Blog

“Who inspires you?”

“Who inspires you?” – #inthezone 56

is one of those questions which is asked of us many times. Without being disrespectful to the person who is asking the question, it’s such a bloody cliché…and not a good one. To make matters worse, we tend to offer standard answers, either someone famous or a so called “business guru”.

There is nothing wrong on drawing inspiration from well-known individuals, but let’s be honest, the word “inspiration” gets banded around a lot. You see it in videos, read it in content and hear people say it at networking events.

We need to address the elephant in the room.

In the main, when you hear someone utter the words “he or she is very inspirational”, it’s just lip service to make another feel good about themselves, when, in actual fact, it’s plain old bollocks.

When we delve deeper into what truly inspires us, it’s an answer which varies depending on whom you ask. After all, it’s something that should mentally stimulate us to take action. Where people fall down is that inspiration is only the starting point for them when really it’s all about persistence, perseverance, and, as they say, perspiration.

To me, inspiration is a moment in time and life is made up of many moments. As the saying goes “don’t count the moments, make the moments count”.

Only when we take action on the advice that we hear, see or read, and do this for a sustained period of time, can we make a difference in our own lives and business.

Inspiration should only be the catalyst to drive us forward, not the whole driving force behind our success.

All too often people feel the need to find inspiration in other people, hence why the question “who inspires you?” is used ever so frequently.

That phrase should be changed to “what inspires you?”, as inspiration can be found everywhere (even in the smallest of places), so you need not look for it, as it may present itself in the most unconventional, unusual circumstances.