New Year Inspiration

This is less of a blog, more of a thought experiment—so please bear with this slightly nutty Brit, and hopefully we’ll go somewhere interesting

Who inspires you and why?

Think about them, their characteristics, and their approach to life—what makes them chime for you.

Seriously, close your eyes and think about them.

As I do this, a range of faces pass across my mind’s eye. A couple of entomologists I trained with, one of my lecturers, and a cluster of my friends… some with long-term health conditions, some with dicky tickers and some just who just are.

And this is where we start getting divergence, all of mine are smiling and talking (in one case using British Sign Language). I can’t pretend to know what’s in your head, but please try and apply my approach to your inspirers.

As I think as to “why them,” it’s about how they do things—they inspire me because they go beyond what’s expected of them, to try and make the world a better place. They do it by being nice, but none of them are scared of having the argument when it’s needed.

They also all slightly worry me… They go beyond what is expected and into the realms of obsession (but in a lovely sense, if any of them read this and work out I’m talking about them).

I hope your inspirers are creating the same feelings of love and a challenge to be a “better you” as mine are with me.

Which is where we come back to this mixed-up, dicky ticker world of ours…

Going beyond the expected is a way of life for many of us; our parents, teachers and doctors all manage our expectations for us, we do it to ourselves. Often we do things that a couple of years ago would have made people question if we have heart conditions at all (OK, last week for me, but there are some strange people on Facebook).

To many people our very existence is inspirational, we go beyond expectation and do things.

Which gives us a responsibility to live up to the challenge of those who inspire us. To avoid being inspirational just because, but to be inspirational because of doing just things. Often it’s not the big things that inspire, it’s the little things we can all try and do better.

So, Happy New Year, and let us go and inspire!