Have you experienced the healing power of a plant-based diet? If so, you are part of a growing movement of people who have discovered the personal and global benefits of eating healthfully, compassionately, and sustainably.

Eating plant-based (and excluding animal products) is compassionate to animals AND supports our health and well-being. A simple dietary change holds the secret to an ethical, environmentally friendly, and healthy life. Those of us who have experienced the myriad benefits of a plant-sourced diet often yearn to spread the positive message to others. This is such a natural feeling. If you’ve discovered a way to change your life for the better, why wouldn’t you want everyone to know about it? By sharing your plant-powered lifestyle with others, you have the power to help people make a positive change in their lives – and to create transformative healing in the world.

The health benefits of a whole plant food diet can include improved immune functioning, preventing and reversing chronic lifestyle disease, greater fitness and endurance, glowing skin, and aging more youthfully. Plant-powered living can also boost our emotional, mental, cognitive, and spiritual well-being.

And yet despite extensive scientific support for these benefits, many of us find that when we try to encourage others toward plant-based living, they tune us out, dismiss us, or become defensive.

How can we inspire others to live healthier lives – and ultimately to create a healthier world? In this article, I share three foundations for empowering positive change.

1. Be a positive role model

Your actions inspire others. It’s easy to underestimate the power of your presence. However, your way of being has more influence than almost anything you say. Embody the lifestyle that you hope to inspire in others. When you are healthy, active, compassionate, and appreciative, this draws others to want to discover your secret. When you gracefully navigate life’s ups and downs, and nourish your mind, body, and spirit, this is magnetizing. And when you genuinely care about helping others – when you are a support, rather than a critic – this opens up greater receptivity in others.

You can be a positive role model through sharing appetizing and healthy vegan food; nurturing your mind-body-spirit wellness; focusing on the positives of vegan/plant-based living; developing a strong support network; and handling life’s challenges proactively and positively.

2. Meet people where they are

Sometimes we expect others to change in the same way (or timeframe) that we did. Or we share the information that interests or motivates us – but which may or may not resonate for the other person. Expecting others to change on our terms is not realistic – and is often counterproductive. Generally, we can have a greater impact if we meet others where they are.

A helpful model for identifying someone’s openness to change is the Transtheoretical Model of Change (also called the Stages of Change), created by psychologists James Prochaska and Carlo DiClemente. The primary stages of change are: Precontemplation, Contemplation, Preparation, Action, and Maintenance. Developed to better understand the process of behavior change, it applies to all types of lifestyle change – including the transition to a plant-based lifestyle.

If you are talking to someone who is in Precontemplation, generally they are not interested in or ready to consider a plant-based lifestyle. This may be a hardcore meat eater, or someone who just doesn’t see a reason for lifestyle change. This doesn’t mean you can’t have an influence on them – but you will need to approach them differently than someone who has more interest or openness. In this stage, you may focus more on being a positive role model and inspiring their curiosity through your example. Also, be on the lookout for moments of greater receptivity. Learn more about their interests and concerns so that when appropriate, you can offer tidbits of relevant information or stories that may spark their interest. This may help them move toward the next stage of readiness, Contemplation.

In the Contemplation stage, they are considering moving toward a plant-based lifestyle. However, they are still on the fence, going back and forth about the pros and cons. You may support them to move forward by sharing the positives of plant-powered living, raising awareness of the costs of not changing their lifestyle, and empowering their confidence to take first steps.

When a person decides they are ready for change, they move into Preparation. In this stage, they begin to lay a foundation for action. They are likely to be eager for resources and information to help them move forward. This is the stage when they will most benefit from direct support, resources, guidance, and encouragement so they can successfully prepare for and take initial steps toward a healthy, plant-based lifestyle.

In Action, they are now living a plant-based lifestyle and discovering the skills and habits to nurture and sustain in daily life. They are still early on their journey, and will likely benefit from support, resources, and guidance to strengthen skills for plant-based living, overcome challenges, and maintain their momentum.

Those in Maintenance have sustained lifestyle change for six months or more. In this stage, they may face specific challenges (such as travel or social situations) where they need support and guidance. In addition, they will benefit from connecting with others who share their passion and nurture their commitment.

Recognizing the other person’s level of readiness for change can help immensely in discovering how to best connect with them and inspire steps forward.

3. Build bridges of connection

The third principle for supporting change is to create positive connections with those you want to inspire. Adopting a new lifestyle requires learning new habits, overcoming old beliefs and practices, and developing a new way of being. It can be more difficult to learn skills and create lasting change when we feel threatened or unsafe. Think about meaningful changes you’ve made in your life. Most likely, they weren’t the result of someone beating you over the head or trying to make you feel like a bad person. Usually, we change because something brought new insight or awareness – and because change felt like the right thing to do.

Thus, to empower others to change, we need to create a safe relational space for learning and growth. Judgment or contempt will trigger the other person into fight-or-flight mode, where the primary focus is self-protection and defense. In contrast, creating an atmosphere of calm, curiosity, care, and connection can open the door for new possibilities and actions.

How do we create these kinds of transformative connections? One helpful practice is intentionality. Before you have a conversation with someone, clarify your intentions. The authors of Crucial Conversations suggest asking yourself questions such as: What do you want for yourself, for the other person, for the relationship, and for the larger picture? And how can you best communicate to create that outcome? Being intentional connects you with your Wise Brain so that you express yourself effectively – not reactively.

An important foundational intention is to create mutual understanding. Even if you see things very differently, you will have more impact if you seek to understand the other person’s point of view and what matters to them. And they will be more open to understanding your perspective when they feel your true interest in them (without an agenda to push change they aren’t ready for or open to).

It’s also helpful to share positive and encouraging messages. Share how your life has been positively impacted through plant-based living. Encourage them in any steps they are taking toward greater health or compassion. Highlight and reinforce behaviors you hope to strengthen versus criticizing what is “wrong” or lacking.

Finally, focus on planting seeds of change. For most of us, many seeds are planted before we start or sustain a vegan/plant-based lifestyle. On my own journey, in retrospect, I now see many experiences that increased my readiness for change. First, it was eating delicious plant-based meals at a conference that made me realize that this lifestyle could be doable. A couple of months later, my stepdaughter ate only the vegetarian dishes at our family Thanksgiving. Again, seeds of possibility were planted. It was only a month or so after these events that I saw a program about meat processing plants that led me on the journey toward plant-based eating. Over time, I tried new recipes and expanded my food palette with delicious veg meals. In addition, I read all the books I could about the ethical and health aspects of our food choices. What I discovered led me to become vegetarian, and ultimately, vegan.

As you strive to empower others toward healthy, compassionate lifestyle choices, it’s important to remember: Just because someone doesn’t change immediately, it doesn’t mean that your words or example didn’t make a difference. Consider that perhaps seeds of possibility are being planted that will take root when the time is right. As more seeds of transformation are cultivated, we nurture a global movement toward greater health, kindness, compassion, and sustainability.

NOTE: This article is based on my presentation for The Science of Staying Young and Thriving: Experts Reveal the Fountain of Youth. To watch the full presentation / webinar on YouTube, CLICK HERE. My presentation is about 10 minutes into the webinar. The full webinar offers wonderful insights from plant-based doctors and leaders about the benefits of plant-based diets for youthful aging.