RWDevCon 2016 Inspiration Talk – Feed Your Fire by Ray Wenderlich
Check out the keynote speech from RWDevCon 2016, where Ray shares a campfire story about something he’s struggled with – along with some embarrassing stories along the way! By Ray Wenderlich.
An Expert at Being Demotivated
These is just one of the many times in life that I’ve struggled with motivation – perhaps you can say I’m an expert at being demotivated.
But the side benefit is, I’ve learned three ways to feed your fire so it keeps burning strong:
- Start Small, which is like using kindling to start a fire.
- Get External Motivation, which is like the core component of a fire – firewood.
- Do your Most Important Task first, which is like throwing gasoline while laughing like a maniac.
RWDevCon and You
My hope is that this weekend at RWDevCon, some our team’s passion for iOS, tvOS, and watchOS development spreads to you, and that we help you gain motivation to take what you learn here and create something incredible with it.
But how is that gonna work? I’ve been at too many conferences where all I did was fill up a document in Evernote and never look at it again. While I’m at a conference, my motivational fire is going strong – but when I go home, it often fizzles out.
The key here is to step up and take control your motivation. For example:
- Start with something small when you get home – like take one thing you learn here and integrate it into one of your apps.
- Find a friend to make sure do this – like a co-worker, a supervisor, or even someone you meet here at RWDevCon.
- Consider making this your Most Important Task for a certain day, that you do before anything else.
At the end of this conference, you’ll have a blazing spark of motivation – and if you feed your fire with these techniques, it’ll keep burning brighter and brighter even after you return home.
Where To Go From Here?
Remember, that everybody has struggles with motivation. But don’t fall into the trap I did, of thinking of motivation as this mysterious force that comes and goes on its own, and that you have to sit around and wait to come knocking. Because that knock may never come.
Instead, remember that just like building a fire, you have control, and you need to feed and nurture your motivation.
If you do this, one day you’ll be able to sit back in front of a roaring campfire, replay the story of your life, and think of all the highs that you’ve accomplished – with a big smile, and a cold beer. Thank you.