Everyday Role Models

It seems there is no shortage of award shows – the Grammys, the Oscars, the Emmys, the ESPYs and the list goes on. Quit often during their acceptance speeches, the recipients acknowledge their role models that over the years have helped mold them into the person they are today.

Some will say that their greatest role model – the person that has inspired them the most – has been their father or their mother. Others will say that their greatest role model – the person that has inspired them the most – has been an athlete or a celebrity.

I was twenty-six the last time I spoke to my father and I was about forty-six the last time I spoke to my mother. Not bragging or complaining – just saying, that for a litany of reasons, neither comes to mind when I consider my role models. And I can likewise honestly attest that I have never been inspired by the likes of Kobe Bryant or Kim Kardashian, nor Lance Armstrong or Paris Hilton (but I digress).

Now, don’t get me wrong, I know that there are many fathers and mothers who have been first-class role models – for their own children and oftentimes for the children of others. And I am quite sure that there are indeed many athletes and celebrities that have inspired countless others to achieve their own greatness.

But as for me, and I suspect for many others like me, my greatest role models – the people who have inspired me the most – are everyday people doing everyday things. They mold us and inspire us, not by performing heroic feats and not by teaching profound lessons. More often than not, it’s the simplest of acts performed in the simplest of ways. These small life-lessons have nurtured and challenged us to be the best that we can be.

While I know that I’ll never have the privilege to receive a Grammy or an Oscar, or any other similar prestigious award, I know exactly who I would thank – who I do thank. Right after thanking my wife, of course. And it isn’t my mother or my father and it isn’t an athlete or a celebrity. It is a very small list – a very small list of everyday role models. Leading by example – doing simple things in simple ways – each and every day.

Who do you thank?