We put a lot of effort into making sure others think highly of us. We want to demonstrate our competence and show off our polished results.

When we act to impress, our actions stay entirely self-centered. We become afraid of looking foolish. To protect our image, we refuse to step out of our comfort zone and learn anything new.

We trade our own growth (and our ability to empower others) just to maintain an illusion.

There is a more outward-focused approach: shifting our intention from impressing to inspiring.

• Impressing: A self-centered performance... we stick only to what we already know because we cannot afford to look like a beginner.

• Inspiring: An encouraging action... we willingly step out of our comfort zone to tackle hard things, showing the people around us that they can do the same.

Impressing makes people think, "They are amazing." Inspiring makes them think, "I can do this, too."

What is one activity this week, where you can shift to inspiring rather than impressing others?

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Encouragingly,
/rajesh