essay on how words can inspire change

How Can Words Inspire Change: The Power of Language

About the Author

Bayu Prihandito is the founder of Life Architekture , a Certified Psychology Consultant and Life Coach for Men . Bayu empowers his clients to navigate life's challenges with clarity, confidence, fulfillment, and true meaning. His expertise has been featured in CNN, Fortune, Vice, Daily Mail, Metro, Cosmopolitan and many more.

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Table of Contents

The power of words, words inspiring change: real-life examples, how words inspire, the role of leaders and language, how words inspire change: civil rights movement, final thoughts.

• Frequently Asked Questions

Key Takeaways

• Words have the power to inspire change on an individual and societal level, shaping our emotions, thoughts, and actions.
• Leaders play a crucial role in using language to inspire change and shape culture, articulating a vision, developing connection, and promoting empathy.
• The U.S. Civil Rights Movement is a powerful example of how words can inspire profound societal change, with leaders using words to articulate a vision of equality and justice.

As a coach at Life Architekture , I've seen time and time again how words, like seeds, can sprout into towering trees of change.  But how can words inspire change?

In our everyday interactions, we may not notice the transformative potential of words. However, they play a critical role in shaping our emotions ,  thoughts, and actions. Language, with its seemingly simple arrangement of words, has the potential to create profound changes on both an individual and societal level. This article examines the ways in which words can inspire change and how they've been used to provoke, calm, inspire, and guide people towards significant shifts in perception and behavior.

Words are more than just combinations of letters put together to form coherent thoughts. They're vessels that carry our emotions, ideas, and inspirations, travelling from one person to another. They have the potential to affect change and shape the world.

Influence on Relationships and Communication

Consider how inspirational words can fuel someone's journey of personal development . At Life Architekture , we've seen first-hand how the right words at the right time can be a catalyst for growth and transformation. They can inspire people to embark on a path of self-improvement, seek better relationships, or develop emotional well-being .

Let's look at an example. The " I Have a Dream " speech by Martin Luther King Jr. represents an iconic demonstration of how words can inspire change. King's speech played a pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. The speech was emotionally powerful and eloquently phrased, able to touch and inspire the world for a change. His words ignited the passion and courage needed for change in millions of people, altering the course of history.

Another compelling example is the " Letter from Birmingham Jail " also penned by Martin Luther King Jr. This letter, written during his time in jail, articulated the urgency of racial equality and civil rights. The words used in this letter provoked a profound sense of empathy and urgency for action, playing a key role in propelling societal change.

Beyond historical events, science also provides evidence of how words can inspire change. Usually, people tend to change their behaviors based on the words they hear and say. Words can thus act as subtle unconscious triggers , influencing our thoughts and actions.

Creating a Harmonious Society

Words have the power to provoke, calm, or inspire. For instance, certain words can cause emotional reactions, leading to changes in attitude and behavior . Inspirational speeches, motivational quotes, and even casual conversations can spark changes within individuals and communities.

On the flip side, words can also bring inner calm . Soothing words can de-escalate tense situations, provide comfort during trying times, and bring about peace. This power to calm can change personal and social dynamics, promoting more harmonious and respectful interactions .

Thus, words aren't merely tools for communication; they're also tools for transformation. When used with mindfulness and intent, words can pave the way for profound changes, serving as catalysts for personal development, social reform, and global progress.

Let's look at some real-life examples. These stories serve to illustrate how words, when said with intent, can serve as catalysts for change.

Greta Thunberg's on Climate Change

Greta Thunberg , a Swedish environmental activist, became a global sensation through her striking words and speeches . Her succinct, powerful statements like " I want you to panic " and " Our house is on fire " have been a clarion call for action against climate change. Her words have galvanized millions of young people worldwide, leading to significant discussions and actions towards environmental sustainability.

Malala Yousafzai's Advocacy for Girls' Education

Malala Yousafzai , a Pakistani activist and the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate has inspired change through her advocacy for girls' education. Her speech at the United Nations , where she said, " One child, one teacher, one book, and one pen can change the world ," continues to inspire many people worldwide to support the cause of girls' education.

Life Architekture - Personal Development & Life Coaching

In our work at Life Architekture , we've seen how words can inspire personal growth and development. For instance, a life coach may use empowering phrases like " You are capable of more than you know " or " Embrace the journey, and you'll discover your potential ". These words can help our clients develop self-belief, overcome obstacles, and make strides towards a fulfilling life .

Mindfulness Practices

Words also play a significant role in mindfulness practices. Mantras, affirmations, and guided meditations utilize the power of words to inspire change within individuals. Words like " I am present " or " I let go of what does not serve me " can help us cultivate mindfulness, reduce stress , and enhance our overall well-being.

Conversations on Emotional Intelligence

Words are instrumental in fostering emotional intelligence . Open dialogues about feelings, for instance, can create empathy and understanding, ultimately leading to healthier relationships. Emotional literacy programs in schools and organizations have shown that encouraging conversations around emotions can reduce conflict and promote emotional well-being.

These examples, among many others, highlight the power of words to inspire change. Words can motivate individuals, shift societal attitudes, and provoke action. They can heal, uplift, and transform. They are indeed powerful tools for change, whether it's personal development, relationship enhancement, or societal reform.

Yet, it's essential to remember that the power of words lies not just in the words themselves but also in the intent and authenticity behind them. Words spoken or written with sincerity, empathy, and understanding have a more significant potential to inspire change.

Words, carefully crafted and authentically expressed, have the power to inspire individuals, communities, and even entire societies. They can stimulate our minds, touch our hearts , and resonate with our souls, thus sparking inspiration within us. This inspiration can lead to change, growth, and transformation at various levels, be it personal, interpersonal, or societal.

The potential of words to inspire is based on several key elements:

Leaders play a crucial role in harnessing the power of words to inspire. Through their leadership, language and communication, they can stimulate positive change , drive innovation, and foster a sense of community and belonging. In other words, leaders can use language as a tool to shape reality, influence perceptions, and guide behavior.

The language leaders choose reflects their values, beliefs, and intentions, thus helping to shape the culture of a group, organization, or society. As such, leaders need to be mindful of the words they use. A few ways in which leaders can use language to inspire include:

• Articulating a Vision : Leaders can use language to articulate a compelling vision for the future. This vision can inspire team members or followers to strive towards shared goals and create a sense of purpose and direction.
• Developing Connection and Belonging : Leaders can use inclusive language that fosters a sense of belonging and unity. Such language can create an environment where everyone feels valued, heard, and accepted, thereby building stronger, more collaborative teams.
• Promoting Empathy and Understanding : Leaders can use words to express empathy, acknowledge others' feelings, and validate their experiences. Such communication can create an atmosphere of trust, mutual respect, and psychological safety.
• Encouraging Growth and Development : Leaders can use affirmative language to boost confidence, encourage risk-taking, and promote business growth. Words of encouragement and constructive feedback can help individuals believe in their abilities and foster a growth mindset.

Words can be powerful agents of social change, as vividly demonstrated by the U.S. Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks used the power of their words to articulate a vision of equality and justice that inspired millions and led to profound societal change.

Martin Luther King Jr. utilized the power of words in his speeches and sermons to rally support for racial equality. King's eloquent articulation of his dream for a nation where individuals are judged " not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character " captured the hearts and minds of people across the globe. His powerful, inspiring words drove individuals and communities to strive for equality and justice.

Rosa Parks , on the other hand, was not as well-known for her speeches as for her decisive action of refusing to give up her bus seat in Montgomery, Alabama. However, her words later retold her experiences and inspired countless others. Her story, shared in numerous speeches, interviews, and an autobiography, highlighted the everyday indignities suffered by Black Americans and served as a rallying cry for the Civil Rights Movement .

In both cases, their words - whether delivered through powerful speeches or personal narratives - played a pivotal role in inspiring change. They were able to use language to evoke strong emotions, develop empathy, create a compelling vision, and instill a sense of self-belief among their followers.

The Lasting Impact: Beyond Words

The impact of words extends far beyond the immediate inspiration they created. They have a lasting effect, often rippling through time to inspire future generations. In the case of the Civil Rights Movement , the words of its leaders continue to inspire and guide social justice movements today. They serve as reminders of the strides made towards equality and the work that still needs to be done.

Words shape our beliefs, values, and actions. They can make us feel seen and understood, build our resilience, and motivate us to pursue our dreams. The power of words lies not just in the immediate reactions they elicit, but also in their ability to resonate over time, instilling a sense of purpose and direction that can guide our actions long after they've been spoken or written.

In conclusion, the power of words should never be underestimated. From our interpersonal relationships to global movements, words have the potential to inspire, motivate, and induce change. They are the backbone of emotional intelligence, helping us to understand and empathize with others.

Words help us articulate our feelings, build connections, and drive personal development. They are an integral part of mindfulness practices, guiding us to stay present and conscious of our thoughts and emotions.

What is the power of words?

The power of words lies in their ability to communicate, inspire, influence, and shape our understanding of the world. They can evoke emotions, shape our thoughts, and drive actions.

How can words inspire change?

Words can inspire change by communicating new ideas, stirring emotions, and motivating people to take action. They can challenge existing beliefs and encourage us to see the world from different perspectives.

What is the role of leaders in inspiring change through words?

Leaders can use words to articulate a vision, motivate and inspire followers, and create a sense of community. By doing so, they can drive collective action towards desired change.

How did words inspire change in the Civil Rights Movement?

Leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, used words to articulate a vision of racial equality and justice. Their speeches, sermons, and stories inspired millions and led to significant societal change.

What is the lasting impact of words?

The impact of words extends far beyond the immediate reactions they elicit. They can resonate over time, shaping our beliefs, values, and actions, and inspiring future generations.

Published August 17, 2023

Updated January 7, 2024

© 2024, Life Architekture

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How Can Words Inspire Change

December 16, 2021

Written by: Editor

How can words inspire change? 

This is a question that has been debated by many philosophers, poets, and writers throughout the centuries. 

It’s also something I’ve personally spent time thinking about as someone who loves to write. Words have an incredible power–they can move people in ways nothing else can. They create ideas and images in our minds so vivid they seem real. 

But how exactly do words inspire change? And what are some examples of this happening in the world today?

Here Are Some Ways Words Can Inspire Change

When words are spoken with conviction, they can inspire others to take action. 

Martin Luther King Jr.’s speeches were a perfect example of this. His “I Have a Dream” speech is one of the most famous and well-known speeches in history. It’s inspired people around the world to fight for change and equality.

Another example of how words can inspire change is found in the Harry Potter series. You may think this sounds crazy, but hear me out! J.K. Rowling’s writing has inspired many to become writers themselves (myself included!). 

She also created a world that millions around the world became deeply invested in and wanted to see succeed. For many, her words inspired them to fight for what they believed in.

Words can inspire change by giving people hope

When someone is feeling down and depressed, hearing a message of hope can be the inspiration they need to keep going. This has been shown time and time again with regard to cancer patients. 

For example, one study found that when cancer patients heard words of hope from their oncologist, they experienced a significant decrease in depression.

Words Provide courage to do something they’re afraid of doing

As I mentioned before, one study found that hearing encouragement helped cancer patients face their fears and complete tasks that were difficult for them. This is just one example of how words can inspire change by giving people the courage to do something they’re afraid of.

Words can help people see things in a new light

This happens often with books. For example, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger may have inspired many teenagers to be more open about their feelings. Likewise, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho inspired many to follow their dreams and live a different kind of life.

Words can remind us that we’re not alone in the world

When you feel like nobody else understands what’s going on with you or how you’re feeling, you may feel like you’re the only person in the world who’s ever felt this way.

But when we find stories and poems written about our experiences, it helps us remember that there are others out there who know exactly what we’re feeling–and they’ve survived to tell their story or share their art with the world.

Words can also inspire change by teaching us new things

Non-fiction books are a great example of this. They can teach us about history, science, and other topics we may not have known about before. And when we learn something new, it often changes the way we see the world.

Words can make people feel understood

This is a huge reason why books and poems are so popular. They allow people to see the world from somebody else’s perspective, and sometimes it’s just what we need in order to feel understood.

Words can inspire change by helping us connect with others

When we share stories or poems with others, it helps build relationships and create connections. We often find that the things we have in common with others are far more interesting than our differences.

Words can inspire change by helping us reflect on difficult experiences and emotions that we might not want to feel or face alone. 

This is why writing has become such a popular form of therapy for many people, including myself! 

When you write down your thoughts and feelings about a particular experience, it can help you process them in a more healthy way. And sometimes, other people’s stories and poems can help us reflect on our own experiences in a new light.

No matter what words inspire change in someone, they always have the potential to make a difference in somebody’s life. 

So the next time you read a poem or watch an inspiring movie, keep in mind that words can inspire change.

How Businesses Can Use Words to Their Advantage?

