Live your bigger life in good company. Who inspires you? Who are you inspiring? We all need people in our lives who can see us bigger than we can see ourselves. It only takes one person to speak the truth about our natural gifts and talents, such that, we can no longer hide and play small.

Seek and welcome these inspired connections with others. We all sense there’s much more potential within us. We all sense there’s a bigger life waiting for us. Reach high and bring others with you.

When was the last time you broke free of some of your own limits? Everyone intuitively gets the idea of their bigger life. To be clear though, it has nothing to do with the size or scope of your life compared to anyone else. It has everything to do with the more expressive and expansive experiences you know you would be having if you weren’t holding yourself back in any way.

So why don’t we live up to that potential, especially when we realize that our days have become routine and lifeless? Why don’t we take the plunge, make the changes and pursue our ambitions, like going back to school or finding that great job or a loving partner? In a word... fear.

1. Fear can manifest specifically as doubt or insecurity.

2. Fear can manifest broadly as fear of confrontation or fear of the unknown.

3. There’s often coping mechanisms that complicate things (e.g. food, alcohol); coping mechanisms that can keep you in a small, self-medicated state for years.

Now suppose you encounter someone who offers you a kind and compassionate lens on your life. Or someone who entertains a vision of your future of incomparable success with your natural gifts and talents. These are the people who can lift us up or pull us—sometimes gently, sometimes kicking and screaming—into our innate greatness. It could be your spouse, your friend, a peer—it could even be a stranger who gives you the encouragement you most need to hear at the right moment.

Perhaps you are this person for someone else. Why can we so beautifully and effortlessly champion the greatness we see in others? Quite simply, we are not subject to their limiting beliefs or negative self-talk. We can see the truth more clearly than they can in those moments. Why do we need to receive this kind of powerful acknowledgement from others? Because it helps us step up and say, "I want to see what I’m truly capable of."

What To Practice

Consider the five people you currently spend the most time with. Think beyond just your physical exposure to them—one or more of these people could occupy a lot of your thoughts. That means you can also think beyond whether they’re alive or deceased, known or unknown to you.

Now ask yourself, are these people enabling your bigger life? Do you have a relationship with them (personally or in spirit) that feels supportive and inspiring? And is there at least one person in the mix who thinks much bigger than you do? If not, it’s time to invite some people into your life with some Oprah-esque depth or some Elon Musk-ish vision. Dive into some biographies that appeal to you.

Living your bigger life in good company is about being mindful of the people you surround yourself with. Look for the distinct qualities that each brings to the mix (e.g. gentleness, humor, ambition, perseverance, optimism). Ideally, you aspire to these qualities yourself. Take note of the qualities you’re modeling and contributing too. Collectively, these enable you to create infinite inspiration loops with each other.

When you’re living an inspired life, you’re in a much better position to have a positive impact on your sphere of influence, whether that’s your family, your community or the world.

Kathrine Brown is an expert on binge eating, food addiction, body image and self-sabotage. Through her leading-edge Conscious Weight Loss coaching process and podcast, she has helped thousands around the world live bigger lives in smaller bodies. Enjoy more wisdom and wit from her Wisdom Bites blog and The Three and a Half BIG Questions You Gotta Ask Yourself to Lose Weight free e-guide.