Talking to myself
What inspires others isn’t up to you. What’s up to you is to share what you’ve got.
Many of the letters I write here on this blog are directed at a younger version of myself. Younger me didn’t value rest, didn’t keep a journal, and didn’t do much outside of the digital space. I wish I could go back and encourage younger me to make some tweaks, take a step back, and make room for stillness, but I’ll never have a chance to reach younger me. Instead, I hope to reach you while my words can make a difference.
I think we could all use some extra encouragement and inspiration. Some of what you need already exists in the world around you, but there’s also a well of inspiration which lies within you which only you can tap into and share.
Whenever I reflect on how much I’ve been inspired by others, I experience an overwhelming desire to give back and to help others as I have been helped. The only problem is that I never feel like what I have to give is anywhere near as meaningful as what I have received, despite my best efforts.
Many times, this feeling almost keeps me from sharing altogether, but that’s when I remember my place in the inspiration cycle: My job is to share the thing inside me that someone else might need to hear or see. Only I can share that thing, and once I share it, that’s when it leaves my hands.
It’s not up to me to decide whether something is inspiring for others. That’s up to everyone else. My job is to share what I’ve got so that if can inspire others, it will be out in the world for others to discover and make use of; to add to their energy stores that fuel them to create their own things to release into the world to inspire others (and maybe even me).
“Aspire to Inspire before you Expire!” —Eugene Bell, Jr.
You might not be able to inspire yourself, but by sharing what only you can share, you might indirectly inspire yourself by inspiring someone else to share something that inspires you.
What’s inside you that only you can share? It’s up to you to share it (at your discretion) and let it go into the world.
Afterthoughts: Some of you have shared with me that this blog inspires you. Hearing this is never any less humbling. I never know what might be helpful to you personally, dear reader, so all I can do is do my best to share what’s inside and hope that it helps you somehow. YMMV.
