Live to Inspire Others
Each day is an opportunity to propel others to greater heights.
We all have the remarkable ability to gently shape the people around us. We don’t do it by demanding that they be different or manipulating them into doing what we want. We do it through our actions.
We affect our friend’s happiness and their weight. Our presence often determines who our friends hang out with and how they spend their time. We are influencing their world in ways neither of us can fully comprehend.
If this isn’t a superpower, then I don’t know what is.
We may not be able to read minds, but we can certainly change them.
We have the power to help or hurt our friends. Our choices have an impact on all areas of their wellness. Why not use those choices to inspire them? We might inspire ourselves in the process.
Know Your Power
We live in a world filled with people. Everyone shares this space with a few friends and family, some acquaintances and a lot of strangers. Almost everything we do is viewed by people, judged by people, ignored by people, praised by people, etc. Unless you plan on moving to some far off place to live the rest of your days, the imprint of people will be constantly present.
The bright side, however, is you can leave your imprint too. I think you’d be surprised just how big this imprint can be. All of us can inspire others in brilliant ways.
Here are a few ways to inspire friends, family, and strangers:
1. Show up with Love and Joy
People that are rude, grumpy, and difficult to be around are not inspiring.
How many celebrities have lost their public appeal, because stories of their bad character emerged?
When we learn someone is often mean or upset, it slowly overshadows the good qualities they may have. Their work, even if it’s really good, slowly becomes less and less appealing.
Your character is the one thing that will accompany anything you do. If people don’t think you have good character, they aren’t going to listen to what you say or do.
Good character is a prerequisite to creating inspiration.
2. Have Your Life in Order
It’s hard to be inspired by someone that seems to be a complete mess. Taking care of yourself should be at the top of your priorities.
People get inspiration from those living in a life they believe is admirable. You can have a lot of good qualities, but if you don’t look like you care about your health and hygiene, people aren’t going to pay attention to you. After all, why should they? Our appearance is our way of saying “I value myself and my ideas”. Taking care of yourself is a luxury you deserve and must take if you have any plans of inspiring others.
3. Right and Wrong Are Rarely Objective
We all have different values, beliefs, and perceptions. The things that seem obvious to you may not be obvious to some. These people likely won’t listen to what you have to say and that’s okay. There are plenty of others who will.
Don’t shy away from the things you believe in. Put them out there. Let the world know. Just don’t try to make everyone adhere to your ideas.
The people that create the greatest impact with their ideas are often those that recognize they might be wrong. The willingness to admit a mistake or consider another person’s view is a building block for creating a more complete belief system for ourselves and anyone that we may inspire along the way.
4. Live a Life You’re Proud Of
Every person you meet has a desire to live a life they are proud of. They want to come home each night and say “I’m happy with how I went through my day”.
Since everyone has this desire for themselves, it’s often inspiring to see someone that has achieved this goal. Some people can make us believe they’re happy when they aren’t, but most of the time we can tell if someone is truly happy with their life or not. It shows up in their smiles, the way they interact with others, and the quality of their work.
People that truly love who they are and what they’re doing have a spark that can rarely be recreated.
Recognize Inspiration
Almost daily, I find a small source of inspiration for how I would like to live my life. These small moments open me up to better ways of exemplifying my values. They give me goals to work toward. It could be an amazing moment, a great movie, a spectacular person, or a beautiful friendship.
Maybe through noticing and working toward inspiration, we could all inspire each other to be slightly happier and more well-rounded people.