Now that we know how words can bring change, let’s see how you can use the power of words to benefit your business:

• Use positive and optimistic words: 

Optimistic people tend to be happier than pessimistic ones. Emboldening your workforce by using positive, empowering language can boost productivity in the workplace. Using negative words like “no”, “not” or “don’t” is considered discouraging for employees as it tells them what they cannot do rather than what they can.

• Use words to increase customer loyalty: 

Words have the ability to influence how customers think about your brand and products. Using expressions that evoke positive emotions such as “love”, “thank you” or “enjoy” will encourage customers to return in the future. 

Thanking them for their business also makes them feel appreciated, increasing the likelihood that they’ll refer your company to their friends.

• Use words to create a positive brand image: 

The words you use can also help shape how customers see your brand. For example, terms like “trustworthy”, “reliable”, and “innovative” make customers feel confident in doing business with you.

• Use words to stand out in the crowd: 

Your business can also use language to differentiate itself from other companies. For example, using industry jargon or phrases particular to your niche will help you establish an identity within the market. 

This technique is used by brands like Apple and Tesla, who have created their own “languages” over time, which customers are eager to learn more about.

Social media and the power of words!

We’ve all heard the saying, “the pen is mightier than the sword.” But what does that mean for businesses? And how can business’ social media strategists use the power of words to their advantage?

In a world where businesses are constantly competing for customers, the ability to be a powerful and persuasive copywriter is more important than ever. Whether you’re writing an email, a tweet, or a Facebook post, your words can make all the difference.

Here are some tips for using words to inspire change in your business:

Start with a strong headline. Your headline is the most important part of your post because it’s the first thing people will see. Make sure it grabs attention and makes them want to read more.

Be clear and concise. Don’t waste your readers’ time with long, rambling paragraphs. Get to the point quickly and make your message clear. Use the appropriate length for your blogs and websites. 

Use powerful adjectives and verbs. Words like “amazing,” “incredible,” and “revolutionary” can help your readers feel excited about your message. Use strong verbs to create a sense of urgency and inspire action.

Be positive. It’s important to stay positive in your writing, even when you’re discussing difficult topics. Positive language can help to encourage your readers and give them hope for the future.

Be authentic. When you’re writing from the heart, your words will be more powerful than ever. Share your own stories and experiences to connect with your readers on a personal level.

The power of words is undeniable. By using them wisely, you can inspire change in your business and create ripples of positive transformation throughout the world.

Final Words

The use of words is a powerful tool that businesses can utilize in order to increase productivity, create positive customer relationships and build a unique brand identity. By understanding the effect words can have, you can start using this power to your advantage today!

Thank you for reading! I hope this article has inspired you to use words more effectively in your own writing. :)

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Can Words Inspire Change?

Most people think of words as something to convey information: how to construct a sentence, how to spell a word, and so on. What remains surprising to some is the power words have to motivate and inspire. Words are more than a vessel for communication. They have the power to shape opinions, start conversations, and create lasting change on a grand scale.

How Can Words Make a Change?

Words have the power to persuade, motivate, and even to define an entire movement. If it can be said, people will hear it; the more powerful and widely distributed the words become, the more likely it is that real change can come about. Civil rights leaders, for example, have used words for centuries to make a difference in their communities, speaking out against injustice and rallying millions of people to their cause.

In recent years, social media has enabled people to share their views on a global stage with unprecedented speed. Platforms like Facebook and Twitter have taken what was once a private conversation in a home and made it a public event, which is why words on these platforms can often shape the current political landscape. For example, the Me Too movement, which began as a hashtag on Twitter has sparked a vital conversation about sexual assault and harassment, with an ultimate goal of bringing about systemic change.

How Do Words Have the Power?

Words have the power to inspire and draw the attention of millions of people; when used correctly, they can tell a story or create an emotional connection between people. Great leaders have used words to create a vision, to captivate audiences, and to channel the masses in one direction—their own.

The power of words to move people is particularly evident in political rhetoric. It’s not uncommon to hear strong words used in speeches and on the campaign trail. As long as there is something to fight for, language will be used to stoke the passion of the masses and make people feel a sense of unity.

How Can Words Inspire, Provoke, and Calm?

Words have the power to stir up emotions in people, but they also have the power to calm and empathize. In the wake of a tragedy, for example, words have the power to give people comfort and hope. After the tragic shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida, student Emma Gonzalez spoke at a rally shortly afterward and said, “ We call BS, ” in which quickly became a rallying cry for student protestors looking to make real change.

A few weeks after the shooting, President Donald Trump emotionally addressed a meeting in the White House, in which he proclaimed that school safety is a priority, by saying, “ No child, no teacher should ever be in danger in an American school. ” These words offered hope that something could be done, that the issue of gun violence in schools could be addressed and, most of all, that our children are safe.

From inspiring political speeches to calming words of solace, words have the power to move people in a positive direction and to create lasting change.

How Do Words Have the Power to Provoke or Inspire?

Words can evoke strong emotions and provide comfort in times of distress. They can also be used to inspire people to reach for greatness. Sometimes, it takes just the right words to challenge our preconceived notions and open our minds to something new and extraordinary.

The most iconic example of transformative words is Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “ I Have a Dream ” speech. King’s words stirred up emotion in the crowd and inspired them to work together for a common cause. His passionate speech was unmatched in its ability to motivate and move people to action.

Other words, such as former First Lady Michelle Obama’s “ When they go low, we go high ” mantra, invoke feelings of hope and humanity, providing inspiration to all who hear.

Words have the power to move people and inspire change. Whether it’s through powerful speeches or social media, everyone has the power to make their voice heard and work towards a better future. Words provide a platform to speak up and speak out, and when used correctly, they can bring about positive and lasting change.

Sources: CNN. “Emma Gonzalez’s passionate ‘We call BS’ speech goes viral.” The Los Angeles Times. “President Trump emotionally addresses White House meeting about school safety.” History. “Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘I Have A Dream’ speech.” Time. “Michelle Obama’s ‘Go High’ Message Through the Years.”

Christophe Garon

February 28, 2023

Philosophy , Psyche

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The Power of Words: Building, Inspiring, and Influencing

The power of the words we use cannot be overstated. From casual conversations to formal speeches, each word holds the potential to shape perceptions, inspire actions, and even transform lives.

The old adage “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me” couldn’t be further from the truth.

Words possess immense power – the power to build, encourage, inspire, and elevate both others and ourselves.

Table of Contents

The Profound Impact of Words: A Journey into the Power of Language

Words hold a unique and extraordinary power, transcending their role as mere tools for communication. From shaping our thoughts to influencing emotions, the impact of words on individuals is profound and far-reaching.

This exploration delves into the transformative effects of language, unveiling how the right words wield immense influence over our perceptions, emotions, and interactions.

**1. Shaping Thoughts and Beliefs:

Words have the remarkable ability to shape our thoughts and beliefs. The language we encounter, whether through literature, conversations, or media, plays a pivotal role in constructing the framework of our understanding. Positive and empowering words can inspire optimism, while negative or discouraging language may foster doubt and pessimism.

**2. Eliciting Emotions:

The emotional resonance of words is undeniable. A carefully chosen phrase can evoke joy, empathy, or inspiration, while a harsh word may inflict pain or provoke anger. The emotional impact of language is a powerful catalyst that can shape our reactions and perceptions of the world.

**3. Fostering Connection:

Words serve as the bridge between individuals, fostering connection and understanding. Whether expressed through spoken or written language, effective communication creates a shared space where ideas, emotions, and experiences can be exchanged. The right words can forge bonds and strengthen relationships, while miscommunication or hurtful language can strain connections.

**4. Empowering or Limiting Self-Perception:

The words we choose to describe ourselves and others play a crucial role in shaping self-perception. Positive affirmations and constructive language can empower individuals to believe in their capabilities and potential. Conversely, negative self-talk or labeling can limit personal growth and undermine self-esteem.

**5. Influence on Decision-Making:

The persuasive power of words is evident in their ability to influence decision-making. From marketing messages to political rhetoric, words are carefully crafted to sway opinions and guide choices. The art of persuasion lies in the skillful use of language to convey ideas convincingly.

**6. Inspiring Action and Change:

Words have the capacity to inspire action and ignite change. Throughout history, influential speeches, manifestos, and written works have galvanized movements and shaped the course of societies. The right words, delivered with conviction, have the potential to mobilize individuals and communities toward a common purpose.

**7. Cultural Impact:

Language is a cultural vessel, carrying the collective wisdom, values, and narratives of societies. The words we use reflect and contribute to cultural norms, influencing social attitudes and shaping the way we perceive the world around us.

**8. Healing and Empathy:

In times of difficulty, words can be a source of solace and healing. Empathetic and compassionate language has the power to provide comfort and support. Whether expressed through condolences, encouragement, or understanding, words play a vital role in navigating the complexities of human emotions.

In conclusion, the power of words is an intricate tapestry woven into the fabric of human experience. From influencing individual beliefs to shaping societal narratives, words transcend their linguistic function, leaving an indelible mark on the human psyche.

Recognizing and harnessing the transformative potential of language allows us to navigate the world with greater awareness, empathy, and the ability to inspire positive change.

Unleashing Inspiration: The Dynamic Power of Words to Ignite Change

Words possess an unparalleled ability to transcend the limitations of language and tap into the essence of human experience.

Among their myriad influences, one of the most profound is their capacity to inspire others. This exploration delves into the transformative power of words as catalysts for inspiration, exploring how our language choices can spark change, foster motivation, and cultivate a shared sense of purpose.

**1. Creating Vision and Possibility:

Words have the potency to paint vivid pictures of a future filled with possibility. Inspirational language can articulate a vision that transcends current circumstances, igniting a spark of hope and inviting others to envision a brighter tomorrow.

**2. Elevating Spirits in Adversity:

During challenging times, carefully chosen words can become beacons of light. Inspirational language possesses the remarkable ability to uplift spirits, offering solace, encouragement, and a renewed sense of resilience in the face of adversity.

**3. Fostering Belief in Potential:

The right words can be a catalyst for self-belief and empowerment. By using language that acknowledges and celebrates individual potential, we inspire others to recognize their capabilities, fostering a mindset of growth and self-actualization.

**4. Motivating Action:

Words, when infused with conviction and purpose, can mobilize individuals into action. Inspirational language serves as a powerful motivator, propelling people to overcome obstacles, pursue their goals, and contribute to positive change.

**5. Cultivating a Shared Purpose:

Language has the ability to articulate a collective purpose that binds individuals together. Inspirational words create a shared narrative, fostering a sense of unity and collaboration toward a common goal.

**6. Fueling Passion and Creativity:

Inspirational language stirs the flames of passion and creativity within individuals. By expressing enthusiasm and highlighting the beauty of imagination, words can kindle the creative spirit and inspire innovative thinking.

**7. Building Confidence and Resilience:

Positive affirmations and encouraging language play a vital role in building confidence and resilience. Inspirational words act as a supportive framework, instilling a sense of belief that individuals can overcome challenges and emerge stronger.

**8. Catalyzing Positive Change:

The power of words extends beyond individual inspiration to collective societal change. Inspirational language can be a driving force behind movements, influencing attitudes, dismantling barriers, and advocating for a more equitable and compassionate world.

**9. Leadership Through Inspiration:

Effective leaders harness the power of inspirational language to guide and motivate their teams. By articulating a compelling vision, fostering a culture of collaboration, and expressing unwavering confidence, leaders inspire collective effort and dedication.

**10. Leaving a Lasting Legacy:

Inspirational words have the potential to create a lasting impact, shaping the legacy we leave behind. Through the timeless resonance of language, we can inspire future generations to carry forth the ideals, values, and aspirations that we articulate today.

The power of words to inspire others is a dynamic force that transcends communication. It has the ability to transform individual lives, mobilize communities, and shape the course of human history.

As we recognize and harness this extraordinary power, we become not only conveyors of language but architects of inspiration, fostering positive change in the hearts and minds of those around us.

Empowering Self-Talk: Harnessing the Transformative Power of Words Within

In the private realm of our thoughts, the dialogue we engage in with ourselves wields a profound influence on our well-being, mindset, and overall life trajectory.

The power of self-talk, the words we choose to address ourselves, is a potent force that shapes our self-perception, confidence, and resilience.

This exploration delves into the significance of fostering confident and encouraging self-talk, unraveling the transformative impact it has on our mental and emotional landscapes.

**1. Shaping Self-Perception:

The words we use in our internal narrative directly influence how we perceive ourselves. Positive and affirming self-talk cultivates a self-image grounded in confidence, fostering a sense of capability and self-worth.

**2. Cultivating Confidence:

Confidence is a byproduct of empowering self-talk. When we choose words that uplift and validate our abilities, we nurture a mindset of self-assurance. This newfound confidence becomes a driving force in facing challenges and pursuing goals.

