Inspiration Is Everywhere

I recently had the opportunity to attend the “Bluebird Café” concert series at Sundance, Utah, a unique summer long concert series. What makes Bluebird Café different is that it features the songwriter, not the well-known artist whose names sell tickets. Throughout the evening, three Nashville songwriters take turns telling the story behind a familiar song: where the idea came from, what was happening in their life, who eventually recorded it, and how an idea sometimes born in an ordinary moment became a well-known song, sometimes reaching #1 on the charts.

What struck me wasn’t simply the music, which was excellent, but the inspiration behind it. Every song had its own origin story. Sometimes the spark came from joy, sometimes a heartbreak, sometimes an ordinary conversation or an argument, maybe a relationship either good or bad. Inspiration for the songwriter didn’t come on command, more often it came because they were paying attention to moments that happened in their lives.

It made me wonder how often inspiration surrounds us in our own lives and how often we recognize it. We live in a time when we have nearly unlimited access to information. We can find an answer to nearly any question in seconds. We can access a limitless number of books, podcasts, videos, and conferences to learn from people all over the world. But information and inspiration aren’t quite the same thing.

Information gives us something to know. Inspiration gives us a reason to do something with what we know which is an important distinction. We can accumulate a large amount of information without ever changing. Inspiration is different because it can challenge our thinking, change our perspective, and then move us to action.

Inspiration isn’t reserved for artists, inventors, or entrepreneurs, it’s available to every one of us if we’re willing to notice it. Ideas that improve our work, strengthen our relationships, or help us solve difficult problems often come from the experiences and people we encounter every day.

A few thoughts about how to encourage inspiration developed in my mind after that evening:

Be curious. The best ideas often begin by asking a simple question. Why do we do it this way? Is there a better way? What am I missing? Curiosity causes us to look beyond what we already know and remain open to what we might learn.

Listen to other people's stories. Every person has experiences worth learning from. Some of our greatest insights come from conversations we didn’t expect to have. When we genuinely listen to others; their successes, mistakes, experiences, and perspectives, we learn lessons that we couldn’t entirely on our own.

Stay teachable. Inspiration has a difficult time reaching someone who believes they already have all the answers. Growth requires enough humility to recognize that regardless of our experience or position, there is always something more we can learn and some way we can improve.

Be proactive. Inspiration becomes valuable when it causes us to act. Being proactive means we don’t always wait for someone else to identify the problem, provide the answer, or tell us what to do next. We notice what needs to be done and take initiative. We anticipate rather than simply react, we bring ideas instead of only identifying problems and we look for opportunities to make something better.

A proactive person is someone who sees a problem developing and begins thinking about a solution before it becomes a larger problem. It’s someone who asks, “What else can I do?” rather than “Have I done enough?” They look for ways to make the team stronger, the customer experience better, or the organization more successful.

Inspiration becomes valuable when it causes us to act.

But being proactive applies to every part of our lives, personally, professionally, in our families and communities. It’s a way of approaching life. A proactive person takes responsibility for becoming who they want to become, not simply hope that they can become healthier, wiser, or more successful. A proactive person identifies what needs to change and begins doing something about it. In the process of being proactive, that may be where inspiration becomes most powerful. Inspiration can open our eyes to what could be.

Whether we’re serving customers, leading a team, raising a family, developing a talent, solving a problem, or simply trying to become a better version of ourselves, inspiration has a remarkable way of moving us forward if we’re willing to act on it.

We live in a magnificent world filled with remarkable people, meaningful experiences, beautiful places, big challenges, and countless opportunities to learn. Inspiration can come from anywhere; a book, a conversation, a mentor, a failure, a success, and as I was reminded, sometimes we get inspired just hearing others shared the things that inspired them. The challenge isn’t whether inspiration exists, it’s whether we’re paying enough attention to recognize it and whether we’re proactive enough to do something with it when we do. Ultimately, the value of inspiration isn’t simply in what it makes us feel, it’s in what it inspires us to become.