406 answers answered between 1985 and 2026 one of 25 in The Q&A
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
The Guardian's Q&A repeatedly uses this prompt, sometimes dropping 'living' while retaining the same comparative judgment.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
Public figures who have answered a question like this elsewhere. Quoted from the source shown, not written for FLAPSS.
Abraham Lincoln truly inspired me. It wasn't just the freeing of the slaves, he kept the Union together. Some people even forget that today. What I think inspired me was the fact that in spite of being the president of the United States he retained a certain down-to-earth quality. He never got to be a big shot, and he cared about people.
Christopher and Dana Reeve. Robert and Michelle Smithdas—teachers who are both deaf and blind. Oprah Winfrey.
I have a lot of respect and admiration for President Carter. It was a delight when I got the Nobel Peace Prize to get a letter from him. It meant a lot to me, getting that letter from a man who is my idol in many ways. ... He always has the courage to express his views, his convictions. He doesn’t hesitate to run against the current. He has always had a moral certitude. He looks at the ethics and morality of his action, and that’s key. Whatever we do in life, whether privately or publicly, we need to have a compass. We need to be sure that what we do is not only good for us, but good for the people at large. That’s ethics. That’s morality. I think we need to always know that our work is not just good for us in the short term, but it’s morally correct. And when I talk about morality, I don’t talk about religion. I talk about a moral code, a moral value, which I think we all have, being honest, being fair, being correct. These are values I think we all share.
Harry Evans. My opportunities to admire him are many since I am – at time of writing – still married to him.
Any mother with young children who is also doing a full-time job.
People in their 80s who are still volunteering and giving to the community.
AP McCoy, the 15 times champion jump jockey. I am constantly in awe of his dedication to his sport.
Aung San Suu Kyi – for her courage, self-sacrifice and showing that you don't need to be fierce to be strong.
People ask me sometimes, who inspires you, Mr. President? Those quiet heroes all across this country -- some of your parents and grandparents who are sitting here -- no fanfare, no articles written about them, they just persevere. They just do their jobs. They meet their responsibilities. They don't quit. I'm only here because of them. They may not have set out to change the world, but in small, important ways, they did. They certainly changed mine.
Probably David Hockney, for achieving a perfect balance of life and work; for making great pictures; being charitable; and remaining bloody-minded.
Celia Hammond: she gave up a glamorous life to rescue cats.
My wife, because she has to live with me.
Mo Farah represents everything that’s great about our country.
The problem with my job is that you meet people you admire and then you don’t admire them so much. The only one I carried on admiring was Nelson Mandela.
Dr Denis Mukwege, because he is to sexualised violence against females what Mandela was to apartheid.
United Farm Workers organizer Dolores Huerta.
Harriet Harman. I know how hard it is to do what she’s doing.
My husband, Paul, who is an enabler of the exuberance of his wife and five kids.
Women in leadership positions in every field who are using their advantages to inspire younger women.
Barack Obama, because he believed he could be president of the United States, and he succeeded. He was kind, and he tried to set a high standard of leadership.
Nobody has answered this one yet.