**3. Overcoming Adversity:

Encouraging self-talk serves as a crucial ally during times of adversity. By framing challenges as opportunities for growth and affirming our resilience, we bolster our mental fortitude and navigate obstacles with a positive mindset.

**4. Building Emotional Resilience:

The language we employ in self-talk profoundly impacts our emotional resilience. By choosing words that acknowledge our emotions, validate our experiences, and offer self-compassion, we build emotional resilience that allows us to navigate life’s ups and downs with grace.

**5. Fostering a Growth Mindset:

Words have the power to shape our mindset. Encouraging self-talk nurtures a growth mindset, where setbacks are viewed as learning opportunities, and continuous improvement becomes a guiding principle in personal development.

**6. Enhancing Motivation:

Positive and affirming self-talk acts as a motivational force. By framing goals and aspirations in optimistic language, we ignite an internal drive that propels us forward. Encouraging self-talk becomes the fuel that sustains our motivation over the long haul.

**7. Cultivating Self-Compassion:

The words we choose in our self-talk reflect our capacity for self-compassion. Embracing kindness, understanding, and encouragement in our internal dialogue fosters a nurturing relationship with ourselves, essential for overall well-being.

**8. Diminishing Self-Doubt:

Self-doubt often arises from negative self-talk patterns. Transforming this internal dialogue into one of encouragement and confidence diminishes self-doubt, allowing us to approach challenges with a belief in our capabilities.

**9. Promoting Mental Well-Being:

Encouraging self-talk contributes significantly to mental well-being. The language we use internally shapes our emotional state, influencing stress levels, anxiety, and overall mental health. Choosing words that affirm and uplift enhances our psychological resilience.

**10. Setting the Tone for Success:

The words we use in self-talk set the tone for our journey toward success. By infusing our internal narrative with positivity, belief, and encouragement, we create a mental environment conducive to achieving our goals and aspirations.

The power of self-talk is a dynamic force that shapes the contours of our inner world. Choosing confident and encouraging words in our internal dialogue is not merely a linguistic choice; it is a conscious act of self-empowerment.

As we cultivate a habit of positive self-talk, we unlock the transformative potential of our inner narrative, fostering resilience, confidence, and a profound sense of self-worth.

Biblical Wisdom on the Power of Words

The Bible, a timeless source of wisdom, repeatedly emphasizes the importance of our speech. In the King James Version (KJV), Proverbs 18:21 teaches, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” This verse underscores how our words can lead to either destruction or growth. Ephesians 4:29 guides believers to use words that “edify, that it may minister grace unto the hearers,” highlighting the role of words in uplifting and encouraging others.

The Irrevocable Nature of Words

Once words leave our lips, they cannot be taken back. This irreversible quality of speech underscores the urgency of understanding the power of a word. A harsh word, spoken in a moment of anger, can wound deeply and leave lasting scars.

Recognizing this, we must exercise caution and thoughtfulness in our speech, choosing words that reflect our intentions and values.

In a world inundated with information and rapid communication, it’s crucial to recognize the potency of the words we employ.

The power of a word extends far beyond its literal meaning; it carries the weight of emotions, intentions, and impacts.

By choosing words that uplift, inspire, and encourage others, we contribute to a more compassionate and positive society. Moreover, our internal dialogue shapes our self-perception, influencing the paths we choose to tread.

Let’s heed the wisdom of ancient scriptures, embracing the art of positive communication. By doing so, we harness the remarkable power of words to nurture relationships, kindle aspirations, and transform lives.

Remember, the power of the words we use is a gift – let’s use it to build a brighter and more uplifting world.

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How leaders can inspire through their words

Carey business school expert on communication behaviors shares insights on how inspirational rhetoric can be used by business, civic, and political leaders.

By Tim Parsons

Language and rhetoric are powerful tools for leaders who wish to inspire their listeners to take action.

Steven D. Cohen , an associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School , studies the communication behaviors of effective leaders, with a particular focus on executive presence. An experienced trainer, he has created custom courses and leadership development programs for Fortune 500 companies and government agencies to help leaders learn to communicate with confidence, influence, and authority.

Cohen shared his insights on how leaders inspire others and what communication techniques they use to do so.

What is the distinction between persuasion and inspiration, in terms of leadership?

Many people think about persuasion in terms of convincing others. "I believe something, and I want you to believe it, too." Persuasion is about framing a message. It's about using evidence. It's about telling stories. Inspiration, on the other hand, is something greater.

Image caption: Steven Cohen

Inspiration is about crafting arguments of the heart. It's about appealing to people more strongly through emotion. And that's the key differentiator between persuasion and inspiration. For example, I may want to persuade you to buy a product. You have the ability to buy that product—I just have to convince you to do it. That's very different than inspiring you to run a marathon. Just because I want you to run a marathon doesn't mean that you can. So when we have a bigger, bolder vision, we have to call on a different set of tools. That's when the tools of persuasion are not enough. That's when we need to harness the tools of inspiration.

Why is the ability to inspire others vital to leadership?

It's not enough anymore for leaders just to be visionaries. They have to be effective rhetoricians. They have to be able to harness the power of language to motivate and mobilize large groups of people to tackle challenges that seem unachievable.

It's important for leaders to talk about goals, but focusing on revenue growth or profitability isn't inspiring. We need leaders who talk about revolutionizing the way the world works, how products and services can change minds and hearts and change society. Language and communication elevate messages and help leaders frame their ideas in more provocative, meaningful ways.

What are some of the tools of inspiration?

The first ingredient is vision. Leaders need to have a clear and compelling vision about what they want to achieve. They have to know where they're headed and why they're headed in that direction. Can you envision a CEO saying, "Let's all commit to doing our routine tasks better?" No, that's not inspirational. An inspiring vision should stretch expectations. It should motivate listeners to do something bigger, to do something challenging, to do something extraordinary.

I recently came across an anecdote about two stonemasons. Someone asks these masons, "What are you doing?" The first mason says, "I'm building a wall." The other mason says, "I'm building a towering cathedral."

This anecdote illustrates the difference between an ordinary leader and an inspirational leader. Inspirational leaders paint bigger pictures and set grander goals. They help us envision what's possible and what we can achieve together.

The second ingredient is passion. Leaders have to be passionate about the vision they are advocating. Steve Jobs wasn't passionate about building iPads and laptops. He was passionate about revolutionizing the world of computers, and ultimately, the way the world worked. He was passionate about creating products that help people discover and harness their creativity. That's what passion is all about. You have to feel it in your gut and your heart. And you have to talk about your mission and vision in more dynamic ways.

There is a big difference between drive and passion. When you're driven, you push yourself to achieve a goal. You're driven to get good grades, get promoted at work, or get a raise. Passion is something entirely different. Passion pulls you like a magnet toward something irresistible. Leaders, especially inspirational leaders, have to pull people with language and with communication toward a vision they cannot resist.

The last ingredient is language. Language elevates the message. It makes the message linger and resonate in listeners' minds.

You stressed that language is an important element of inspiring leadership. What are some of the rhetorical techniques that leaders use, and how can they be mastered?

The first technique is called holding out hope. When times are tough, leaders need to use upbeat, hopeful language. If a company is facing a difficult quarter or if the product is not selling, a good leader will acknowledge that. The leader won't try to obscure what's really happening. The key, however, is not to dwell on the current situation. Leaders should discuss the situation in an honest and transparent manner, but then quickly pivot to the specific reasons the audience should remain hopeful.

For example, if quarterly earnings are down or the stock price is down, acknowledge the situation, but then offer specific evidence that points to a more hopeful future. Don't say, "Trust me because I've dealt with this situation before." Don't say, "Trust me because I have a five-point plan." Instead, explain that we have the best people, we have the best strategy, and we have the best product. Then back up these statements with evidence and people will believe in you and follow you.

Another technique is to embrace the power of vulnerability. People want authenticity more now than ever before. We no longer expect leaders to be polished and perfect. We want leaders who talk openly about times they've failed, times they've struggled, and times they took the wrong path. These types of stories humanize them and make them more real and relatable.

It's not that leaders should swing the door wide open and share their deepest, darkest secrets. Instead, leaders should crack the door and share a moment that we can relate to and that tells us something about them and about ourselves.

Let me give you an example from politics. Franklin D. Roosevelt would often use folksy language to connect with people on the street. He once said, "I have no expectations of making a hit every time I come to bat. What I seek is the highest possible batting average, not only for myself but for the team." Did Roosevelt always talk like that? No, but it was a way for him to make his message more accessible. So vulnerability matters and accessibility matters. And these are both essential components of inspirational leadership.

What are some other language techniques that inspiring leaders use?

Let me share a few of my favorites. Anaphora is the repetition of keywords or phrases at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences. Think of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. He started successive paragraphs with that same refrain. It's a powerful example of using repetition to make an idea resonate.

Here's another example from Abraham Lincoln: "But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground." The repetition of the words "we cannot" adds power to his message.

Another nice technique is alliteration. Think about these company names: Krispy Kreme, The Coca-Cola Company, Bed Bath & Beyond. See how easy they are to say and remember? Alliteration is a wonderful way to emphasize certain words or ideas. The trick is to use similar-sounding consonant sounds. It's not just about repeating the same letter.

Another one I like is tricolon, the rule of three. Think "veni, vidi, vici" (the Latin phrase meaning "I came, I saw, I conquered") or "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." It's easier to remember three ideas; there's a musicality to three. It's important for leaders to stick with three key messages in any speech or presentation. This approach focuses listeners on the key ideas you want them to remember.

I'll share one more technique commonly used in political speeches—antimetabole. It's where you repeat words in reverse order in the second half of a sentence. Here's a famous example from John F. Kennedy's inaugural address: "Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country."

Imagine if Kennedy had said, "Your country has given you a lot. Now it's your turn to give back." This sentence makes the same point as the original, but it is far less memorable.

This is an election year in America. Candidates across the political spectrum are trying to inspire us and persuade us to vote for them. Do you have any insights for candidates?

Candidates often talk about how they have specific plans for each of their ideas. But here's the thing: Plans are persuasive; genuine emotion is inspirational. It's not enough for voters to read the plans; they have to believe in the plans. They have to feel the impact those plans will have on their lives. To create that feeling, candidates have to back up their messages with vulnerability and authenticity.

But candidates also have to do something more. They have to make voters believe that their plans are achievable—to reform the health care system, to fix the criminal justice system, to slow global climate change. Candidates don't have to tell us exactly how they will get from point A to point B, but they do need to break their plan into logical steps. Once candidates pivot from general ideas to specific steps, voters start to see the path forward and feel as though the plan is achievable.

Another approach is using what I call historical success anecdotes, moments when we faced a similar challenge and succeeded. When I work with political candidates, I often say: Don't just describe your ideas. Remind us of a similar moment when times were tough, but we were able to push forward and get things done. These anecdotes make voters believe that we've done it before so we can do it again.

How important is authenticity for inspiring leaders, and why do so many leaders seem to struggle in this area?

It's extremely important. Some leaders forget what it's like for the average employee or average American family. They forget what life is like for people trying to put food on the table or trying to make sure their kids have access to a high-quality, affordable education. It's hard to relate when you're not having the same discussions around the dinner table.

This problem is exacerbated by the desire to be perfect, to seem like you have it all "figured out." It's not easy to show vulnerability, to open up so publicly. However, cracking the door allows you to connect with people in a much more authentic way. Don't be afraid to say you're wrong or that you made a mistake. It makes you more real.

Sometimes, the message isn't positive and you have to deliver bad news. Leaders need to be direct and upfront even when it's hard.

That's the part of leadership we don't hear as much about.

That's right. Leaders have to be willing to deliver bad news, and they have to be honest about what the impact will be. That's how they can convey authenticity.

What else should we know about crafting inspirational messages?

It's important to highlight the ethical dimension of using these techniques. These rhetorical tools have been used to raise millions of dollars for charitable causes, but they also have been used to bilk people out of their hard-earned savings. We have to hold our leaders accountable and put pressure on them to do the right thing. When leaders do the right thing, there's so much they can achieve.

A few years ago, I read a great book called The Leadership Challenge . In it, James Kouzes and Barry Posner argue that "leaders are possibility thinkers, not probability thinkers." This quote captures the essence of inspirational leadership quite well. Ultimately, we want leaders to play in the sandbox of possibility, not of probability. And when they do, we feel motivated to jump into the sandbox with them and help build a towering sandcastle.

Posted in Voices+Opinion , Politics+Society

Tagged communications , business

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Amy Rees Anderson

The power of words.

Words are a powerful thing. Words can build and lift, comfort and calm, teach and inspire.  To the opposite, words can destroy and demolish, incite and enrage, berate and criticize, embarrass and demean.  It has been said that in an average day a person will speak somewhere between 10 and 20,000 words. Which means we have that tons of chances every day to say something positive or to say something negative, the choice is totally up to us.

