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What does it mean to ‘be inspired’? What inspires you? Who has inspired or does inspire you? Why? What is it about the person or the situation that creates inspiration? If you really had to define it to someone, what would you say?
In keying inspirational into a typical search engine, there appeared almost 110 million hits, while an online book retailer returned almost 246 thousand entries. The inference is that it is at least a popular topic.
The dictionary defines inspirational as ‘an inspiring or animating action or influence; something inspired; a result of inspired activity, or a thing or person that inspires’. Inspire, on the other hand is defined as ‘to fill with an animating, quickening, or exalting influence; to produce or arouse; to fill or affect with a specified feeling, thought, etc.; to influence or impel; to animate, as an influence, feeling, thought, or the like, does; to communicate or suggest by a divine or supernatural influence; to guide or control by divine influence’ (Dictionary.com, 2016).
There is something here about thoughts, emotions and behaviours, all being driven by a catalyst of some description. But is that catalyst the same for everyone? I would argue not. Going back to one of my earlier questions, ‘who has inspired you?’ (a reoccurring TV interview question), it is highly unlikely that everyone will respond with the same person. Perhaps if it were a list of say five or ten people, there may be similarities. So perhaps being inspired is a truly individual premise. What inspires me may or may not inspire others.
I have read and seen countless references to ‘inspirational quotes’ or the ‘greatest inspirational people of our time’ and yet I could not recall a single one of them. True, if I was asked who I considered inspirational, I could identify several individuals, but I would be regarding them as being inspirational to others, and there is nothing wrong with that. People need to find the thing, situation or event that truly inspires them.
Do you recall the statement, ‘Inspire a Generation’? It was the mantra of the London 2012 Olympic Games. I wonder how much evidence there is to show that this has or is happening. How long does inspiration truly last? How about ‘Get Inspired’? This is part of the BBC Sport website and includes a number of activities for all ages. The site suggests that I should browse their collection of 70 activities and get inspired to try something new today. Truthfully, for me that’s not going to work. I need something more, something that connects with me at a deeper level, almost like a jolt of electricity.
I remember watching Britain’s Got Talent in January 2009 when a 47 year old unemployed lady took to the stage. It appeared clear from the audience’s reaction and that of the panel that they were not expecting much. All that changed within a few seconds of her beginning to sing. The world knows her now as Susan Boyle and I still cannot watch her performance without the odd tear. But I’m not inspired to sing and certainly not to audition for BGT! So what is it? What moved me so much?
In reflection, and I have considered this a lot, there are two things that inspired me. Firstly, the courage of Susan Boyle to face the audience and overcome a reasonable degree of adversity, both during the process and afterwards. Secondly, I was inspired by people’s ability to change their views, opinions and to recognise, presumably, that they should not prejudge. It was the expression of ‘I was wrong’ on their faces that I notice every time.
A week ago I co-facilitated an Open Space event. The participants included homeless individuals and couples, those with mental health issues, some recovering addicts and a number of people from the community who operate in a support function for these people. The day was designed for everyone to contribute their thoughts and opinions on how they could all work better together and to identify both common purpose and priorities.
This was no forced event. This was about choice. Everyone there had volunteered their time to contribute to putting something back into the community. Everyone wanted to participate in making things better. Everyone treated everyone else as an equal. There were no ego’s here, no levels of authority prominent. People just got together and got the job done. I found that inspirational! That people can come together, some suffering serious social hardships and/or feeling ostracised by society, give their time freely while expecting nothing in return and happily offer to return to make things better, I find inspiring.
In the coaching and mentoring world we are often challenged by clients who want or need to be inspired (Inspirational Coaching, incidentally, has about 1.2 million hits in Google). Rather than asking the usual suspects list of questions, perhaps it would be useful to explore with them what inspiration looks and feels like for them. What are the thoughts, emotions and behaviours associated with it? You may also wish to explore if and how different personality types interpret inspiration in different ways. Or you could foster a discussion about how the situation influences an individual’s desire or need to be inspired. How many people, for example, have been inspired by an event that they were not expecting to happen? How many people have been inspired to take action as a result of an occurrence?
On the other side of the fence is the inference to be inspirational, either in your coaching, mentoring, consultancy or training delivery. Knowing your audience is the key. There is no panacea, no ‘one size fits all’ approach. To be truly inspirational and to truly inspire those we work with requires effort and hard work. It can be challenging but the rewards are great.
I invite you to go back to my opening questions and to answer them as honestly and as deeply as you can. You may wish to challenge some of your beliefs and opinions by asking yourself ‘why’? You may wish to reflect on your career to date and identify what has inspired you or how you have inspired others. You may want to consider how long inspiration lasts! As Socrates said, ‘Know Thyself’.
Whatever path you choose, when it comes to inspiration it is an internal driver. You may not be able to see what inspires, but you may see the outcomes of an inspired individual. Whether that is inspiration or motivation is a topic for another day.
Thank you for reading.
e
David Monro-Jones AFC ASM
IIC&M Managing Director
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