Desire to Inspire

Jim Rohn, now a world renowned author, speaker and business philosopher, started his inspirational journey when he was 25 years old. At that point in his life, he was not only broke but in debt. Broke is a temporary financial state; however, poor is a state of mind from which recovery takes more effort. Almost every great leader and financial success has suffered from financial lack at one point. None of them ever considered themselves poor.

Every great leader first developed self inspiration before they could effectively inspire others. Zig Zigler said, “Motivation does not last, but neither does bathing, that is why we do it every day.” The same statement applies to inspiration. In order to inspire other people, you first require a burning desire within yourself. Your own inner passion and self inspiration fire will fuel the fire to inspire others.

One of the greatest thrills for me is to know that I have touched, moved and inspired someone to go forward and achieve their dreams. Jim Rohn said one of the greatest thrills for anyone is to hear their name in someone else’s testimonial. Teachers and pastors rarely select that vocation for the financial rewards; they select those careers to inspire others to develop their full potential.

I started teaching seniors in high school the day of my 21st birthday. Now some 40+ years later I still hear from some of those students. The joy I feel hearing about the impact I made on their lives transcends explanation. My younger son had the opportunity to study law but chose to be a high school teacher instead. His passion for his students provided him the opportunity to be the youngest headmaster of an international high school. Currently he chairs the international division of a prep school in New Hampshire. The impact he provides inspires his students, his small sons, his wonderful wife, the faculty at the school and probably so many others whose lives he has touched.

We each have the opportunity every day to inspire others. Perhaps it is a smile or a kind word to brighten someone’s day. As a young single mother, I learned that children learn more by what we do than what we say. Children are extremely observant. They realize more than most give them credit for observing. The seemingly small unselfish acts of parents, co-workers or bosses inspire others to extend themselves. Every gesture creates an influence. When the legacy you choose to create revolves around kind gestures, you inspire me and you will enhance the lives of others. Everyone will be remembered for the problems they create or the problems they solve. You choose.

As I write this, I look up on the top of my roll top desk to a simple little gray rock which was given to me by an employee approximately 30 years ago. Engraved in the rock is the one word,”inspire.” The token of appreciation for what seemed to me as a small gesture of kindness impacted and inspired. Whose life will you have the opportunity to inspire today? Even more important - - will you make the effort to inspire others today? What a wonderful world we will create by extending inspiration and kindness to others.

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Have an inspiring day.