Influence and inspiration are often used interchangeably, but they don’t mean the same thing. They can be different aspects of a common theme, but the differences between them are important because they reveal aspects of being creative that many people ignore.
“Influence” vs. “Inspire”
“Influence” and “inspire” are two words that sound similar, but they’ve different meanings. “Influence” is a verb that means to affect or change the behavior or feelings of someone or something. You can influence others by using your charm or charisma, for example, or by using fear or anger.
Inspire Is Also a Verb That Means “To Fill With Ideas or Feelings: To Cause an Emotion or Reaction,” but It Doesn’t Necessarily Lead to Change
The word “inspire” is used when someone evokes an emotion or feeling in someone else through their words or actions.
For example, a musician might inspire his audience to sing along at his concerts; a visual artist might inspire his audience on social media; an athlete might inspire other players on his team; a teacher might inspire her students to do better in school.
Inspiration is usually positive and happy, such as when someone is excited about something after hearing about it for the first time. But inspiration can also be negative, such as when someone gets angry after hearing about something that happened somewhere else in the world.
Inspiration Creates Motivation, Influence Leads to Action
Inspiration and influence are two sides of the same coin. They both serve as catalysts for action, but they aren’t quite the same thing.
Inspiration is the spark that lights a fire inside you. It gives you the initial motivation to do something. Influence is what helps keep that fire burning until it becomes a lasting habit.
For example, an inspirational speaker can give you the motivation to do something for others. If that same speaker has influence over you, you’ll follow his words with action and put it into practice.
But Inspiration Doesn’t Automatically Lead to Success, Just as Influence Doesn’t Guarantee Results
Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between influence and inspiration.
There’s a difference between influence and inspiration. It’s a subtle difference, but it’s important to know.
Influence is an active word that implies a direct effect or influence on something or someone.
When you say that one thing influences another thing, it means that the first thing causes a change in the second thing. Inspiration, on the other hand, is passive: it describes something that happens to you, not something you do yourself – for example, “I’m so inspired by your music!”
At first glance, this may not seem like much of a difference, but if we take a closer look at how these two words interact in sentences and paragraphs, we can see how powerful inspiration can be.
When You Inspire, You Have the Power to Influence
When you inspire, you have the power to influence others and make them do something or be something else. This is something a very important subject matter in leadership. Effective leaders should have the ability to do both, inspire and have a positive influence to encourage others to achieve their goals.
We can inspire through:
- Our words. Words have the power to encourage or discourage people. A kind word can encourage someone who’s feeling down, while a negative comment can discourage them from continuing on their path. When you speak kindly, people feel good and your words have the power to encourage them to achieve more than they thought possible.
- Our actions. Actions show others what’s possible for them too! If you’re successful in business or career, those around you may want to follow in your footsteps because they see how hard work pays off for you! If you’re involved in your community and volunteer for others, others will want to get involved too! Your deeds are contagious – so make sure they’re good deeds!
- Our Character Traits. Character traits show people what’s really important in life – love, kindness, and compassion for others who may not be as fortunate as us.
People We Call Social Media Influencers Don’t Always Have Influence
Influencers are people who have a large following on social media. Usually, they have a certain lifestyle or niche that they’re known for, such as fitness or fashion. These trends have become increasingly popular in recent years through social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, Twitter, and YouTube.
Influencers Are Everywhere on Social Media Platforms – From Celebrities to Bloggers, YouTubers, and Instagram Models
An influencer can also be a visual artist, a musician, or an ordinary human being who managed to become a social media leader. We’ve all heard of the stories where the right influencers got their hands on a new product and created hype even before the product hit the shelves. This is what we call influencer marketing – people who have a large following or are considered experts in their field are used to promote products and services.
This doesn’t always work out as planned, because many things can go wrong when working with influencers:
- The wrong profile or the wrong audience: they may not be interested in the product/service they represent – if the influencer represents more fashion and luxury and he’s hired to sell makeup, that will probably influence the audience, but if he’s hired to represent a social cause, his followers may not care much about that cause.
- Lack of engagement: they may not even have enough truly engaged followers who’d buy a product just because an influencer posted about it on Instagram or Facebook. Either way, it costs companies money and time for people who don’t agree with the brand or product.
- Lack of attention: people have a short attention span these days and when they get bored, they just move on to another piece of content or website. Companies need to create captivating content that keeps them engaged.
- Lack of authenticity: influencers aren’t always celebrities, but they’re often portrayed as such. If it’s clear that an influencer is only interested in making money off their followers, potential customers will turn away and lose trust in your brand.
- Too much information: Social media users don’t like being bombarded with too much information at once. They need time to digest everything before deciding if it’s worth their time or not. Companies need to consider factors such as frequency, timing, type of media used, etc. when planning campaigns with influencers.
Inspirational Speakers Can Be More Influential Than Social Media Influencers
Social media has become an important part of our everyday life, and it’s easy to think that social media influencers are the most important people in our lives. But in reality, there are some people who can have more influence than any social media influencer.
Inspirational speakers don’t just rely on social media platforms. They have a way of getting their message across that’s much more personal and direct than your average influencer.
The ability to inspire people can’t be bought or learned. It’s something that’s innate to some people, and that’s why they’re so successful as inspirational speakers.
There are many different types of inspirational speakers, but they all have one thing in common: they’re able to motivate their listeners in such a way that they feel able to do more than they ever thought possible.
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