Building Attributes of Inspiration

There are many philosophies on how to develop character, and there are many misconceptions about personality in general.

First let me describe what I believe the proper definition of personality entails. First, a person that is said to have "personality" is a person that other individuals are drawn to regardless of other strengths or weaknesses. This "intangible" factor is usually referred to as "personality" or "character". In essence, this is more than a few variables orchestrated together as personal goodness that draws others to that person.

Strength of character comes from the strength of will and virtue. An individual with strong virtues and the victim of none of his or her vices is commonly called a citizen of great character. Great character can be a clear and definitive means of attaining a charismatic aura. Another variable in developing a personality that draws others to you, or a personality that will inspire others to follow you, is refraining from vices that work to attack the power of your virtues.

Let us examine a historic example of a man without wealth that led a nation to freedom against the largest and wealthiest polity of his day. Mohandas Gandhi was without wealth, yet through his strength of will and virtue created a great following. Through his power of will, he inspired a nation to overthrow Great Britain without force.

So how then did Gandhi do such magnificent things? Through the strengthening of the most inspiring virtues. The virtue of selflessness is one of the most powerful virtue pertaining to the inspiration of others. Expressions of selflessness not only inspires those around you, but also does much to strengthen your own confidence in yourself. The more a person gives away, the more clearly it becomes evident to that person that he or she needs much less to push forward than originally thought.

Another virtue Gandhi expressed was self-confidence. Self-confidence is one of the most attractive virtues that can be expressed. Self-confidence is born of the crown virtue of faith. Self-confidence is also a by product of selflessness. As the confidence of an individual grows, the circle of inspiration grows. More people will gravitate to a person that exhibits and expresses deep levels of confidence. The only way to build real self-confidence is to begin doing actions that deeply satisfy one's self. To find out, accurately, what these actions are, it will require self-awareness.

Self-awareness is also closely related to faith and must be searched out for one's self. The most effective exercises to build self-awareness are prayer or meditation. The most effective environments to build self-awareness is an environment of solitude and peace. When all falls silent, you can begin to hear yourself again. This inner-voice, or sometimes referred to as the voice of God will become more evident and clear as the virtue of self-awareness is built. Once the guiding voice is evident, that actions that will deeply satisfy you will be guided by your own heart and/or destiny. As you begin to complete these actions, self-confidence and selflessness begin to follow. The exhibiting of such virtue and greatness is sure to attract many around you.

The journey to build your personality does not end by building your ability to inspire. Building all of your attributes as you go through life is very important to building a strong over all personality. I wish you luck on finding out who you are, then learning to love that person. I look forward to you building enough confidence in yourself to show who you really are to the world around you.