Putting myself out there to inspire others.
I often hear that I have inspired someone to do something or say something or wear something outside of their normal behavior. Maybe it’s something they have always wanted to do or maybe it was a one off moment of creativity but the act of inspiring someone was never something I set out to do. In fact, I’m not sure if you were to ask me, “how do I inspire” someone, would I even have an answer. I mean, honestly, how do you genuinely inspire someone to do something? It’s the same as saying ‘influencers” influence people — but no influencer will ever say “I am an influencer because…”. I can’t force people to change their behavior, I can’t even ask them to do something that they usually don’t even realize they want to do…. all I can do is put myself out there, in my own unique way, and hope someone takes something away from it.
A few years ago a follower of mine, in fact the mother of child who followed me, wrote me a lengthy message saying how after hearing me speak about overcoming cyber bullying her son finally had the courage to paint his toenails green and wear them proudly in front of his friends. It was an incredibly powerful story and I remember thinking how strange it was to have my words turned into a burst of creative energy for someone else.
But it got me thinking about what stimulates me and what gets my juices flowing. Sometimes I see a color or a shape or hear a phrase and I start to think how I can incorporate it into my own life… how can I put a new outfit together that is different to what I’ve worn before? How can I design something I’ve never seen before but somehow always wanted?
Those ‘inspirations’ come from witnessing someone else do something that sparks a creative idea — I suppose that’s how people are influenced to do new things… we watch, we hear, we experiment until we find a new path. I’m not sure I can really inspire anyone but I know I am inspired by people who do things differently — who dare to be themselves and try new things. A phrase I always love to live by sums it up perfectly, if everyone else is doing it, do the opposite!“