What an inspiring quote – I want to inspire people. I want someone to look at me and say “Because of you I didn’t give up “

Over the last 6 years as a Mentor or a Coach or workshop facilitator, as we cover more and more organisations and the leadership layers there from the mid level to the functional heads to the leadership, what stands out in the midst of all the pressure for results and productivity in a majority of cases is the low level of empathy, role model leadership and the tendency to Inspire at this level.

Floor meetings or monthly birthday bashes or a few lunch or drinks out are becoming more passe’ and never a substitute for the real thing – a heart to heart inspirational talk that makes the employees feel pumped up and wanted in the organisation. And to be self motivated and willing to climb that next peak which may look beyond reach at that time.

Last Sunday evening I chose to go for a walk. That was something I used to do maybe 2 years when preparing for the 10K marathon. At that time 10k, past my mid 50’s seemed like a big deal, till I cracked it by walking a few weekends – 8km, 10km, 12 km till I knew in my mind it was doable at my age 🙂 And the 10k TCS marathon was a cool affair after that.

I maintained my walks at least 4 days a week thereafter,which meant roughly 80 – 100 km a month of walking. Add to it 1200 mins of meditation a month and maybe 300 mins of yoga and it made for a decent combo. That was a lot of ME time in the mornings , which I could manage thanks to the support at home.

I realized I wanted to raise the bar 2 years later, quite like a climber, never content with the peak they have climbed and always restless for the next and more difficult peak… or some new cheap thrill 🙂

So last Sunday evening when I set out I just set out with no clear plan. As I walked and the evening breeze blew my hair apart ( thankful there is still some to be blown apart ), I just kept walking for 100 mins till I crossed the 10k mark that evening. Another 3 days during the rest of the  week of regular walking took me to 30k last week, a good 50% higher than the earlier average of 20k per week I used to walk earlier. Not bad eh ?

And then yesterday, the next Sunday evening, I went with the intention of crossing 10k unlike the earlier Sunday. And I did 12k and realized I could have gone on at the end of it too. That felt nice . If all goes well, 30k a week can become my new benchmark. Raising the bar in line with a self imposed stretch was never more fun !

I always realized that for me to be able inspire others as a Mentor ,Coach or just a friend, I would myself need to be a source of inspiration, determination, discipline, rigour, hard work and life experiences  that has the power for something to catch someone’s attention.

I remember one of my coachees who was grossly overweight that he wanted to become like me 🙂  He has not matched up yet but has lost 30 kgs over the last 1 year. Someone else said he want to be as disciplined as me-  how boring 🙂 . Or others who want to drive their work  and teams in a more structured way. Different strokes for different folks I guess.

The quote attached above talks about “ Because of you I didn’t give up “ ! And another one below says  Move from I CAN’T to I CAN .. to I DID .

I hope I can continue to try and inspire leaders or individuals  to change in whatever small way to take that step and say “ I did “ .. and maybe also “ because of you I didn’t give up “ 🙂

Have an inspired week ,month and life ahead in the midst of all the pressures, challenges and googlies life throws at us.

And as leaders try and be an inspiration to at least one new person this month.

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