Motivational, Inspirational, Aspirational

I heard something on Ed Mylett’s podcast that really stood out to me as something I wanted to explore more. He talked about 3 tiers of influence - Being motivational, inspirational, and aspirational - and the progression people go through as they become more influential.

First is you need to be motivational. This means that you make someone feel a certain way, whether that’s on a stage, in a phone call, or through your actions and lifestyle. Motivation gives someone a motive for action and that extra burst to make a better decision.

Next is inspirational. Beyond making someone feel something emotionally, this takes it one step further and helps them connect to their purpose and bigger reasons for doing things. Inspirational is ‘in spirit’, and the result of being inspired is a more sustaining desire than a temporary injection of motivation.

Then last is aspirational. This is where people look at you and they want to be like you. They look at who you are, what you do, and how you do it, and want the exact same for their life. They look to you and your actions as a standard that they aspire to achieve for themselves. It’s an incredibly humbling acknowledgment, and when you have this much of an influence on someone, you’re blazing the path that they get to walk down next.

I want to qualify this all with one last thought. You don’t need to be a celebrity or influencer or anyone recognizable to be motivational, inspirational, or even aspirational. This is not something that is reserved to be done in public, but it exists in your private life and  relationships too. And if you believe that making one life better is a life worth living, then I encourage you to be the example that motivates, inspires and aspires other people to pursue more in their life.

To bring this all together for you let me ask you a question - Who do you have the most influence on in your life, and what is it you want to show them?

If you’re in the US or Canada, text me at 949-799-0788 and I’ll send you daily prompts that help you get to know yourself better and build a more meaningful life every day. 

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