There is an old saying that “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Whoever came up with that saying had it completely wrong…what they saying needed to say is “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but unkind words will always hurt me…and a broken bone can heal with time, but the damage done by unkind words might never heal.”  Anyone who has ever been on the receiving end of verbal abuse or verbal assaults knows all too well how true this is…

What is important to keep in mind is that people who speak negatively of others are people who first have felt negatively about themselves, they are those who are constantly thinking critical thoughts about themselves.  After a period of time of only seeing the negative in themselves, that person begins to only see the negative in others too, and often times they start to voice that.  They become incapable of seeing the positive, and instead they only complain and condemn.  They wallow in misery themselves and they become determined to make everyone around them feel miserable too.  Often times they may try to mask their unkind words with sarcasm and humor, relishing in the laughter they get at the expense of someone else.  What they don’t realize is that the laughter they are getting is from people who laugh out of fear, not out of admiration, because the last thing those people laughing want is to become next on their list to be torn down.  What it comes down to is this, people who speak negatively are not loved; they are feared.

When we are tempted to say something unkind we have to remember this:  Negative words, once spoken, can’t be pulled back.  We can apologize and try to make amends, but even that won’t make the memory of our words disappear.  Even if the person we offended forgives us, they are likely to remember our words for many years to come and the damage done to their heart may never fully heal.   

Boys flying kites haul in their white-winged birds;

You can call back your kites, but you can’t call back your words.

“Careful with fire” is good advice, we know;

“Careful with words” is ten times doubly so.

Thoughts unexpressed will often fall back dead. But God Himself can’t kill them, once they are said!

-Will Carleton

We have to remember that the words we say reflect the person that we are, whether they are good or bad, they are reflecting what we think and feel on the inside to everyone observing on the outside.  Our words reflect our character.   That goes for both the words we speak as well as the words we write.  In today’s world we see so much of people writing horrible things on Twitter or Facebook or a myriad of other social media outlets.  Bullying is no longer just for the playground, cyber-bullying has run rampant on the web.  And people seem to take more liberty with being unkind in writing then they would dare attempt to verbalize in person. Putting word in written form hurts no less than words spoken, and sometimes it can hurt even more.  When I have come across that type of tearing down I can’t help but think to myself: how miserable must this person who wrote this must be to have taken time out of their day to post something so destructive and degrading about someone else….making that effort takes being a truly unhappy person who wants nothing more than to spread their misery…it’s really very sad.

On the opposite end of the spectrum we have those who use their words in positive ways.  They are optimistic and happy and they look for the good, both in themselves, as well as in others.  They are encouraging and kind and they use the power of their words to build and encourage.  People are drawn to them because they know they will lift them up, give them hope, and inspire them to be better.   These people are loved, and it is easy to see why. I absolutely love people who use the power of their words to do good.  I love learning from them and I love being around them.  They make the world a happier place and they inspire me to use the power of my own words for good.

Here’s to making the world a better place by the power of our words – both spoken and written!  Have a great Monday everyone!  It’s going to be an amazing week ahead…I just feel it!

10 Comments

Some words when spoken…can’t be taken back…

Nothingman by Pearl Jam

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Absolutely Beautifully!Words are a biblical fact and truth of how Wounderful God is.

Absolutely Beautifully!Words are a biblical fact and truth of how Wonderful God is.

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How Can Words Inspire Change? (How To Make A Difference!)

Today, I want you to decide that you will be the positive change that this world needs. Challenge your entire system of beliefs and begin to understand the power of our words to make a positive change. Right now.

So how can words inspire change?

Words are a very powerful tool. When we use the right words, we can change minds and change hearts.

Imagine if every interaction in your day was filled with pure love and gratitude. What if negative words and unkind words were never uttered? What if we stopped sharing fake content and photoshopped pictures all over our social media pages, and shared kindness instead?

Imagine how much of a better place the world would be if people understood the power of their words.

What if we all had a common goal to always do the right thing, to understand the true power of words, and encourage others through positivity?

Inspirational Leaders Have Proven The Power of Positive Words

There have been many inspirational leaders throughout history who have shown us how the power of their words can lead to great things.

Dr. Martin Luther King was a great leader who served as an activist during the civil rights movement. Martin Luther King’s vision was inclusion for all, regardless of the color of their skin.

Dr. King’s beliefs in the power of nonviolent protest changed the lives of African Americans. His motivational words demonstrated how words can inspire change.

How Can Words Inspire Change: 5 Actionable Steps

While you may not be a great leader in history, you can still accomplish great things with the words that you use to speak with the people in your life.

Here are 5 actionable steps that you can take each day to use your words to inspire change in yourself and those around you.

#1. Don’t Complain

People love to complain , don’t they? Whether it is about family, work, or the weather, there never seems to be a shortage of complaints going around!

But here’s the thing: how bad is your life, really?

Have you ever taken a moment to just appreciate all that you do have?

Complaining is really just a big waste of time and energy. When we complain, we don’t solve problems, and we don’t make anyones’s day better. The only thing complaining does is passes negative energy from one person to another!

It is time to start waking up to start every day with a grateful heart . When we feel and express gratitude, our words inspire change in others. It makes a big difference when people feel valued and appreciated!

#2. Use Positive Words

It sounds like common sense, right?

But for some people it is easier to say negative things than to share positive thoughts.

Our jobs are a common place for negative comments. We all have negative co-workers that have a talent for sucking the positivity from the room.

This type of negativity is contagious. It spreads through every negative comment that is made, and can transform an entire workforce for the worse!

One way to avoid negativity is to practice. If a thought comes to your mind, ask yourself: is this a positive thought that will make the people around me happier? If not, practice keeping it to yourself until you can transform it into something worth sharing.

Next Monday morning, choose to challenge your co-workers with small talk that is designed to challenge them to change their Monday mindset .

For example, rather than asking how their weekend was, ask them what their goals are for the week. Or ask them about one thing that they are looking forward to.

Small steps like these change the culture of your organization for the better!

#3. Build Yourself and Others Up

How can words inspire change in ourselves?

The words that we use when we speak to ourselves in our own minds controls the way in which we see ourselves.

For example, we can  build ourselves up  by using words that are positive, uplifting, and productive. However, it is also very easy to bring yourself down by using words that are negative, hurtful, and counterproductive.

When you get used to using positive self-talk to build yourself up, it becomes easier to use the same words to build up others!

#4. Stay True to Yourself

How can words inspire change if we are all trying to be the same?

There are so many pressures in life to change who we are to suit the needs of someone else. There is pressure to ‘be normal’, but being normal is just being the same as everyone else!

You don’t have to have the same favorite TV show as your co-workers. It is okay if you are the only one who isn’t into sports. Walk into the lunch room and be brave enough to be yourself, just as you are, without any change.

And use your words to encourage others to do the same! Use your words to send the message that there is no one else like you in the world. Remind your loved ones and co-workers that it is okay for them to be uniquely themselves.

We all want to make a difference in the world. But differences aren’t made by keeping everything the same!

#5. Explore New Thoughts and Ideas

When was the last time you learned something new?

Learning new things helps broaden our exposure to different ideas and perspectives. And it is easier to inspire change when we have a better vision of the big picture!

We often use our words to criticize things that we don’t understand. But, being open to new things that you haven’t explored can give you a new look at something you once didn’t understand. This can in turn help you use more positive language to inspire change around you!

How Can Words Inspire Change in Your Life?

Words have power!

They can either create positive change or negative change. The words that you choose to use can either build people up or bring them down. And the same is true for the words that we use in our own self-talk!

We can see the power of words in our interactions with those closest to us. Take note of how you speak to your friends, family, and co-workers. Step outside your comfort zone and inspire positive change with your use of words that are positive!

How can words inspire change in your life?

Don’t forget to share this post with your friends and family on social media! If you know someone who could use some help with the words that they use, this post could be just what they need!

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Home » The Tony Robbins Blog » Mind & Meaning » Change your words, change your life

Change your words, change your life

The simplest tool for immediately transforming the quality of your life.

But what about our own ability to use words internally to change our lives for the better – words that will ignite change, inspire action and improve our quality of life ? Can you change your words, and change your life ?

Our words are a vehicle for expressing and sharing our experiences with others, but you may not realize the far-reaching impacts of the words you use on a daily basis. As I like to explain , “The words you attach to your experience become your experience. Language is one of the keys to shifting your mind, shifting your body and shifting your results.” If your internal self-talk is negative , chances are that your external experiences will be negative as well.

Over the past 40 years, I’ve had the privilege of working with more than 50 million people worldwide and I’ve witnessed the power that changing just one key word in a person’s vocabulary can have on the way a person feels – and how that person behaves.

By changing your habitual vocabulary – the words you consistently use to describe emotions – you can instantaneously change how you think, how you feel and how you live. When you change your words, you change your mindset . This works with the Organizational Change Management style as well.

How can words inspire change? Make your internal vocabulary more positive, and you’ll soon find out. The positive external experiences you’ll discover will amaze you . This is the power of transformational vocabulary – consciously using your words to improve and change your life.

Why is it difficult to change your words and change your mindset ?

According to Compton’s Encyclopedia, the English language contains some 500,000 words. Yet, the average person’s working vocabulary consists of only 2,000 – 0.5% of the entire language. So how many words make up our habitual vocabulary? For most people, it averages around 200–300 words. (By contrast, John Milton’s writings used about 17,000 words and William Shakespeare used 24,000 words, 5,000 of which he only used one time.) Of those 500,000 words, about 3,000 are used to describe emotions – two-thirds of which are used to describe negative emotions.

With all of these readily-available ways to express our feelings and ideas, why are we comfortable with such an impoverished vocabulary? Our brains are working at high speeds, processing information and working to become more efficient. As a result, we resort to using the same vocabulary over and over again. In the pursuit of efficiency, we often create shortcuts that then shortchange us emotionally.

How to change your words

The human brain likes to take shortcuts. It conserves energy – and it also keeps us stuck in patterns that don’t always benefit us. The brain also likes certainty, one of our top human needs . Some certainty is beneficial, but too much of it prevents us from growing. To change your words – and change your life – you need to overcome both of these innate human tendencies and shift your way of thinking.

 1. Understand the power of labeling

I first became aware of the power of labeling emotions during an intense negotiation, more than a decade and a half ago. I shared information with the other party, thinking it would help my business partners and me cut through the positioning and show good faith. Unfortunately, the other party leveraged that information in an attempt to close the deal in an unjust way.

To say it was upsetting at the time would be an understatement.

After the meeting, I was disappointed and angry , but the intensity of one of my partners baffled me. He was enraged and felt that the other party was “putting a gun to our head.” His face was beet red and he was out of control as I tried to calm him down. The intensity of his emotions struck me because it seemed over-the-top compared to my frustration. On the other hand, our other partner seemed completely unmoved by the experience.

When I asked him, “You don’t seem to be upset by this. Aren’t you angry?” He said, “Well, no, not really. I’m a little annoyed by this.” I was incredulous. “Annoyed?” I asked, “Don’t you realize what these people have done?” He said, “Of course I do. I’m certainly a bit peeved.” “Peeved?” I echoed. “What do you mean, peeved?” To which he responded, “Well, it’s really just not worth being upset over and that’s how I feel.”

I was struck by how each of us used words with such varied levels of intensity, and also how the meaning we gave to our experiences of the event were so radically different. How could it be that I was frustrated, one of my partners was enraged and my other partner was a bit peeved?

I pondered the word, “peeved.” What a ridiculous word to describe what these people had done to us. I would never use this word to describe how I was feeling, but then again, I had never been that calm in an unjust situation. I began to wonder, what if I stayed calm and labeled this injustice as “peeving me?” Just to use the word would probably make me laugh. Maybe he was on to something. Maybe my partner had already discovered that when you c hange your words, you change your life .

“Language shapes our behavior and each word we use is imbued with multitudes of personal meaning. The right words spoken in the right way can bring us love, money and respect, while the wrong words—or even the right words spoken in the wrong way – can lead a country o war. We must carefully orchestrate our speech if we want to achieve our goals and bring our dreams to fruition. — Dr. Andrew Newberg, Words Can Change Your Brain”2. Identify your self-talk

For more than two decades, I’ve been testing live audiences all around the world, asking them to take on this task: Make a list of the emotions you feel at least once a week.

Go ahead. Take ten minutes and write down all the emotions you feel at least once a week (not emotions you feel once a month or year). What did you come up with?

Astonishingly, whether the audience consists of 2,000 or 30,000 people, 90% of the people write down an average of a dozen words – more than half of which represent negative feelings. That means that out of the 3,000 words we have for emotions, most people list less than six words to describe good feelings. But the words for their bad feelings are more readily available, stored and remembered.

Have you ever taken the time to think about which words you habitually use and how they affect your life and well-being? Negative self-talk and negative emotional labeling stem from your limiting beliefs and affect all of your emotions – which in turn affect your decisions, behaviors and experiences of life.

