What's your high?

When I was in elementary school, I was one of those shy kids who never raised their hands. And when I rarely did, it was only because there was a reason. I remember there were times I did it just to try to prove that I wasn't as quiet as I had led on people to believe. But since I rarely did, it was because I could care less. Other times, I tried motivating myself to do so. What was this motivation? Well, I thought about the video games I would get to play when I got home...in particular Spyro. Only a true 90's kid would understand how great Spyro was. Anyways, I find it really strange that we all subconsciously have these extrinsic motivations inside of us that help push us a little bit further, or help us get through the day. I bet most people think about the future, pushing to a certain reward. How many of us actually think about the present, focusing on what we are doing right now, without any hint of what lies ahead? I am certain there are people that do do this, and they are pretty smart for it. I know I think about the future all the time, not only from a year or two from now, but the night or hour ahead. It is a fact that if we have something to look forward to, we tend to be happier. As stupid as it sounds, these motivations could be a TV show, a night out with friends, a date, a new music album coming out, waiting on a clothing order, a paycheck...etc. These are all extrinsic motivations.
So when do we have intrinsic ones, a internal motivation? We might come across these from time to time over good deeds, but I guess I'm referring to more ourselves. One such as growing as an individual, or learning more about your passion because it makes you feel alive. These are the best kinds. It makes you feel as if that crappy morning didn't exist, or that the failed relationships you had don't matter. It suddenly helps adjust your perspective a little bit. It makes you proud. Everyone has something that adds a little spice to their life, it flickers a flame in our hearts. For me, it's obviously photography. After I did a photo shoot for a friend of mine about a week ago, my mood jumped about a thousand levels. It was the morning light, the feel of clicking the shutter on my new camera, the happiness shown through the pictures, the new ideas, the angles, the perception...it was everything that I was learning about in that moment. And in that moment, I couldn't bear to think about the future, because the way I felt in that time zone was all that mattered. This is something that everybody needs to find, a high in their life. And if you do, you'll be addicted for, well forever.