mainly for me, but since you've stumbled upon it one way or another, I hope that it will serve to inspire you too.