Let’s look at this phenomenon in another light. What if a person was asked the same question and listed 30 positive emotions? How happy and fulfilled do you think that person is in life?

The problem is that our default setting isn’t to consciously choose our words to describe our emotions. When we experience distressing emotions, we unconsciously fall back on our habitual vocabulary. The words we attach to our experience become our experience. Words have a biochemical effect on the body. The minute you use a word like “devastated,” you’re going to produce a very different biochemical effect than if you say, “I’m a bit disappointed.”

It’s not hard to see the impact of language when we look at how we feel when other people speak to us. For example, if someone said to you, “I think you’re mistaken,” versus, “I think you’re wrong,” versus, “You’re lying,” would you have a different biochemical response to that phrase? The same exact process happens with the words you use to speak to yourself. When you learn to change your words, change your mindset and change your life, it’s because you’re changing these inherent responses.

3. Challenge yourself to change your words, change your life

Is it possible that the words we attach to our experience actually become our experience? Do words have a biochemical effect? Let’s go back to the business meeting that left my partner “peeved.” For the next few weeks after that meeting, I began to notice the different language patterns of others and how they magnified or softened their emotions. Can a change in words lead to a change in state ?

It was time to test this theory. I created a 10-day challenge for myself. First, I would have to identify my emotional habits . Then, I would consciously replace these with a new word to break my default pattern of thought and feeling.

I got my first opportunity after a long series of connecting flights, all of which were late. I arrived at my hotel at two a.m., knowing I had to be up to speak at eight a.m. I waited another 10 minutes at the front desk while the clerk slowly searched for my name in the computer. The frustration compounded until it turned to anger. Suddenly, I turned to the man and said, “I know this isn’t your fault, but right now I’m exhausted and I really need to get any room you can find for me because I’m feeling a little bit peeved.”

Just saying that word changed the tone of my voice and made the whole situation seem silly. The clerk looked at me in confusion before breaking into a big smile. I smiled back; my pattern was broken . As ridiculous as it sounds, the replacement word broke my pattern of anger. The emotional volcano building inside of me instantly cooled. So how can words inspire change ? It starts with a change inside of you.

4. Shift your emotional patterns over the long-term

Could it really be this easy? Just by changing the words we habitually use to describe our emotions, could we change our feelings and the quality of our lives? Ten days turned into a month and I can tell you, beyond a shadow of a doubt, it was a life-transforming experience.

This is not to say there won’t be times when you feel angry or enraged, but wouldn’t it be nice to have that be a conscious choice as opposed to a habitual negative reaction? We can be proactive in choosing our emotions – we can make experiences more pleasurable.

If you’re wondering how to change your words and change your life in the easiest way possible, start with one word. Replace one word that will transform the way you experience something “negative.” Shifting your mindset is the key to shaping your decisions, actions and life. This is how you create a choice instead of a habitual reaction.

Transformational vocabulary gives you the power to change your experiences in life by lowering the intensity of negative emotions to the point where they no longer control you. It can also be used to take positive experiences and increase them to even greater heights of pleasure.  

How extraordinary will your life be when you consistently lower the intensity of negative emotions and intensify the positive ones? Start small. Note the negative words you use on a consistent basis and ask yourself how you can change them. Can you be “peeved” instead of “devastated?” On the other hand, can you feel “ecstatic” instead of “pleased?” When you change your words, you change your mindset . Start creating beneficial habits today, and you’ll quickly reach a more positive, joyful state .

Header image © Shutterstock/Antonio Guillem

Tony Robbins is an entrepreneur, bestselling author, philanthropist and the nation’s #1 Life and Business Strategist. Author of five internationally bestselling books, including the recent New York Times #1 best-seller UNSHAKEABLE, Mr. Robbins has empowered more than 50 million people from 100 countries through his audio, video and life training programs. He created the #1 personal and professional development program of all time, and more than 4 million people have attended his live seminars.

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What Inspires Me: The Power of Words

« back to blog, the power of words inspires me.  the right words, shared at the right time, give hope and purpose. words create an expectation of reality; anticipation for what is promised, hope for what is to come..

Words help leaders cast vision for the promise of the future. Words give life to ideas. Words and phrases convey the purpose, values, character, and culture of your organization. Words that motivate create affinity and loyalty when the values conveyed are shared by those who believe in your cause.

When combined with interpretive typography and memorable imagery, words motivate people to action, and become a catalyst that lead to changed thinking in the mind, and speak hope to the heart of the listener.

Words give meaning and promote unity. The words you use inspire others to participate in the future that is promised, and the change that is aspired to.

To inspire is to connect the purpose of a cause with the values of its supporters. When an individual understands that their values align with your organization's mission and the cause your organization represents, they become part of the story.

Their shared experience gives them a story to tell, a point of connection, and personal meaning. Their story becomes an inspiration to others; their story becomes a part of your narrative. They are no longer observers, but participants.

The impact of leadership is amplified by words that inspire. People want a cause to believe in, and a leader to follow. Choose your words well, and they will motivate people to follow, to donate to, advocate for—and to believe in—your cause. Inspire people, and they will be motivated and engaged. Engage them, and they will become more than advocates and donors—they will become champions and believers.

Words can paint a vision of the future, but words without action are just wishes.

The world is watching, and it is asking: “Do you want me engaged? Do you want me to follow you, to believe in your vision? Inspire me!”

Do you have a hard time explaining what your company does or why your brand matters to people?

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How Reading Inspires Communities

By Tait Longhi, Blog Intern

An image of a group of students in our Read Aloud Program excitedly holding up their books.

There are countless reasons why two strangers may connect, but one common reason that has connected all ages is the commonality of stories. As a child, when you discover that your classmate loves the same book series as you, an immediate conversation ensues. Being able to talk about characters, what they think will happen next and why they love the book as much as you do creates a bond.

This doesn’t go away with childhood, if anything it intensifies. Reading doesn’t only builds friendships, but entire communities. Words Alive, organizations like the Harry Potter Alliance (HPA), GoodReads or just a classic book club are just a few examples of how the power of reading can bring people together. It may be the fact that every person reading the pages will take a different lesson or viewpoint than the next, and we as humans desire to know and understand one another through these insights.

Books also teach us life lessons that inspire us to do something good for our community. Organizations like the Harry Potter Alliance were founded out of a love for the Harry Potter series and have created a whole community of activists who are using popular stories to change the world. John and Hank Green are brothers (and both authors) who have fostered an online community called Nerdfighteria , a community that celebrates many things but chief among them is a love for books and learning. With the internet, it’s easier than ever to find and form communities around a love of books.

According to the journal, “Using Parent Book Clubs to Build a School-Wide Reading Community”, a high school class partook in reading aloud throughout the year. This allowed students to “engage in meaningful relationships and social interactions tied to reading, and these connections mattered to them. Students took these connections seriously, and they authentically acted in ways to contribute positively to the reading community.” Here, we can see what one could call book club within the classroom.

The importance in these communities may seem obvious, but there is more than just reading aloud and discussing books. Organizations like Words Alive understand that communities that value reading help build thriving and intellectual individuals and relationships among one another.  

Reading, literacy and all it brings is a powerful thing, which is why we at Words Alive are here. Through the passion of reading we have come together to show the importance and positive impact it can make on others. While reading is often done in solidarity, it has the unique ability to bring a huge group together, to understand and bond with one another.  

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Malala Yousafzai on How Everyone Can Inspire Change

In this View From The Top podcast episode, the activist shares her vision of uplifting girls through education.

December 10, 2021

“My story is not an exceptional story. It could have been the story of any girl if their fathers and brothers had allowed them to speak out.”

In this View From The Top interview, activist and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Malala Yousafzai shares her mission to ensure that all 130 million girls who are not in school can have access to education.

“My goal is to meet these girls, but also uplift their story so leaders listen to them rather than me. And this is my goal in every meeting… to say, ‘Let’s listen to these activists. They have something to say to you. You have been ignoring their voices, so hear from them and they will tell you what the issues are in this country for girls and women.’”

Listen & Subscribe

Stanford GSB’s View From The Top is the dean’s premier speaker series. It launched in 1978 and is supported in part by the F. Kirk Brennan Speaker Series Fund.

During student-led interviews and before a live audience, leaders from around the world share insights on effective leadership, their personal core values, and lessons learned throughout their career.

Full Transcript

Malala Yousafzai: My story is not an exceptional story. It could have been the story of any girl if their fathers and brothers had allowed them to speak out. Many were stopped by their family members. Many were stopped by men in the society.

Rustom Birdie: Welcome to View From The Top, the podcast. That was Malala Yousafzai, Nobel Peace Prize winner and cofounder of the Malala Fund. Malala visited Stanford Graduate School of Business as part of View From the Top, a speaker series where students, like me, sit down to interview leaders from around the world. I’m Rustom Birdie, an MBA student of the class of 2022. This year I had the pleasure of interviewing Malala here on campus. Malala shared with us how she stays motivated in the fight for girls‘ education, how girls around the world continue to inspire her, and how each of us have an important role to play in realizing the changes we want to see in our future.

You’re listening to View From The Top, the podcast.

Rustom Birdie: Okay, As-salamu alaykum, Malala.

Malala Yousafzai : Wa alaykum salam. Thank you.

Rustom Birdie: Clearly, Stanford GSB is very excited to have you here today. Before we start, want to just say a personal thank you, Malala. As a fellow Pakistani, a brother to two sisters, a son to a mother back in Karachi, I’m humbled and filled with gratitude to share the stage with you today.

Malala Yousafzai: Thank you so much, and I’m also honored to be here. Thank you so much to everyone for your presence, and I’m so excited to have this conversation.

Rustom Birdie: Great. There are a lot of important topics we have to cover today. We don’t have too much time. I want to start with one which is very important to the both of us — that’s cricket.

Malala Yousafzai: Yes, yes.

Rustom Birdie: Have you been following the World Cup in the last week?

Malala Yousafzai: Yes, I always follow cricket, and I even, like, I would watch any league, any match that is to do with cricket. And I watch matches as well that are five days long. But T20 is the shortest in the international ones, and Pakistan is doing really well this time. It started with India, then we beat them, then New Zealand — again, we won. And today, it was Afghanistan, we won again. I think in the last two overs, a lot of people had given up, and they thought Pakistan was going to lose, but I had full faith that Pakistan was going to win today, and my intuition is never wrong.

Rustom Birdie: Wow, there you go. Great.

So, let’s perhaps start with Pakistan. Before you were even 10 years old back in Swat, you were a loud advocate in your community for girls‘ education and girls being in school. That’s not I would say typical of a 10 year old girl in Pakistan. What made you do that at that early age?

Malala Yousafzai: I think people oftentimes hear about my story, and they are surprised that I was speaking out for my right to education at age 10, 11. And it is an unusual story, but also, this was the case because what I was experiencing was unusual for girls. And that was because at that time, the Pakistani Taliban had entered Swat Valley in 2007. They started spreading this ideology of establishing this so-called like Islamic State, and they wanted to bring in their own so-called sharia system. And they wanted to like, Pakistan was already an Islamic country, so how do you make another Islamic country in an Islamic country?

But then along with that, they also had this narrative against women. And they carry a very patriarchal mindset. As soon as they entered, they banned women from going to markets, they banned women from having any profession, from going to work. They would not allow them to go outside their houses without wearing a full shuttlecock burqa, and you had to have a custodian with you. It could even be like your little brother.

And I remember my mom or me or any woman going outside to see a doctor or somebody, and they would have these little boys with them. And I’d always question, how is this little boy going to protect me? They can’t. Instead, I’m protecting them.

But at that time, they also announced a ban on girls‘ education. And I could not go to school. My friends could not go to school. So, I had no choice but to speak out for my right to go to school.

Rustom Birdie: And I want to touch on the role your father played, Ziauddin. You’ve spoken about him previously. How much of an influence was he in that upbringing at that early age, especially when it comes to education?

Malala Yousafzai: I’m really proud of my dad. He is a proud feminist, and he saw that his own five sisters could not get their education. And they, you know, did not have access to a future that he had. And he knew that his life was different because he was a boy, nothing else. Gender played a role in deciding the destinies of the siblings. And he was really passionate about bringing equality into society, so he decided that when he has his own children, he would ensure they’re not discriminated based on their gender.

And you know, he has always loved me, and he has been a proud dad. He has encouraged me to believe in myself. And I always tell people that my story is not an exceptional story. It could have been the story of any girl if their fathers and brothers had allowed them to speak out. Many were stopped by their family members. Many were stopped by men in the society.

What’s different in my story is that my father did not stop me. And that’s what he says when you ask him, what did you do for your daughter? He says, don’t ask me what I did, but ask me what I did not do, and I did not clip her wings.

It’s a message to women and girls all around the world that they don’t need any sort of superpower or anything special to go ahead in their life. There are so many barriers in front of them that makes it more difficult for them to go ahead. So, we need to fight against those barriers, the glass ceiling, the iron bars in their way. And men have a role to play in that.

