This is a Guest Post by Matthew Setter. Matthew is a passionate goal-setter, writer, educator and solopreneur. He's also the founder of The Dreamers Manifesto, dedicated to helping you learn how to define and achieve your goals in a fun, engaging and informative way.You can connect with him anytime onTwitter,Facebook or Google+ anytime.

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." - George Santayana.

As the new year has just begun, it's important to reflect back on the year that was – 2011. But this isn't a solemn post, far from it. It's about looking at 8 of the most inspiring people in 2011 and through their stories, getting inspired to get out there and do our best in 2012.

So, who are these great people? Well they're a broad cross-section from around the globe and across the disciplines of acting, politics, science, the military, the world of business and art. They're people who have campaigned for democracy, honesty and political transparency;  They're people that have delivered world class acting performances; They're people that have left a lasting legacy; and they're people that have shown unending determination and true grit to avert financial collapse.

So who are these people? Well, without further ado, let's start at the beginning.                       

Aung San Suu Kyi















Arguably, who could be more deserving than the Burmese democracy campaigner herself. Despite being in solitary isolation, because she was placed under house arrest by the ruling military junta, for 15 of the last 21 years, since 20 July 1989, and losing her late husband, Aris, to prostate cancer in 1999 Aung San Suu Kyi continues to campaign for Burmese democracy from the Military Junta that have ruled the country for X years.

Here's a few quick facts to put hers and her country's situation into perspective:

• Burma is second only to North Korea for lack of individual freedom and liberty
• Burma used to be the second richest nation in south-east asia, now it's the poorest
• Aung San Suu Kyi chose to stay in Burma, rather than leaving, to fight for its independence and free rule
• The motorcade she was in was attacked on 9 November 1996 by 200 people and again in 2003 where 70 people were murdered
• Burma has 2,100 political prisoners

We often complain in the West about our crumbling democracy and the reduction in our living standards as you may remember from the Occupy Wall Street and Occupy London protests. We protest what we perceive as the erosion of our civil rights and the intransigence of the political class to serve our wishes.

But how often do we stop to consider just how good we actually have it. So often we make excuses that we can't do anything, can't achieve or change anything and so much is done to us. But let's respect the fact that despite living in a cracked, albeit slightly flawed democracy, would you, would your parents, children or friends swap their lives to live in a place like Burma?

So the next time you feel that you're having a bad day this year, stop and consider some of the alternatives that the world has to offer and spare a thought for how other people live. Your life is likely pretty good – so get out there and make the most of it.


Colin Firth
















In a completely different circle is number 2 on the list, English actor, star of stage and screen, Colin Firth. Since coming to prominence as the dashing Mr Darcy in the television adaption of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Colin Firth has been a star on the rise; and deservedly so. Eloquent, educated, dashing and charming to a fault, Colin Firth's been causing women to swoon for decades.

He's starred in a number of roles over the years, including The English Patient, Bridget Jones's Diary, Love Actually and Nanny McPhee. But in 2011, his star shone above all others when he won the Academy Award for his portrayal of King George VI in the movie The King's Speech where he starred alongside Australian Geoffrey Rush who played the King's speech therapist, Lionel Logue.

Logue helps the King to overcome his speech impediment when England was battling for survival in the Second World War and the energies of a nation were rallied through his voice and decorum. I've had the joy of watching the film twice now and Firth carried the film with such poise and grace that he well deserves the Oscar as well as his star on the Walk of Fame.

So, to his magnificent achievements in 2011 and for continuing to carry himself with such humbleness and dignity – Colin Firth is an inspiring person from 2011.


Angela Merkel
















Now Angela Merkel may not be the first person or even the 10th that you think of when it comes to inspiring, especially in 2011. She's been remarked by her fellow Germans with such adjectives as conservative, cautious and even timid. But consider the position that she's in and as a result, the extreme balancing act that she and her fellow EU partners, has to juggle, support and continuously seek a viable long term solution for.

As the world and particularly the European Union (EU) continues to battle with a fiscal recession, caused by the global market and it's interconnectedness; as sovereign states watch the value of their currencies come under growing question, decline and potential default, Angela Merkel has done an enviable job.

As German Chancellor she's presided over a country that has not only not shrunk, it's continued to see it's strength and standing in the world improve. When sovereign states require enormous fiscal stimulus to stay afloat, like Greece, have youth unemployment at around 50%, such as in Spain, she presides over a country that is the envy of the world and powerhouse of the European Union. Germany is the fifth largest economy in the world with a GDP of around $3.089 trillion and average income per/capita of $37,935 USD.

Now love her or hate her, agree or disagree with her firm line on the austerity measures and interest rates currently in place for the under-pressure eurozone countries, in the long run this may have the long lasting result of putting the EU on course to become a truly global super power and the envy of the world. Time will tell of course. But if it doesn't work, it may have disastrous consequences.

So for sheer determination, vision and unquestionable success in steering Germany to near unparalleled global success, Angela Merkel is a deserved inclusion on this list.

Steve Jobs
















No list from 2011 could be complete without the personality, the superstar, the icon that is Steve Jobs, cofounder of Apple Computers. Love him or hate him, covet all that Apple produces in the oft described walled-garden or never touch it like the proverbial plague – Steve Jobs deserves a place in this list.
Sadly, in 2011 at the tender age of 56, he died of pancreatic cancer after an extended battle to cure it. But despite that or perhaps because of it, as he gives indication of in his commencement address to Stanford University in 2005, perhaps more than any other person from the last 100 years, he lived a life that was governed and guided by an unending vision to change the world and make it a better, more beautiful place

Whether it was bringing true type fonts to computers, showing that a computer could be more than the futuristic vision of 2001: A Space Odyssey or bringing computers front and centre in to and in large part creating, our digital lives with the iPod, iPhone and most recently the iPad; Steve Jobs lived a life with total passion and commitment to a vision of what he believed the world could and would be.

