This week, our pastor used the story of Esther to illustrate being an influence. No matter what you do, where you are or who is around you, you have an opportunity to influence. You’re doing it whether you realize it or not.
Part of my Better In Better Out goal is to ‘better out’ with my family. My daughter is very intelligent and speaks with a vocabulary much bigger than her five-years. I think in the past, I often expected more from her because of this. Instead, I’m trying to embrace her fiveness and just have fun and show her love.
We had the opportunity to do this over the weekend with our first “mommy date night.” She planned our activities, which included a trip to the Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Starbucks for hot chocolates, Barnes and Noble to read books, and breakfast-for-dinner at IHOP. I have to tell you how amazing this evening out was. We had the BEST time. Not only did I love it, she loved it! It really made an impact on her. All night she would say things like “This is amazing!” and “We should do this more often!” and “This is the best. Let’s start it all over again right now.”
Talk about influence. If I don’t take advantage of these special times with her, will I have an opportunity to influence her? Will my influence be as great if it most often comes from a place of correction instead of love? I don’t think so. And this night proved it even more.
Like I said, no matter who you are, you have an opportunity to influence. Why not influence for good while you’re at it? Some people think you have to be rich to have influence. Think again. My night of influence with my daughter was $6.00 at Starbucks for our hot chocolates and the barista’s tip (teaching her to be show gratitude!) and the cost of our meal at IHOP. Definitely worth it when you consider the ROI (Return on Influence).
My friend Aaron of Impact 52 shared how he influenced with kindness during last week’s Random Acts of Kindness Week. I LOVE that he shared how much it didn’t cost to demonstrate love.
And if you’re looking for opportunities to influence and serve, check out the next Tweetup for Good! We’re putting talk into action in a bigger way than ever.
Are you being purposeful with your influence? Have ideas to share with others? Let me know!