So for me, my dad has always been supportive, and I have always been this sort of, I like giving advice. So, I’m always there telling my dad how things should be and what we should do. You know, when you’re a kid, that’s your thing and that’s how you talk to your family members. So, I have carried it on since then. But he always listens. He’s a great dad.

Rustom Birdie: Great. And just on your father, I read somewhere that he also named you Malala — it’s a beautiful name. Can you tell us more about the story behind your name?

Malala Yousafzai: So, Malala means grief-stricken basically in Pashto, but the name has a more historical meaning as well. And it was a name of this Afghan heroine, Malala of Maiwand. And she came from this Maiwand area in Afghanistan. And her story goes like this, that there was the Second Anglo-Afghan War, and the Afghan soldiers were losing that battle and they were leaving the battlefield when this young woman went to the mountaintop and she raised her boys and told the soldiers that if you do not die on this battlefield today, you will live your life in shame forever. And her voice was so powerful that all the soldiers returned, and they fought that war, and they won.

I think it has meaning, it has more meaning in our culture. And she is probably the only Pashtun hero that we have who’s known by her own name. And so, my father was just really proud of her, and he wanted to name me after somebody who was known by her own name.

Rustom Birdie: Right. And I think that’s beautiful just based off the life you’ve lived so far, how it mirrors Malala and that story.

Let’s perhaps just move on, fast-forward a few years. You’re 17 years old now — this is late 2012, early 2013, after the Taliban attack. You’re recovering, the months are rolling by. You’re in a different country, you’re in the UK. Take us back to that time. And it’s a time of helplessness, of despair. You’ve gone through such a lot. How did you think about what you wanted to do next in your life? And just put us in that position, and how did you think about that?

Malala Yousafzai: So, when I was in the hospital, I had no idea that I was receiving so much support from around the world. I was not seeing any television, any mobile phone, and I was going under all the healthcare and treatment. And then one day, this staff member at the hospital brought this basket of cards and letters. And I was opening those cards and reading messages from people from all over the world — a letter from a five year old girl to a letter from an 80 year old person in the US or in Japan. And I was completely amazed and surprised that people had heard my story and they were sending their prayers, and they were sending me even like gifts, like from shampoo to scarves to shoes to anything you could possibly think of.

I was completely amazed, and then the staff member told me this is just one box. There are like so many boxes there with us. You have received thousands and thousands of cards from people all over the world. And that’s when I realized that I can speak out for girls globally.

The Taliban tried to silence me, but they made a huge mistake, because I am in a position where I can not only speak about my right to education, and for girls in Swat Valley, but I can speak out for girls globally. And since then, it has been my mission to ensure that all 130 million girls who are out of school can have access to education.

Rustom Birdie: That’s beautiful. So that’s the mission, the 130 free, safe, quality education for girls around the world. How did you come up with the idea of a fund or a foundation? You know, who helped you, who guided you at that early age? Take us, walk us through that process of why the fund was the best vehicle to achieve that mission.

Malala Yousafzai: So I’ll be honest, when I started this foundation, I wasn’t really sure how these things worked. I was I think 16 years old. I was also studying. I was a bit behind in my studies because I had missed a few years because of my treatment, so I had to do my homework and I had to be in school, and then I had to do these events because I was invited to different places. And then I started a foundation as well called Malala Fund.

And initially when I was asked what do I want to focus on, I said on girls‘ education, I want all girls to be in school, that’s what I want to work for. But then they said no, you have to be a bit more specific. Do you want to work in this country or that country, and do you want to build schools or do you want — like, so many questions. I was like no, I want to do everything. I want all girls to be in school. I can’t pick.

So, this has been the mission for us since then, that we fight for all girls who are out of school. And we currently work in more than eight countries, including Pakistan, Nigeria, Brazil, Indian, Afghanistan, Lebanon, and our mission is to ensure that we work with local activists and we support local-led projects that address the issues and values that girls face in their [path] to education. So, it could be from training female teachers to changing legislations to addressing social norms and engaging the local communities.

And the work has been remarkable when you work with local activists, because they identify the problems, but they also identify solutions to those problems.

Rustom Birdie: That’s great. You mentioned earlier studying, and you graduated from Oxford last year in the summer. But you’ve been an activist well before that. Before Oxford, back in Swat, and since the attack as well. What did you get from that classroom education? I believe you were at BPE at Oxford. How did the classroom education over those three years change your view on how to approach this problem, and just your approach and advocacy and activism compared to what you knew before?

Malala Yousafzai: I’ll be honest, when I was studying at university at Oxford, education was still important to me, but it was not a priority, because they tell you that you will learn a lot from your textbooks and from your lectures, but you also learn a lot from meeting people and socializing with people. And I will be honest, I met incredible people there, I made amazing friends, and I’m friends with them now forever. And I also got the opportunity to engage and interact with incredible professors and these amazing intellectual people whose books I’ll be reading for my essays. So, it’s just great to have that opportunity.

And then, Oxford is just so beautiful, so you spend a lot of time in the beautiful gardens and libraries there, and you spend amazing time with your friends. And then you go through essay crises, and then you are awake the whole night just to finish your essay that you left to the last date. It’s your fault, and every week you’re depressed, why did you do this to yourself again, but it happens. And then, you don’t regret having all those incredible experiences, so you’re like fair enough. And then you submit your essay and go back to sleep at 8:00 AM in the morning.

Rustom Birdie: I’m sure there are many people who can relate to that experience. You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself. I want to go back to the fund’s mission, 130 million girls you want to get back into school, K-12. This last few months and the last year has been difficult for that mission on a number of different reasons.

Perhaps let’s go back to August of this year, the Taliban recapture Afghanistan. How did you receive that news, how did it sit with you, what was your initial reaction, having already lived through that nine years previously?

Malala Yousafzai: No one expected the Taliban to take over Afghanistan, no one. And I remember just like two weeks before the Taliban took over Kabul, I had a call with all the activists that we were supporting in Afghanistan, our education champions there. And some of them still had hope that Afghanistan can never fall into the hands of the Taliban. And so, just like everyone else, the whole world was shocked, I was shocked as well, to see that the Taliban were now in the whole country and they were ruling over people.

And I think it’s again a gloomy time for women and girls there, and we already see the impact of that. Women have lost opportunity to walk freely to their job places, many of them have not returned to their workplace. And girls at this time are not sure if they can go back to schools or not. The Taliban announced I think 43 days ago that boys can return to schools, but they did not give any clear statement on whether girls can return to their schools or not.

So, we started then a petition together with Afghan activists. It’s on avaaz.org, and we’re asking the Taliban to immediately let girls be in schools. We’re also G20 leaders and the Muslim countries to take a bold stand for this. They must protect the rights of girls, and they must protect the right to education for girls. Afghanistan right now is the only country in the world where girls are not allowed to be in school.

Rustom Birdie: And just on that issue, Malala, sometimes it’s difficult for us to visualize the 130 million girls who are not in school. We’re in Stanford, in California, dare I say very much a bubble compared to the issues we’re all seeing on the front lines. Can you help us understand why is this not just a women’s or girls‘ issue but an issue for everyone, and this is not something that countries in another part of the world need to worry about, but this is truly a global issue for everyone around the world?

Malala Yousafzai: I think firstly we need to remember that the Taliban government in Afghanistan right now is a forceful government. It’s not by the choice of the people of Afghanistan. They had no say in this. The Taliban have captured those cities by force. Even though they claim they have not fired their guns, but they still were holding guns on their shoulders, and they still had this [unintelligible] on their shoulders. So, they are using power, they are using their military power to suppress people, to force people to accept them.

But also, they’re denying people their basic human rights, and they’re not very clear about that. They are giving very vague statements on protecting the human rights of people.

So I think this is the time that all the world leaders who speak about protecting humanity and who speak about standing up for human rights, that they stand up for the rights of the people of Afghanistan. And it’s really important for them to protect the rights of women and girls, to protect the rights of minorities especially, but also ensure that all the humanitarian assistance and aid is provided to people there.

We know that the presence of the Taliban has impacted the lives of people, but there’s also other issues like COVID and severe drought as well. Those issues cannot be denied either. Like, it’s going to a state of famine as well. And these are issues that must be considered. So, this is what our advocacy and our activism is asking, for leaders to act soon.

Rustom Birdie: You mentioned advocacy, activism. Typically those are, that’s work done by the government, by the nonprofit section, by foundations and so on. A lot of us here will graduate from Stanford GSB and enter the business community and the private sector potentially. What is the role of businesses and the private sector in partnering in various ways in solving this problem?

Malala Yousafzai: I think this is a question and this is a challenge, and I don’t have answers to all of these questions. But I will say that everybody has a role to play in ensuring support to those who do not have a voice right now, who do not have the support they need. A lot of people right now in Afghanistan need safety, and there have been many organizations, including businesses, who have helped in the evacuation of so many people

So, I think the top priority is to ensure the people in Afghanistan, especially the activists who are under threat from the Taliban, that they receive safety and protection. We did that for our activists in Afghanistan and for other families, and a lot of other organizations and government officials have done that for many families there. So, that is essential.

But along with that, we also need to explore other ways in which we can use our expertise and resources to make education more accessible for children in Afghanistan. And I think this is something where business community can help. How can we use the technology we have to ensure that education is given to girls in Afghanistan in other ways rather than formal schooling?

And along with that, I think still humanitarian assistance and support is needed, and businesses have the opportunity to support the work that is happening there for the safety and protection of people, for ensuring they’re given their basic needs.

Again, there are so many ways in which people can help, but it also requires collective effort to think through this, and also engage the people of Afghanistan in these conversations.

Rustom Birdie: You mentioned technology. I believe you recently had a partnership announced with Apple, based here in Silicon Valley. Tell us more about what’s the vision behind that partnership with Apple?

Malala Yousafzai: So with Apple, Malala Fund has been working over the past many years, and Apple has supported our projects. So it was also covering the work we’re doing in Afghanistan, and then other countries like Nigeria, India, Pakistan. And we run this activist program which is called Malala Fund Education Activists, and we have I think more than 50 activists in all of those countries right now. And they are working on addressing the problems that girls face in their local communities.

For instance, when COVID started, our activists in Nigeria conducted research straightaway, and they were looking at the impact of COVID-19 on girls‘ education. And they realized that girls miss out on their education because they don’t have access to digital tools. They are also more likely to be forced into marriages when they’re stuck in their houses. And they also could be supporting their families financially or in the household chores.

And so then, our activists, they started doing lessons through radios, so they would ensure that even if the girls cannot attend their schools because of COVID, they’re still learning their lessons through radio. And that is the best form of technology in those areas. Other technological devices and tools may not work. That is just one example of how they are ensuring their children do not miss out on education and they keep on learning. So Apple has, they are one of our biggest supporters, and it’s great to work with them.

Rustom Birdie: That’s an example of your time commitments, your priorities, partnering with Apple. And you’re obviously, you travel around the world, do a bunch of speeches, you’re meeting students. You’re also at the grassroots level visiting refugee camps and schools and so on. As you think about your personal time, where do you feel your own time is best used in that fight getting the 130 million girls back into school? What’s most important for your time?

Malala Yousafzai: I think I’m always there when my voice is needed. And I was very fortunate that I got the opportunity to visit countries and to join girls who needed their voices to be heard. I have been to Nigeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan, and I have met incredible girls who are fighting for their right to safety and education. And many of these girls have faced displacement, and they have seen wars and conflicts in their hometown, and they are living in refugee camps or informal settlements. But they have not given up on their dreams.

Oftentimes, I’m expected to inspire them, but it’s the other way around. They inspire me and everyone else who are joining us. And I remember there was one girl I met — her name was [Najulah] in Iraq. And she was a [Yazidi] girl, and her family decided that she should get married. She was only 14 years old, and she was in her wedding dress, and on that day she decided she does not want to be forced into marriage, she does not want to miss out on her education. So, she took off her high heels and she ran away to protect herself from that.

And then, later on when she came back, she tried to convince her father and her family to allow her to be in school, and she started going back to school. But then, when ISIS came into her hometown, they had to evacuate again, and now when I met her, she was in this informal settlement. But she was still passionate about learning and getting her education. And I saw that she was carrying a dictionary with herself. And I asked her, I said, why do you carry a dictionary with you? She said, I want to learn a few words every day.

So, this is the passion that girls carry for education and learning, and despite all the difficulties they face, from walking long distances and not having all the resources like books and teachers, they still are committed to receiving their education.

And it was, Najulah’s incredible. Then she also came to the US, and she spoke at the UN platform, and she shared her story. So, my goal is to meet these girls, but also uplift their story so leaders listen to them rather than me. And this is my goal in every meeting that I go to, is that the activists and girls are with me. And I introduce myself, but I’m like, let’s listen to Najulah, let’s listen to these activists. They have something to say to you. You have been ignoring their voices, so hear from them and they will tell you what the issues are in this country for girls and women.