The devices, the experience and the opportunity that he shepherded Apple to produce really are something to be appreciated. Whether you like it, appreciate it or not, Steve Jobs will leave a lasting legacy in millions of people around the globe who now have more connectivity and have seen just how useful and friendly computers really can be.


Max Moseley















Now, to someone completely different. You may or may not be familiar with Max Moseley, but if you have more than a passing familiarity with the News of the World / Phone Hacking scandal in the UK, then you've likely heard his name, at least in passing.

Max Moseley, the former Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) boss (licensor of Formula One motor racing) is a person that I've come to respect as the awareness of and consequent furore around the phone hacking scandal by the, now closed, The News of the World newspaper in the United Kingdom came increasingly to the publics intention during 2011.

Max was falsely accused on the 30th March, 2008 of participating in “a sick Nazi orgy”. Photos of him purporting to engage in mildly sadomasochistic orgies were blazoned across a national paper which approximately 15% of the population read at the time; this nearly ruined his reputation.

Given this and that he's a very wealth individual, he could have disappeared and lived virtually anywhere in the world that he so chose. But instead, he chose to become one of an ever growing set of voices, including actor Hugh Grant and comedian Steve Coogan, that is pushing to expose the true extent of this scandal that has so blighted what was once a great reputation for British journalism the world over.

Not only this, but he has publicly backed a number of people, including celebrities, politicians and the members of the public in taking legal action over alleged phone hacking. He has paid for the court costs of, amongst others, former UK deputy prime minister Lord Prescott, journalist Brendan Montague and Labour MP Chris Bryant to the tune of £3 million.

Irrespective of your views of his personal life, to do this, he is definitely an inspiring person of 2011. Giving of his personal fortune to help bring about a much needed change to the status quo of English journalism.


Matt Damon















If you've been watching movies over the last 10 – 15 years, you've surely heard of Matt Damon. Damon has become famous through such films as Good Will Hunting, The Jason Bourne series and Invictus. Regardless of the actions of some of his peers, he's not a movie star that would appear to be cashing in on his fame, chasing influence and celebrity as others have, as was cleverly mocked in the 2004 film Team America.

Damon has increasingly given his time, effort and considerable capital to humanitarian and global interest causes around the world where, as a direct result of his notoriety and popularity he can bring direct attention and interest to these causes. He's narrated Inside Job, which documents the events in 2008 which directly lead to the current, global, financial crisis. He's also a co-founder of Not On Our Watch and H20 Africa, which work to stop humanitarian crises and bring sustainable, healthy water to millions in Africa.

It's truly inspiring to see someone put so much of his time, money and reputation behind such great causes. So often you can look around seeing all the issues that face the planet and wonder what to do. He's a great inspiration that things can be done.

Ai Wei Wei















You may or may not be familiar with Ai Wei Wei. Labelled as a dissident in his native China, in art circles, Ai Wei Wei is a world renowned artist and is also the designer of the Olympic Stadium from the 2008 Beijing Olympic games. Yet because of his continuing outspoken nature against the administration in China, whether over censorship or the control exhibited by the central Communist party, he was detained for 81 days and labelled a subversive, amongst other things.

For some time, he's been a campaigner working to shed light globally on the internal situation in China. As with Aung San Suu Kyi in Burma, it mustn't be easy to live in such a place, to be so publicly outspoken at the threat of re-arrest, detention and psychological torture, yet want to stay there and continue to fight. Some of the difficulties that he's had to endure include police claims of his assistant allegedly spreading pornography, that he's evaded taxes and is a bigamist.

How easy it must be to consider leaving and to campaign from outside. He seems to reflect an attitude ascribed by some as “when you step outside the system, you begin to lose your ability to influence the change that you want to see”.

Yet with the continual risk of being detained it surely must not be easy. Yet he continues to campaign for the rights of foreign workers who come to China yearly build the country's infrastructure yet are ill-treated and for the people that are detained and arrested, yet have no voice to speak of.

For this reason, for his continuing diligence, I hope to honour him and inspire you by having him in this list.


Sir David Attenborough
















This man, here in the UK at least, is truly a national treasure, as reported by the Huffington Post (Uk) recently. The broadcaster, natural history presenter, fellow of the royal society, commander of the order of the british empire, amongst so many other things has been on our television screens since the 1950s.

Since his first documentary, The Pattern of Animals, in 1952, he's been presenting on all forms of the breathtaking and wondrous world that we all inhabit right up to his latest masterpiece, Frozen Planet, which aired in 2011.

This is a man that I have such wonder, awe and respect for. He presents with such insight, depth, clarity and genuine humanity, inspiring us to get out and explore the wonders that are all around us in the world and to also have greater and greater respect for it – so that we treat it with the care that it deserves. Whether bringing to our attention the plight of the Amazon rainforest, the wildlife in Madagascar or the state of the world's oceans and climate, he has campaigned for the better part of 50 years to build our knowledge, awareness and respect for the world in which we live.

So, do these people inspire you, inspire you to take another look at the life you lead and challenges you face? Do their stories help you put your difficulties in to a better, clearer perspective? I hope that they do. Whether they show you that life can be both a lot worse and a lot better; whether they inspire you to do your best despite the challenges you face – I hope that they inspire you to make the most of 2012.


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