Be An Influencer!
"People with passion can change the world for the better,” Steve Jobs
INFLUENCE is defined as: “the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something…”
IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE - When You Influence Others
Do you still think you don't have influence on others? Of course, you do. We all do....however, sometimes it feels like no one sees you or hears you. Been there! So, I want to encourage you with a storyline from my favorite movie "It's A Wonderful Life." I know, I know, it is a movie...but there is a message in it.
In this all-time classic Christmas film, "It’s a Wonderful Life," George Bailey is given a tremendous gift: the opportunity to see what life would be like without him. As he wanders through a world that has no memory of his existence, George is dismayed by the plight of his friends and family.
Devoid of his INFLUENCE, their lives lack the warmth and richness he is accustomed to seeing. As George struggles to come to terms with his bleak surroundings, Clarence, his guardian angel, sums up the lesson that he hopes George will absorb from the experience.
“Strange, isn’t it? Each man’s life touches so many other lives. When he isn’t around he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?”
INFLUENCE
YOUR INFLUENCE ON OTHERS
I know you are making a bigger impact on those around you… more than you realize. I don’t mean that in a “popularity” way, but in an influential way.
Today you may influence someone on a Zoom/Teams call, a conversation at the office, interacting with family at home, or volunteering in your own community. Every time you smile at a stranger, you influence. Every time you encourage someone, you influence. And yes, you may have a social media platform that reaches thousands or millions. It is not always about the numbers, but the intentional influence you have on those numbers.
You cannot deny the influence one person has on the world. Sociologists tell us that even the shiest introvert will influence 10,000 people over the course of their lifetime. In fact, Noah Zandan, Quantified Communications, did an experiment and found that “the top 10% of influential leaders use 3 times more emotional words than logical ones, including 62% more personalized language.”
You don’t have to be rich or popular to be influential. Today, through words and actions you are influencing.
So how do you reach 10,000 people? I believe it is done in a variety of ways. Daily interacting with people, volunteering, speaking engagements, mentoring, teaching, etc. Your influence is passed on to others by others. For instance, let’s say you share an important life lesson with someone and it has an impact on the individual. They tell your story of influence with someone else and then they share it with someone….well, you get the picture. It keeps on going!
For example, I love to support missionaries, but I can’t travel all over the world and be “hands-on” to work alongside them. So I give financially to missions. This way they can use my money to reach hundreds or thousands of people that I physically cannot. I am making a difference around the world without being physically present. That is another form of INFLUENCE and that is how I can influence thousands of people.
When people share with others how you have influenced them, your influence goes around the world….touching lives; people you will never meet. Thus, reaching 10,000 people is a drop in the bucket.
Don’t underestimate the words, actions, support, and time that you pour into others...you are influencing others every day!
WHAT IF you were on a stage before an audience of one or thousands… what would be your message? What would you want them to remember after they spent time with you? Is it a powerful message, an encouraging word, or a call to action? Would you want them to hear your story of influence and use it to inspire others? I heard it said that when you speak you are basically selling your story. You’re asking people to listen to what you have to say and utilize your influence to make a decision based on your words.
FIND YOUR MESSAGE AND YOU WILL FIND YOUR INFLUENCE!
How To Be An INFLUENCER
What Is Important to YOU? – What are your core values? Do you live them? Your influence will occur through your actions and words, but you need to be intentional about them. Your core values will help live with intention and from there your influence will build and shine.
Who Inspires You and Why? – Do an inventory of the people who inspire you….their character, actions, and their influence on others. What resonates with you? Since you know what it feels like to be inspired, you will now have a better idea of how to inspire others.
Be Intentional – Have you ever seen a person walk with such focus and intention …they know exactly where they are going, and nothing is going to get in their way. Be the same way with your influence. Know who you are and who you want to become every single day. Be intentional in your words and your actions…not just for you but for the impact it will have on others. Practice, practice, practice on being intentional in every area of your life.
Connect – Just like a power cord needs to plug into a power source to do its job, so do you. What? You need others. You cannot be an influencer alone. You need connections who will help you, refine you, teach you and build you up. Just like a CEO cannot run a company by themselves. If they did, they would have to answer phones all day, open the mail, greet customers, attend all meetings, fix computer issues, monitor the computer network, handle employee concerns, answer benefit and payroll questions, and then repeat for the next day. Yikes! Connect with others to become a better person so that you have the time to influence others.
Be Resilient – We all know “life happens.” Life will knock you down. Resilience makes you flexible and pliable so when the unexpected happens, you can get back up. You learn to find new ways to do something, create a new strategy and learn to take necessary risks. The challenges don’t paralyze you but make you stronger and wiser (although it may not feel like it at the moment). As an influencer, you will be able to reframe the situation, restart as needed, and move forward.
Repeat the Above – What do I mean? Be a life-long learner. Influencers love to learn, that is why they know where they are going and are one step ahead. They are students of life and are not afraid to make mistakes and learn. They know the only way to grow as a person and to keep influencing, is to keep learning. They don’t “arrive” because they know new opportunities are always ahead. The road doesn’t end for them…..they are curious about what they don’t know and seek it out.
How will you influence someone today?
Influential people have the ability to sway audiences and influence emotions. They have the amazing ability to make other people feel special and important. No matter what, choose to be intentional in your sphere of INFLUENCE today and tomorrow you will BE AN INFLUENCER!