Rustom Birdie: That’s beautiful. Hearing the stories themselves is a lot more powerful than advocates and so on and so forth. Previously you’ve also mentioned potentially interest in politics. Is that still on the roadmap? What kind of — now that you’re done with Oxford, what’s next?

Malala Yousafzai: No, not yet. No interest in politics. I think, when I said that I wanted to be the Prime Minister of Pakistan, at that time I was 12 or 13 years old, and I was really disappointed with the role of our political leaders, because what was happening in Swat was just taking so long. And for me, it was just absurd that no one would take any action. And as days went by and I thought, like, girls in Swat Valley cannot go to school. There is a conflict, our schools are bombed, we hear firing every night, we are having sleepless nights, and we are under threat. And no one does anything, and it happens for two years.

So at that time, I said okay, I asked [you guys], you didn’t do anything, so I’ll one day become the Prime Minister and I’ll fix it. But then, you know, I was really fortunate that I have so much experience and I have met so many amazing and incredible people, and I have been able to visit so many projects. I know that the world is a bit more complex.

But, you can bring change in many ways. You don’t have to be a politician to be a change-maker. You can bring change in any role you take in your society, from becoming a doctor, engineer, businessperson, to a politician or to a human rights activist. All of these opportunities gives us some ways in which we can contribute to the change we want to see in the world. So, I hope to continue my activism and ensure we see that day when all girls can go to school.

Rustom Birdie: And on the topic of change in many ways, there’s this wave of young activists in the last few years, and it’s very refreshing to see the younger generation standing up and having their voices heard. Different activists, advocates have different styles in how they engage with the issues they’re tackling, the community. How would you describe your style, where does that come from, what brings that out in you?

Malala Yousafzai: I think for me, there are a few rules that I follow in my advocacy. One is that my voice and my words should reflect me, and who I am, and what my values are. So, and then along with that, it’s also important for me that whatever I say is the truth. So, as long as you are speaking the truth, and as long as you are yourself, that should be your form of advocacy.

But I also think we are all in different positions and in different places. And some of us want to work from the inside, some of us want to work from the outside. And I think we all have a role to play, and we are all helping each other.

So, I do not underestimate or undermine the activism that other people are taking in different forms. I think it’s incredibly powerful. And you know, all the activists should just realize they’re all on the same side. They’re all on the same side, and they must support each other because that helps them in achieving their goal. They have a lot more in common, and they must not lose focus on the issues they want to address and the change they want to bring. So in the education field or in other fields when there’s activism happening, I appreciate the role of every person in there.

Rustom Birdie: And speaking about different types of activism and different causes and so on, the Malala Fund in your vision is for girls‘ education, but there are so many other issues, injustices reported in the media, some not even mentioned in the media, happening all around the world. Given your voice, your platform, Malala, how do you think about when to speak up and when not to?

Malala Yousafzai: There are some issues that have impacted me, and that have been part of my story, and I think I should be speaking out about those issues. And that issue includes girls‘ education, I speak out for girls‘ right to education all over the world.

But then I also speak out about what is happening in parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan, because we had also been part of that long, decades-long terrorism that the people have faced there, whether it’s the Pakistani Taliban or Afghan Taliban, they all carry the same ideology and the same acts, and we all have been their victims. So, I speak out about that as well. And I speak out about the issues that impact girls‘ education.

But there are other issues as well in which it connects to girls‘ education and my mission, but sometimes I’m not the best person to speak out for that. There are so many other people who have expertise in that, and I ensure that the platform is theirs and I support them. So, there are many things which I do not speak out about, because I just want to ensure that my voice is for girls‘ education, and that is understood, that this is my mission and this is what I will use my voice for.

Rustom Birdie: You’re traveling around the world, you used to be a student as well, you’re juggling a lot of different things, we see you on TV and in the news very often. How do you think about world/life balance, and just personal health? Is work and life, is there even a blur, or is there a balance there?

Malala Yousafzai: I would say it was very difficult when I was in school, because I used to have homework every day, and I had to attend my classes from like 8:00 AM until 4:00 PM in the UK. So, it was quite challenging. And I remember one time, I had a flight to Norway to attend some event, and I think it was over the weekend or something, but I was arriving the next morning, in the morning time. So I was like, I can’t miss my school day, so I took my school uniform with me. And then on the way back, I went straight to my school, changed into my uniform, and I was like, I can’t go home. I would miss my classes.

So, it was challenging, but it was important for me that I focus on my education, but also I give time to my activism for the education of all girls all around the world. But I had to focus on my education because if you [unintelligible] for education and don’t focus on yours, you are I think missing the point. Yeah.

Rustom Birdie: Great. Are there any just day-to-day activities, mindfulness, is there anything you do on a daily basis that helps you stay committed to that work/life balance you mentioned?

Malala Yousafzai: I really like staying in touch with my friends and talking to them. I like spending time with people. It could be our family friends and my own school friends or university friends. And I like playing games as well. At one time it was Among Us, if anyone played it. But then I think we are all done with that, right? We have moved on.

After that, I like playing cricket with my brothers, and badminton. And I watch TV shows as well. I have seen Squid Game. The first episode literally shocked me, and I was like, what is happening? But then after that, I think you get used to it. That was good. And then, in the middle I had to stop. I was like okay, I need to switch to something else, so I went to Ted Lasso, and he made me laugh and realize life is more positive and easy. Yeah.

Rustom Birdie: Got it. I want to move onto just perhaps criticisms that you face. It’s shocking to me personally, but given the work you’re doing, the work you’ve done, and what you’ve been through, there’s no shortage of pushback. Why do you think, where does that come from, where does it [butt] out from, that criticism?

Malala Yousafzai: I think firstly it depends what the criticism is, and if you clarify and explain that. But if somebody says that I should do this and not that, and I haven’t done enough of this or that, sometimes I have to remind people, I am not a government. I don’t have trillions of dollars, and I don’t have a central bank. I am not that person, but my goal is to use my voice and the resources I have to convince governments to invest in education, in women, and ensure that the resources are allocated into the right areas that benefits our society, that empowers women and girls.

But I think then there are also things like, but my focus is always that I am working for girls around the world and the right to education, so I feel like I’m only answerable to myself and the people I have made commitment to, to ensure that we make a better world. Other than that, people can say anything, right?

And I think also, on social media you see comments and things like that, and you will see 20 positive ones and just one negative one, and then all our focus is on the negative one. We dismiss all the positive ones. But I think it’s important to remember that sometimes the social media world does not actually represent the real world that we live in. And I will say that so far I have not seen anyone in person who has been hateful to me, who has said anything negative. They have always been supportive, and even if they have been critical, they have done it in a very polite way. So, I don’t worry too much about that.

Rustom Birdie: That’s great. Specifically maybe lasering in on Pakistan, you visited since the attack. The pandemic has obviously made that more difficult. What is your long-term ambition with Pakistan and what you want to see there and the role you want to play there?

Malala Yousafzai: I hope I can go to Pakistan more often. And I was planning to go already, but then the pandemic made things a bit more difficult. I have, we have been working in Pakistan since we started Malala Fund. Our first project started from Pakistan, and that was to announce this project, which was the education of 40 girls who were in domestic child labor, so to give them education. And they’re still learning, they’re still continuing their education. They’re in higher grades now.

And since then, we have now done even more and bigger projects since then. We have started a school in the hometown of my parents, Shangla. And Shangla is considered to be one of the most deprived areas in Pakistan. It’s a mountainous area, and this is the first school there, first school for girls there, where girls can complete their secondary education. And every year, we get hundreds and thousands of applications, and we can only pick a few students.

But what you realize is that when quality education is available, when the state of the art school is available, and when parents feel safe for their children to go to school, then the social norms and all that stigma that’s been associated with education for girls changes really quickly. And we see so many families sending their daughters to school. And so, the positive change has already been seen.

And along with that, we do our advocacy through the Champions Project. And in Pakistan we have many champions and activists there who we are supporting in their work for girls‘ secondary education.

Rustom Birdie: That’s great. What do you miss most about living in Pakistan?

Malala Yousafzai: I miss my home. I miss Swat Valley and Shangla. Those are very beautiful places. And I miss my time with my friends. Yeah, and the food as well, of course. I live in the UK, so I always miss the food.

Rustom Birdie: Got it. So just before we move onto the audience questions, the mission and the vision, Malala, that you’ve taken on is vast. It’s 130 million girls. We hope it happens as fast as possible, but it’ll take multiple years and it’s a fairly long-term vision. How do you stay motivated on a day-to-day basis? In a business sense, you can win a deal and see tangible success on a regular basis. This is more long-term. How do you stay motivated on a daily basis?

Malala Yousafzai: I think that inaction has worse consequences. Things remain as they are. So, keeping your work going is important. So, staying active is important for me. And I believe that the work that we have done and the work that people in the past have done for women’s rights and girls‘ education, and the work that all the organizations and everyone is doing, has brought us to this stage and has helped us see progress.

So, this work needs to continue and we need to accelerate it and we need to make it better, and we will see progress. What’s worse and what I think is dangerous is us all giving up. We should not give up, we should not stop this work. So we have to carry on.

Rustom Birdie: Inaction as complicity, yes. The theme for our View from the Top Speaker Series is Beyond Expectations. And we like to ask all our speakers, Malala, what motivates you as a 24 year old girl from Swat, Pakistan, to grow beyond the expectations of a girl from Pakistan?

Malala Yousafzai: I am very ambitious, and I was like that in my childhood as well. And I would always question society and the world, and why it could not be better than it is. Why do we see inequality with our own eyes and don’t do anything about it? Why do we see that so many people live in extreme poverty? Why can’t we change that? that millions of girls are out of school, and nobody does anything about that?

But then on the other end, I also remain ambitious that we can change that, we can see that change in our own life. And so, this is something that I have taken with me from my childhood, is that you have to remain ambitious, and you have to be a bit more optimistic. So, I remain optimistic and ambitious in my goals to see all girls in school in my lifetime.

Rustom Birdie: In Shangla.

Great, let’s open it up to audience questions. I believe we have one right over there.

[Taliha]: Hi Malala, my name is Taliha, I’m an MBA1 here. As a fellow Pakistani woman, it is incredibly inspiring to see you here. Thank you so much for coming here.

My question is, as someone who has personally navigated the challenges of a patriarchal society, I know there are millions of girls and women back home who personally face restrictions, whether it’s access to education, whether it’s professional opportunities, or even simply to have an independent opinion of themselves. On a more personal basis, what is your advice to them in terms of keeping hope alive for a more freer future? What was the thing for you that allowed you to continue staying so resilient in your difficult times?

Malala Yousafzai: Thank you for that question. I’ll share one story. When I started speaking out, and my activism, I was only 10 years old. But then as I was growing older, at age 13 and 14, and especially in our society in the north of Pakistan, it could become a taboo for a girl to be on a TV screen and speak out to media publically, not cover her face. And some families may completely oppose that.

And I remember one time, my dad asked my cousin to take me to this press conference area, and my cousin felt extremely uncomfortable, and then he told my dad that Malala should not speak. And my dad told him that this was none of his business. He should not be deciding anything for his daughter, and that everything Malala does should be her own choice.

Today, that same cousin is the biggest supporter of my cause, and he’s actually involved in the work, and he is so passionate about girls‘ education, and he supports me in my work. So initially, you would see this unease among people. You might even hear hateful comments, or you might hear people feeling very uncomfortable to see women in different roles and in different positions, and women having a loud voice, and women being at the table. But with time, they’ll get used to it. And in a few years, before we know it, things have already changed, and things already become customs and new norms.

So, it’s important for us to remain ambitious and committed, and consistency is really important. So, we have to stick to it and ensure that we carry this work on. And hopefully, things do change. We are already seeing so much progress in Pakistan. We have women in the Parliament, and we have women in different jobs and in different sectors. And hopefully it will get better, it will improve. And a lot of women are speaking out about women’s safety at work and in other spaces. And they’re speaking out again harassment and sexual harassment. So, there is this campaign going on for women’s equality in Pakistan, and that gives us hope.

Rustom Birdie: Next question? Here.

[Bruno]: Hi Malala, I’m Bruno, an MBA1 here from Stanford GSB. First of all, I would like to thank you for sharing your thoughts, your brave story. Definitely motivated us to make the world a better place.

I’m from a developing country in Latin America, where education is not a right, it’s a privilege, and I feel very privileged to be here at Stanford, as I know many boys and girls didn’t have the opportunity to go to a proper elementary school in my home country — that is Brazil.

So, I’d like to ask you, what are your thoughts about our role as students from top universities like Stanford, Oxford, to minimize the gap between basic education across the countries?

