I have always been inspired by human beings who accomplish incredible things. It reminds me that we are made to evolve and that we constantly push back the frontiers of possibility. In this article I will introduce you to some amazing people who left me in awe in 2015 and discuss the human qualities that they embody. We all possess these qualities, and should aim to develop and utilize them more in our lives.
I believe that moving forward and evolving must be an essential part of our lives if we want to be happy. We should aim to use these inspiring models and apply their qualities to help us make a greater contribution to the world.
I didn’t rank them because I think they all made unbelievable contributions that deserve recognition. The important thing is not to be number one but simply to make your best contribution in your own way. Let me introduce you to these inspiring people.
Sooyong Park
Sooyong Park is a student of literature turned nature documentary producer, researcher and conservationist. Sooyong Park has become the voice of the Siberian Tiger and has dedicated a big part of his life to saving this majestic yet dwindling species.
He spent 5 years in the harsh Siberian climate hiding in a very small hole for hour and hours, spending weeks and months studying the Siberian tiger (see link below for more details of his endeavour).
Sooyong displays unbelievable qualities of persistence, patience, passion, dedication, and compassion.
Napoleon Hill noted in Think and Grow Rich that:
“There is no substitute for persistence! It cannot be supplanted by any other quality!”
Sooyong shows us that when you find your mission (cause) in life, you will find all the energy, patience, passion, dedication, and compassion you need to make a difference, as he did in his Siberian tiger quest.
Danny Macaskill
Danny MacAskill is a Scottish VTT professional rider. He is sponsored by Inspired Bicycles and Red Bull. He is featured in many videos where he displays his amazing talent and qualities (see link at the bottom of the article).
Danny displays the qualites of courage and focus. Every time I see his videos, I tell myself, this is a guy who has conquered his fears. To face such dangers you have to be totally focused and fearless.
“Courage is not the absence of fear, but the awareness that something else is more important than fear.” — Franklin Delano Roosevelt
In Danny’s case, the essential thing is to demonstate that we can overcome our fears and accomplish amazing things that at first seemed impossible.
In the case of focus, this is what Jim Rohn calls THE ART OF BEING: Wherever You Are, Be There.
THE ART OF BEING is learning to be wherever you are. It is developing a unique focus on the current moment, and drawing from it all of the substance, wealth of experience, and emotions that it has to offer. That’s what enables Danny to accomplish such amazing feats.
Daniel Kish
Daniel became blind at the age of 13 months due to retinal cancer.
He is now an American expert in human echolocation and President of World Access for the Blind, a non-profit organization to facilitate “the self-directed achievement of people with all forms of blindness” and increase public awareness about their strengths and capabilities.
Human echolocation is the ability to detect objects in our environment by actively creating sounds – for example, by tapping their canes – and sensing echoes returning from those objects. It is similar in principle to active sonar and to animal echolocation, which is employed by bats, dolphins, and toothed whales to find prey.
Even though he is blind, thanks to echolocation, Daniel can move around as if he wasn’t. He developed this capability naturally and unconsciously while he was very young because his parents raised him like any other kid.
Daniel embodies the qualities of adaptation, particularly the adaptive powers of the human brain. Daniel Kish is an example that humans can adapt and succeed, whatever their condition.
Mick Jagger
I was at the last concert of the Rolling Stones Zip Code Tour on July 15. I was amazed by the energy of the band, but especially of Mick Jagger. Only a few days shy of his seventy-second birthday, he is still as energetic as he was in his twenties.
From beginning till the end, Mick Jagger moved and danced all around the place, using every inch of the stage and every ounce of his energy.
What a lesson he is teaching us! Most people at this age can barely stand up and walk.
He is not endowed with this energy because he is rich and famous–he is just having fun and being passionate about what he does. Therefore, this is telling us that we all can do what he does in our own way.
We can be energetic at this venerable age and still have fun and be in shape.
This is all about how you see life. If you think you are too old then you will act like an old person, but if you think you can still be energetic and enjoy life, you will do exactly that.
Mick Jagger displays vitality, energy, and youth.
Mélanie Loisel
The last person who inspired me this year is fellow Quebecer and author Mélanie Loisel. I met her at the launch of her first book, “Martin Gray—ma vie en partage”. I heard about the book launch only a few hours before it happened and decided I had to attend. I am inspired by people who have pulled through amazing hardships, and Martin Gray, a holocaust survivor, is one of them.
I expected to learn more about the exceptional human being that is Martin Gray, but I also met an incredible person in Mélanie Loisel.
She is also the author of “Ils ont vécu le siècle”, in which she shares the testimonies of persons who participated in the events that shaped our history.
She embodies the qualities of boldness. These two projects seemed impossible, but she accomplished them regardless. How could an unknown journalist get the attention of these very important and hard-to-reach people? She just followed her heart, persisted, and charged toward the unknown to reach her goal.
I often say living is more than surviving–living is blossoming. Most people just try to get by, controlled by a victim mentality, thinking they have no control over their lives. So I strongly encourage you to do more than just get by, and build and take control of your life. Get inspired by amazing people such as the ones I mentioned, and get on the move.
If you have been inspired by amazing individuals in 2015, please share with us who they are as well as the qualities they have embodied.
Links:
Sooyong Park
http://www.mediod.com/blog/2014/11/8/siberian-tiger-the-remarkable-story-of-sooyong-park
Danny MacAskill
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL0rbxB9Lqg
Daniel Kish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xATIyq3uZM4
Mélanie Loiselle
https://www.facebook.com/Ils-ont-v%C3%A9cu-le-si%C3%A8cle-1477709905869650/?fref=ts
You inspire me Pierre.
it’s always a pleasure to inspire a great master Steve!
thanks Steve!