Who Impresses You

We are all aspirational creatures.

We desire to build, create, and achieve. And because we are aspirational, we each need people whom we can look up to. We each need to have people who impress us to the point we want to emulate them.

So, who impresses you?

Who Impresses You?

We don’t come into life fully formed, and our lives are a continuous process of shaping and crafting the character and person that we want to become.

Along the way, we will encounter others who have the traits, experience, knowledge, and achievements that we aspire to attain. There is the temptation to follow after individuals without honestly evaluating what their lives represent or what we can learn from them.

It’s easy to be impressed without digging deeper.

But, to ensure we are following sound role models, we need to develop the ability to understand why it is people impress us.

How We are Impressed

There are basically two categories of people who impress us.

The first category is the people who are famous.  We live in a society that is drunk on celebrity status and media hype. Individuals can attain name recognition and notoriety for all manner of inadequate and incomprehensible reasons. Being famous (or infamous) is often incorrectly associated with being impressive.

Mere name recognition is not impressive.  Celebrity status and fame are about being known; being impressive is about the character, integrity, and habits of an individual. Impressive is about who the person is, how they treat others, and how they go about their daily life.

The second category is those people who have made a noteworthy achievement.

There are plenty of remarkable accomplishments that have been integral to the lives of individuals who are not overly impressive in their personal lives. They could be arrogant, weak, sinful, or quick to anger.

Nonetheless, we can be appreciative of efforts and achievements without falling into celebrity worship or trying to emulate the individual’s particular character.  Each of us is fallible. Flawed human beings can (and will) achieve impressive results and endeavors.

Know Why You are Impressed

When you consider who impresses you, make sure to define precisely what traits, habits, or parts of their character catch your attention.  If you were to list the attributes that impress you, does it include characteristics that you want legitimately associated with your name?

Celebrity status or attainment are seldom good sources of people to be impressed by.  Certainly, these people may have had to make sacrifices to get their status, but with their success set aside, what other attributes do they have to warrant being impressive?

Do you really want the baggage such as drug addictions, divorces, financial problems, and moral lapses that make up the celebrity news?

Finding Who Impresses You

The best part of considering who impresses you is that they are not all that hard to find.  We are all surrounded by impressive people if we just look.

Consider the single, working parent who never misses a school event.  Or the building custodian who goes about her work with effort and care each day, always with a smile on her face.  Or the business owner who volunteers for non-profits, is active in the community, and is part of a strong family environment.

The third category of people who impress us is those people that make a positive difference.

These people are truly amazing.  They are able to carry on a typical life, yet at the same time can make a positive difference in someone else’s life.  A smile every day, squeeze in time for delivering meals, teaching children to sing.  For the special few, it doesn’t take much to be impressive.

The Bible

I am always impressed with Jesus.  But I’m doubly impressed with whoever impresses Jesus.

In Luke 7 we read the story of a Roman Centurion who asks Jesus to heal one of his trusted servants.  This is a gentile, a leader of many men, and who loves the Israelites and has built them a synagogue. But as Jesus approached his house, the Centurion stopped him because he did not feel worthy to have a man of Jesus’s stature enter his home.

In Luke 7:9, Jesus says.

“I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”

The Centurion was a celebrity who had many accomplishments to his name.   But what impressed Jesus was not his stature as a Roman Centurian or his many accomplishments, but it was his integrity, honesty, and uncompromising respect.

In business, we can go far without being a celebrity or without notorious accomplishments, but we will get nowhere without integrity, honesty, and respect. 

What can you do today to impress those around you? 

More importantly, what can you do today to impress Jesus?