Malala Yousafzai: Thank you for that question. I think you are all the future of this world, you are all the future of your countries, and I would say remain ambitious about your goals and you can bring change in your countries, you can bring change in your communities. And you already might be a role model to so many young kids who may not have thought about themselves completing their school and going to a university and taking a role in society. So, you are already giving hope to so many people, so many women especially here who could be coming from developing countries or from difficult backgrounds, they’re giving hope to so many women and girls.

And when a child sees somebody else in their dress, in their outfit, and when they see somebody who looks like them, they can imagine themselves in that person’s role. So, you are already giving hope to so many.

Rustom Birdie: Another question?

[Hoprey]: Yeah. Hi Malala. So, my name’s Hoprey, I’m an MBA2. And you may not remember this, but we met a long time ago.

Rustom Birdie: Do you remember?

Hoprey: In all fairness, [Restin], the reason she won’t remember is because she’s suffered a very bad infection and she was in ICU after having just been shot in the head. The reason I remember is because I was your doctor at the time. And I’ve followed your journey ever since, the difficulties you’ve had integrating in new cultures, followed you through your new school in [Edgbaston] High, tried to be part of the Malala Fund when I was at McKinsey as well. I thought I was a natural fit.

But I come from a family of strong feminists, and I’ve benefited from that as well. But I have seen a massive conflict in tradition versus progression and culture. And I know we’ve asked a similar question, but now that you’ve lived — you’ve had the Pakistani experience, you’ve had the westernized experience — what do you think you can take from the experiences you’ve had in the western world, and how do we take them back to areas where they could benefit?

Malala Yousafzai: Thank you for that question, and thank you for all your support, and nice to see you again. I think for me, when I started living in the UK, there were so many things that surprised us. We were living in cold weather forever, and we were missing our nice warm summer days in Pakistan.

But other than that, I started studying in a school where we were getting quality education. That was the first time when I realized that education is not just about sciences and math and learning English, but students also learn cooking and sports and textiles, and these are not the subjects that you often see in schools in Pakistan. And it really challenges you to think about education in different ways, in which the goal is not to make somebody a doctor or engineer only, but to ensure that anyone can go to that institution, they can explore their abilities, and they can explore their specialties, and then realize and reach their full potential. So, when I was studying in the UK, I realized that education is not just limited to sciences and math and those subjects.

But then also along with that, there is a good health system, and you are much safer. But, your home is your home, and you miss so many things about your home. When you are with your friends and family, and you are sitting in your dining room with your family friends, and you’re enjoying nice food, and you are surrounded by this beautiful valley and these lush, green hills, you’re happy and you’re still having a joyful time.

So I think for us, even though we were having all those facilities, we would still miss Pakistan all the time. And I have seen this in many places — people consider the west to be the standard of prosperity and development. And I think we need to challenge that a bit, because the pandemic and the recent events have exposed how the systems in many countries are not the ideal systems. They are still not favoring the most marginalized people in society. They are discriminating against people based on their income background, based on their skin color, based on their gender.

So, we need to be a bit more critical of the system that we idolize. And it’s possible for Pakistan and other countries to improve their systems — and this is a challenge for countries all over the world — to improve their systems, to ensure that they provide welfare to all its citizens, and its‘ based on a just and equal system so nobody is left out and nobody is treated unfairly.

Rustom Birdie: Great. Thank you for those questions.

Before we end, Malala, [we’ll have to end] with a lightning round. So, I’ll share a phrase, and just give me your quick thoughts on those. Ready?

Malala Yousafzai: Yes.

Rustom Birdie: Yes, okay, perfect. This one should be easy. Ted Lasso or Squid Games?

Malala Yousafzai: Ted Lasso.

Rustom Birdie: So is that Apple TV over Netflix?

Malala Yousafzai: I mean, I’m partnering with Apple TV, so it has to be Ted Lasso.

Rustom Birdie: That’s the right answer.

Malala Yousafzai: Yes. Yeah, by the way, I started a production company, Extracurricular, just for the context, and we’re partnering with Apple TV+. So yeah, it has to be Ted Lasso.

Rustom Birdie: Favorite Queer Eye actor?

Malala Yousafzai: I don’t have any names. I’m so bad at names. So, you can suggest and I can pick one.

Rustom Birdie: Jonathan Van Nass, but no?

Malala Yousafzai: No. I’m bad at this.

Rustom Birdie: No worries, no worries.

Malala Yousafzai: The only name I usually, like when you talk about actors and actresses, I know all the Bollywood ones, and then I know Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, and that’s it.

Rustom Birdie: Okay, how about this one, a world figure you have not met but want to?

Malala Yousafzai: A world figure I have not met but want to? So, it’s, I, so, okay. It’s not a politician, it’s not a politician, but I really want to meet Vanessa Nakate. She’s a climate activist, and I have been following her journey, and I would want to see her in person.

Rustom Birdie: Great. Favorite social media platform?

Malala Yousafzai: It has to be Instagram. No, I think it’s Twitter, I think it’s Twitter. It’s hard to pick, but it’s between those two. Sometimes it’s Twitter. I mean, when anything happens, you want to go to Twitter, just to see tweets on it. And then, Instagram is also good, but yeah, whenever I’m following cricket, I just go straight to Twitter and see what people have said. It’s very funny.

Rustom Birdie: Same here, yeah. Where do you store your Nobel Peace Prize?

Malala Yousafzai: That’s confidential. You’ll never know.

Rustom Birdie: Confidential, okay. Great. And then last one, favorite Adele song?

Malala Yousafzai: I would say Hello .

Rustom Birdie: Great. Awesome, well, Malala, this has been a lot of fun for me personally, and for you as well, and we appreciate your time.

Malala Yousafzai: Thank you so much, thank you.

Rustom Birdie: Absolutely.

Malala Yousafzai: Thank you. Thank you so much, thank you, thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you, so nice to see you, thank you. Thank you.

Rustom Birdie: You’ve been listening to View From The Top, the podcast, a production of Stanford Graduate School of Business. This interview was conducted by me, Rustom Birdie of the MBA Class of 2022. Lily Sloane composed our theme music and Michael Reilly and Jenny Luna produced this episode. You can find more episodes of this podcast at our website www.gsb.stanford.edu/ . Follow us on social media @stanfordgsb.

For media inquiries, visit the Newsroom .

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Making a Difference: The Power of Individual to Inspire Others

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Essays About Change: Top 5 Examples and 10 Prompts

If you are writing essays about change, see below our best essay examples and writing prompts to help expand your horizon on this topic.

The only thing constant is change. It could be good or bad. It could be short-term or have a lasting impact. The best we can do is to ride on this inevitable and never-ending cycle of change and try coming out of it still standing, thriving, and smiling. This ability to cope with change is called resilience. 

However, some changes – such as the loss of a loved one or a livelihood — are too overwhelming to deal with that some fall into trauma and depression, in which case psychological support is highly encouraged. Read on to see our round-up of rich, well-written essays about change, and a list of helpful prompts follows to help you start your essay. 

1. “The Psychology Of Dealing With Change: How To Become Resilient” by Kathleen Smith

2. how prison changes people by christian jarrett, 3. six ways the workplace will change in the next 10 years by jordan turner, 4. “social movements for good: what they are and how to lead them” by derrick feldman, 5. “the right way to make a big career transition” by utkarsh amitabh, 1. changing your lifestyle for the better, 2. be the change the world needs, 3. adapting to life-changing events, 4. addressing climate change, 5. how did technology change our daily lives, 6. people who changed the world, 7. if you could change the world, 8. dealing with resistance to change, 9. coming-of-age novels, 10. changing your eating habits.

“If you can learn to cope with change, you’ll lower your risk for anxiety and depression. Your relationships will flourish, and your body will feel healthier. But if you can’t cope with change, only a minor amount of stress can make you feel overwhelmed by life. You might also struggle to set and meet the goals you have for yourself.”

Instead of fixating on events and people over which we do not have the power to control, we should focus on ourselves and how we can embrace change without fear. Some tips in this essay include practicing self-care, being in the present, and focusing on your priorities, such as health and well-being. 

Check out these essays about being grateful and essays about heroes .

“Ultimately, society may be confronted with a choice. We can punish offenders more severely and risk changing them for the worse, or we can design sentencing rules and prisons in a way that helps offenders rehabilitate and change for the better.”

In an environment where you are forced to follow the rules to the letter and worry about your safety and privacy daily, prisoners could develop a kind of “perpetual paranoia” or “emotional numbing” and deteriorate cognitive abilities. The essay suggests a rethink in how we deal with law-breakers to encourage reform rather than punish and risk repeat offenses.

Check out these essays about police brutality and essays about assessment .

“As technology closes the divide between geographically separate people, it introduces cracks in relationships and cultures. The remote distribution of work means that many employees will not build the same social relationships in the workplace, leading to issues of disengagement and loneliness.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has already disrupted our way of work in our new normal, but more changes are yet to unfold. This essay looks into the future of work where responsibilities and demands will see a sea change; machines will be co-workers; and the best employee is defined by digital skills, not years of experience.

You might also like these essays about cinema and essays about jealousy .

“Social movements for good establish a mass platform of action for a population, which helps inform and cultivate the awareness necessary to help prevent an issue from affecting more people. True social movements for good have the power to generate awareness that produces tangible results, helping the general population live longer, more productive, happier lives.”

A social movement for good aims to bring social justice to an aggrieved community by calling for tangible support and resources. To accelerate a movement’s momentum, an effective leader must possess certain qualities in this essay.

“There were so many questions running through my head during this time. Why should I quit to make this my full-time job? Is this what I really want? When should I quit? Poet Mary Oliver’s words kept ringing in my head: ‘What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?’”

Deciding on a career change is more complex than deciding whether you want to do something different. A career shift entails lifestyle, mindset, and motivation changes, each of which has to be carefully reassessed and prepared for. This essay guides you in deciding when or why it is right to leave your job.

10 Interesting Writing Prompts on Essays About Change

Below are thought-stimulating prompts to help with your essay: 

Committing to regular exercise or getting to bed earlier may be easier said than done. Moreover, the determination that was burning at the start of your lifestyle change journey may wane in the latter part when things get tough. So, for your essay, provide practical tips from wellness experts and your own experience on how to sustain a routine toward a better lifestyle. You can split your essay into sections for each health and wellness tip you recommend.

This is the gist of the famous quote by Mahatma Gandhi: “be the change you wish to see in the world.” Unfortunately, many of us get frustrated over people refusing to change but fail to see how this change should start with our perception and action. In this essay, write about what an individual can do to focus more on self-improvement and development. 

Have you ever faced a situation where you had to adapt to a drastic change? It could be moving to a different city or school or dealing with losing a loved one. Share your experience and list the traits and practices that helped you through this challenging phase. You may also research what psychologists recommend people to do to keep from falling into depression or developing anxiety. 

To offer a unique highlight in your essay, tackle what your school or community is doing to fight global warming. Interview city councilors and mayors and learn about ongoing initiatives to keep the city clean and green. So this essay could help entice others in your community to work together and volunteer in initiatives to slow climate change.

List down the advantages and disadvantages technology has presented in your life. For example, seeking clarification from teachers about an assignment has been made easier with the many communication channels available. However, technology has also enabled a work-at-home or distance learning arrangement that is causing burnout in many households. 

Feature a person who has revolutionized the world. It could be a scientist, artist, activist, writer, economist, athlete, etc. Preferably, it is someone you idolize, so you do not have to start from scratch in your research. So first, provide a short profile of this person to show his life and career background. Then, write about their ultimate contribution to society and how this continues to benefit or inspire many. 

If there’s one thing you could change in this world, what would it be? This sounds like a question you’d hear in pageants, but it could be a creative way to lay down your life advocacy. So, explain why this is where you want to see change and how this change can improve others’ lives.

Resistance to change is most common when companies modernize, and the dinosaurs in the office refuse to learn new digital platforms or systems. Write about what you think leaders and human resource units should do to help employees cope with changes in the new normal.

A coming-of-age novel tells stories of protagonists who grow up and undergo character transformation. From being eaten up by their fears, the main heroes become braver and better at confronting a world that once intimidated them. For this prompt, share your favorite coming-of-age novel and narrate the changes in the hero’s qualities and beliefs. 

Delivering fast food has become so easy that, for many, it has become a way of life, making it an enormous challenge to replace this practice with healthy eating habits. So, research and write about nutritionists’ tips on creating a lifestyle and environment conducive to healthy eating habits.

If you’re still stuck picking an essay topic, check out our guide on how to write essays about depression . For more ideas, you can check out our general resource of essay writing topics .

Yna Lim is a communications specialist currently focused on policy advocacy. In her eight years of writing, she has been exposed to a variety of topics, including cryptocurrency, web hosting, agriculture, marketing, intellectual property, data privacy and international trade. A former journalist in one of the top business papers in the Philippines, Yna is currently pursuing her master's degree in economics and business.

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