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You’ve decided to live a more natural lifestyle and that’s great! Now that you see the benefit to this way of living, you want everyone around you to live naturally as well.
Some people will have no problem jumping on board with you. Others however, will not.
These people might not care about living naturally, not see a reason to, think you are crazy, or a whole host of other reasons.
You can still inspire people to live naturally even if they claim to have no desire to be natural. It just takes a bit more effort and different techniques!
5 Ways to Inspire Others to Live Naturally
Answer questions
People are much more apt to listen to what you have to say, if they are looking for an answer. People are likely to make a change when they are the ones initiating it as oppose to it being forced upon them.
So instead of telling your friend that she really shouldn’t use disposable diapers and instead should join you in the cloth diaper world, wait until she sees your cute cloth diapers and asks about them.
If someone asks why your hair looks so great, explain that it’s because you no ‘poo. I’m a prime example of this.
With my first child, I was expose to others who cloth diapered, didn’t vaccinate, etc but I did not want to do any of it. I saw no reason to. However, a few kids later and suddenly I did have reasons to look into these things and guess what? Now, I wanted to jump into the natural world and did so quickly and willingly.
Leave Out the Negatives
There are pros and cons to everything; natural living is no different. However, if you want to inspire someone to live naturally then it’s best not to go on and on about how you wish you didn’t cook everything from scratch or how you hate the smell of vinegar.
Odds are you don’t really hate it that much, it’s probably just “one of those days”. If your friend hears you talk about negatives they aren’t going to find a good reason to make the lifestyle switch.
Focus on the Positives
Highlight the good things about living naturally. Don’t shove the natural living talk down everyones’ throats but when an instance occurs make sure it’s focusing on the good reasons to live naturally.
If you get a chance to share about making your own cleaners mention how it saves you tons of money. If some notices that your eczema is now gone, go ahead and explain it’s because you switched to natural products. Go ahead and boast a little, just don’t be a snob about it.
Lead by Example
I think this one goes without saying but I’m saying it anyway. If you want someone to follow what you are doing the best way to get them to do so is to do it yourself.
Your friend will not believe there is reason to avoid BPA in canned foods if she goes over to your house and sees a pantry full of cans.
This isn’t to say that you can’t slip up or that you must be 100% natural; no body is perfect. It just means that if you are going to talk the talk, you better be generally walking the walk.
Be Open
Sometimes the most meaningful reasons for a person to change are the most personal. When talking with someone, do not be afraid to be honest and share the reasons why you do the things you do.
If you decided to become natural because of a medical reason then share it if the occasion calls for it. It’s when we open up and be honest that we let people see our true selves and they are more willing to relate and accept us.
I see this all the time in the mommy circles. Things like postpartum depression and miscarriages are generally not talked about but those who open up about it find that there are many others who are in great need to hear from someone who’s been there.
