Cheri Dixon: A Girl and Her Dog

Hey there y’all! We made it through another week! For me, that means only two more until Thanksgiving break from my day job! It also means, we have new World Series Champions! The Houston Astros did it! Always a good boost for our city!

This week, I have been thinking about the word influencer. Whether we believe it or not, we don’t have to be a celebrity to be an influencer! When I looked up the definition online, here is what I found, “a person or thing that influences another”…another definition, “one who exerts influence: a person who inspires or guides the actions of others”. Reading those two definitions, I again say…aren’t we all a bit of influencers in the world???

Thinking about this, today’s post (and this week’s podcast) will actually be a two part post. This week, I want to focus on how we show up and influence others. Next week, I am going to share with you some of the most influential people I have in my life. So here we go!

A while back, as the word influencer started to come into play in the world, I thought about what kind of people who were referred to when talking about this. I would see so many people idolizing celebrities and others that would be posting everything on social media, considering them the “influencers” in the world. Sometimes, they would be great people doing great things, but so many times, I would feel that they would be people doing things that I am not sure I would be most proud of. Now, these people did have influence on others…people I know would follow them, idolize them, and at times, want to duplicate their lives. I know I would sometimes find myself saying, are these the people we really want to have as role models in the world?

Of course, everything I write and talk about are my own opinions, but don’t we want role models to be people who are showing our youth, our young adults, people who are looking for guidance, to be people who are doing good in the world? I was always taught, find a role model who you aspire to be…that will help you learn to be a better person. I think in the world of influencers, maybe we have lost sight of that????

I have to share a funny story that has been happening to me. When the Astros began playing in the playoffs, right before the first game, I sent my staff a message that said, “If the Astros win, jeans and Astros shirts tomorrow. Send them good vibes!” Now, teachers love jeans days, so I knew this would get their attention. Well, it turns out, the Astros won that game. So, the next game, I did it again…and they won. This started to become a little joke through the playoffs, and eventually got to a point where my staff started to text me…”Don’t forget to send the message! It brings the win!” We continued this through the World Series…and for the two games they lost, I did not send the message! Pretty funny, but it does show, my influence on my staff. They believed that if I sent that message, it made an impact!

When I began thinking about starting my coaching and consulting business, I have to admit, I told someone that I want to be an influencer. I said it because ultimately, I do want to have an impact on others. I truly do not believe influencers are a bad thing! What I do challenge everyone to think about, however, is what kind of influence do you want to have on others…and what kind of people are having an influence on you? Finding those people out there that are having a positive impact on the world, are showing up as good role models for others, and giving us all hope that the world can be a better place will truly have the best impact on everyone’s lives and influence us all to be our best! Until next time, Cheri. ❤️