I’ve written a post about someone I’m inspired by, which was more generalized and included loved ones and individuals who are forever in my book of inspirations. This one is more towards specific public figures who inspired me the most in 2020. And by inspired, I’m referring to the idea that when I watch the work that they do and love the energy that they put out, I become even more motivated to work, experience life, and inspire others just as much as they do.
People I Was Inspired By in 2020 (spoiler: all of them, except one, are Youtubers)
Josh
Josh is a Youtuber who runs “Exploring With Josh.” I discovered his channel years ago, and have always been interested in his type of content. His whole brand is all about exploring (peep his channel name), mostly abandoned places. I, unfortunately, stopped watching his channel for a bit (I don’t know why), but this year, he expanded his content to exploring haunted places, which drew me back into his videos, as I was on a “haunted videos” phase. I began re-watching his older abandoned videos and wondered why I stopped watching him. I love his enthusiasm and the respect he gives these places when he visits, as well as the additional information he provides about them. Josh has that passionate energy, along with the trait to be curious of the world, and I flippin’ admire that about him.
JC CAYLEN
I’ve known of JC from his O2L (Our2ndLife) days but became a supporter when he and Kian started their duo channel. I think they’re both incredibly funny and produce unique and interesting content. JC caught my attention more this year because I’ve been watching his gaming content from his VODS channel, and I felt like I got to know him a little better, at least with his humor, authenticity, and humbleness. I used to just have his videos as my background sound while I do my work since they’re hours long, but I found myself watching them and feeling relaxed and laughing my butt off most of the time. What further impressed me were his fundraiser, donation, and gift streams. During his fundraiser stream, he gathered the entire O2L group to raise funds for The RightWay Foundation and achieved much more than their initial goal. I also greatly admired that he (hilariously) donated a ton of amount to strangers, as well as gifted personalized gifts to his viewers. I genuinely enjoy watching his videos and find him to be an amazing person who loves and cherishes those who are around and support him.
ADRIENNE HILL
I discovered Adrienne’s channel this year when a video of hers popped up on my home feed, and I’ve been a supporter since then. Her vlogs always do the trick in helping me wind down after a productive day, but they also motivate me to have more productive days, if that makes sense. She currently resides in South Korea and visits many places around her area, which further increases my desire to visit the country someday. I can relate to her through which we both traveled far away from home to places we both were new to. Of course, I admire her even more for the fact that she moved someplace where the language isn’t her primary one, but she’s been learning the language and getting accustomed to their culture. I love her videos, whether they’re apartment tours, life vlogs, experiences, or just sit-downs. I find her very down-to-earth, sweet, and friendly.
LEE TAEYONG
I understand the amount of work that all K-Pop idols go through. This year, however, Taeyong’s skills, individuality, and determination to deliver above and beyond what is expected of him is what caught my attention the most. Taeyong is the leader of NCT and a member of SuperM. Granted, I don’t follow many groups, but within the groups I do support, I find him to be one of a kind. In 2020 alone, he had about four major comebacks, along with dozens of filming projects, interviews, and performances. And these are only just what we see in front of the camera. I can’t imagine all the other responsibilities he has had behind the scenes. What I further admire about him is throughout his hectic schedule, he carries the ability to remain resilient, joyful, and full of positivity, humbleness, and care towards his members and supporters.
ELTON CASTEE
Elton Castee is another YouTuber who runs the TFIL channel. The majority of Elton’s content consists of bucket list ideas and experiences that I aim to accomplish someday. Similar to Josh’s content, his videos entice me to go out, maybe get out of my comfort zone, and explore the world around me. Elton also demonstrates the ability to say f*ck it, experience the fun in life, and overcome fears. Some of the things he and his friends do may be a little too much and risky, but I’m glad that they’re able to remain safe through all of that. But I do love that he shows off both the least and most populated experiences and places around the world, as well as the hard work he puts in all of his videos during their pre-production, filming, and post-production stages.
AMANDA RACH LEE
AmandaRachLee is a YouTuber who got me into BuJo (bullet journaling) and is someone who greatly inspires me when it comes to drawing and creative concepts. I believe I first saw her videos last year and was amazed at the amount of talent this young lady has. Her organization videos are also very chill, and I enjoy watching them anytime I want to escape reality. I always only go to her videos when it comes to guidance on journaling and stationery because I see how passionate she is and trust her experiences with them. Similar to Adrienne, I find Amanda to be a sweet and down-to-earth individual, along with a mountain of creativeness within her.
My entire brand is all about being inspired and aiming to inspire.
Every day, I’m drawn to those who have a passion for life, growth, creativity, and helping others, all while remaining true to who they are and what they want to achieve.
Even though I highlighted public figures here, I still remind myself that inspiration doesn’t always have to be seen and communicated in the public eye.
We can all be inspired and be an inspiration beyond the screen.
