Motivation to fruit

I heard an anecdote recently about a barren tree. The owners were local farmers, and they weren't sure if it was an apple tree, a pear tree, or something else. No fruit had ever developed from it. They spent some time trying to care for the tree, keeping it watered, fertilized, and trimmed. Nothing worked. After some years they essentially gave up on it, using it as a tie point for a particularly exciteable dog. 

This dog wasn't dangerous, but he was vicious. In particular, he hated the delivery trucks coming and going, and he'd go berserk whenever he saw or heard them. He couldn't bark or growl loudly enough to express his disdain, so he took to jumping up and yanking at low tree branch. It developed into a daily canine catharsis routine.

In the following year, hundreds of apples fell from that tree. The moral, according to one of the owners, is that "Sometimes you have to beat them." 

Arboreal assault aside, I think the underlying lesson is that even natural processes require motivation. Trees don't fruit just because they feel like it. It's a survival mechanism triggered by environmental adversity. They need a shock to get them going. A catalyst.

Human inspiration works this way. Without hardship and chance, we have no reason to reflect and adjust. When everything is routine, it's easy to forget what you're capable of.

So if you're feeling stagnant, consider giving yourself a shock. Go outside your comfort zone. Find a reason to bear fruit.