If you have ever been in the situation where you need to help others, you know how hard it can be to inspire. Inspiration doesn’t come from just telling someone what they could/should be doing. That is just lecturing people, and it doesn’t really work. Sure it will help some people with a small problem, but to have a true impact on someone’s life, you need to inspire.
Inspiration will go far beyond what direct words you speak, or actions you show. Inspiration can influence the way someone leads their life and leads to significant changes.
Take the following three strategies with you next time someone asks for help.
Meet Them Where They Are
Not everyone is filled with the need to be particularly creative or approach their lives from different angles, and that’s okay. But, it can also stunt their growth. So, if you want to help them through a tough time, start where they are. If they are looking to make some changes in their lives, don’t start rattling off all of the different ways your favorite blogger took a creative approach to life (and that includes me).
Instead, start where they are and see if there are small changes they can make to look at a problem from a different light. Seek to understand if there was a catalyzing moment that you can use to help them on their journey.
Work With Them For The Long Run
It can be easy to pop into people’s lives when they ask for help and then send them on their way after you have given your two cents. While that might feel good at first, and let you work with numerous people, that is not a recipe for long-term success. Most major changes in life take a long time to develop, and a few hours of friendly chats usually isn’t enough to do that.
Set time aside on a regular basis to work with this person, showing them along the way what you can to help them. Inspiring others can happen in an instant, but more often it is over a long-term relationship that persists through the ups and downs life throws at us.
Show Them
My favorite way to inspire people is to be the change that they want to see in themselves. Whether that is the way I attack a problem, or my methods for achieving my goals, I hope that by living a life that is worthwhile, I can inspire others to do the same. I’m not perfect, and that can sometimes backfire when I am not doing a good job of setting a positive example. But for the most part, I am able to inspire others through action.
Creativity can be the same way. Rather than lecture people about all of the creative ways they can achieve their goal, you can show them a few different ways to be creative.
The next time someone asks for a hand in developing a creative side, take these strategies with you. You’ll have a better understanding of what they are looking for, in addition to being much more effective at providing assistance. The better you are able to help others, the better you make the world around you.
What a great post, Ryan. Love your three points, because they all require action. We all need to put action behind our words to see actual change.
Thanks, Adam. Action is something I’m trying to incorporate into all of my writing, as I agree that action behind words leads to real change.
Ryan, your third point reminds me of that wonderful old comment, “I’d rather see a sermon than hear one any day.”
True, “The better you are able to help others, the better you make the world around you.”
I try to inspire others to get creative through running, not by nagging them, but just being creative myself. An example can be found in my book, “Run Your Destiny.”