Ask HN: What book/paper/link keeps you motivated?

[kuwze]

What keeps me motivated is this link[0] which in is about the journey of developing a startup.

I'm really interested what resources people here fallback on when looking for motivation.

[0]: http://statspotting.com/a-lesson-from-the-shawshank-redemption/

[_pfxa]

I don't believe a book or anything similar can keep me "motivated" (that depends on one's will and outlook), but some can definitely help. A very influential text that helped me advance quite a bit in shaping my world view was the Anarchist Banker of Pessoa. It gives an interesting answer to the question of "existing in a world as a single individual that can hardly ameliorate the world on his own". Combining that with a reading of "Existentialism is a Humanism", and general free thinking, do help to build a strong defence mechanism to the facts of the outer world that can demotivate you. I'm quite an outlier in this community of mostly engineers and entrepreneurs, groups with which my thoughts usually conflict (especially the latter ones), but reading philosophy and philosophically-charged literature can furnish a sort of critical thinking, skepticism and/or quasi-nihilism that can actually boost one's confidence in pursuing some ends.

[mindcrime]

Paul Graham - How Not To Die - http://www.paulgraham.com/die.html

2002 NCAA wrestling finals - Josh Lambrecht (Oklahoma) vs Rob Rohn (Lehigh) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRB6m4VdeJQ&t=270s

Whitesnake - Here I Go Again - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyF8RHM1OCg

Mötley Crüe - Keep Your Eye On The Money - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkRnRs_8Mx8

Any Given Sunday - Al Pacino Pregame Speech - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSDhhZtRwFU

Eric Thomas (E.T. the "Hip Hop Preacher") - How Bad Do You Want It - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vuetQSwFW8

Glengarry Glen Ross - the "Alec Baldwin Speech" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4PE2hSqVnk

Boiler Room - the "Ben Affleck Speech" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfIKzReNDF4

Grant Cardone - Be Obsessed Or Be Average - https://www.amazon.com/Be-Obsessed-Average-Grant-Cardone/dp/...

Grant Cardone - The 10X Rule - https://www.amazon.com/10X-Rule-Difference-Between-Success/d...

Grant Cardone - If You're Not First, You're Last - https://www.amazon.com/Youre-Not-First-Last-Competition/dp/0...

Grant Cardone - Sell Or Be Sold - https://www.amazon.com/Sell-Be-Sold-Your-Business/dp/1608322...

[mindcrime → mindcrime]

FWIW, that wrestling match is there because it's one of the greatest examples I know of, that illustrates the importance of not quitting until (the final whistle | the fat lady sings | you die | etc).

In this match, Rohn is down by somewhere around 12 points, and is very close to a "technical fall"[1] loss, and late in the match has shown almost no offense at all. The announcers have already declared Lambrecht the winner and are basically waiting for time to run out. #spoilers follow# With just over a minute remaining Rohn pulls out an improbable takedown and ultimately pins Lambrecht with only a few seconds left on the clock. The crowd goes wild (well, as wild as an amateur wrestling crowd goes).

Along with the 1980 Winter Olympics hockey match between the USA and USSR teams, this is probably the most exciting / inspirational sporting moment I can think of. And as a former wrestler with little interest in hockey, the Lambrecht/Rohn match is the one that really gets me fired up.

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_fall

[k_sh]

This interview[0] from James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem on failure always gets me out of a rut.

[0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYCz06bS380

[lang_lang]

Whenever I need motivation I take a little trip to r/GetMotivated

https://www.reddit.com/r/GetMotivated/

[ebcode]

The Art of Peace by Morihei Ueshiba (translated by Stevens).