Social Lights

In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Briony Schadegg, co-founder and director of HCI Insights, which is better known as Frank App.

About Briony

Briony wants to make a positive impact on the world and it was this motivation that inspired her to become a police officer.

In her role within the police, Briony undertook several advanced training programs in crime reduction which expanded on areas of criminology and victimology. Over her years of service, she was witness to many instances of the ever-growing mental health issues within the community. To her these people were not just a statistic, she was seeing their faces daily. Due to restriction within the law, she felt limited in her ability to intervene and provide help to those struggling with mental health.

Briony noticed that the mental health services that are available to help people prior to the police getting involved were often failing people and needed rebuilding. This was her primary inspiration behind creating Frank App, building on the design philosophy of fitness trackers and using those concepts to help people improve their well-being. Empowering people to have tangible goals in front of them and give people guidance to resources that could help them make better choices.

BIG IDEA 1

“If you know which days you are in a better mood you can start scheduling things in those days to be more productive.” (07:59) 

Discussing with Briony how Frank App began, she shared with us it was through her own struggles with PTSD and how using a prototype of Frank helped her manage the onset of a PTSD episode. Frank works by collecting the natural language of the user to determine their mood and sentiment from the data retrieved. The visual feedback that the app provides nudges users towards constructive behaviours or highlights negatives ones. This nudge allows individual to make more positive choices, the app even provides resources that could be helpful to the user given their real time situation.

Briony goes on to describe that the tool is not just for when you are having a bad day but also for when you are having a great day. Providing users with insight on when they should schedule stressful events or when they are the most productive too when they need to relax and take a break. Awareness of these high and low periods allow users to be more productive with their time and make smarter choices.

 BIG IDEA 2

“Empowering business to make sure their employees are working in a safe environment.” (18:46)

At the height of COVID everyone was working from home and now even as the world slowly returns to normal, working from home has almost become the norm. Briony explains to us there was a misconception when it came to working from home, the idea that employees were less productive and worked less. New evidence suggests that not only are they working longer hours they are also taking less breaks and no longer getting that social engagement that they would have in a normal workplace. She goes on to explain, how when using a tool like Frank, employers may be able to properly measure the impact of social isolation on their team members. It could be potentially used to assist people in ensuring a positive mindset for working at home as well as ensure that the work/home space is a safe environment.

BIG IDEA 3

“Connect users to the community” (30:11)

Briony tells us how her company did not want to reinvent the wheel and compete with other business within the mental health space. Instead they are reaching out and working in...

In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Dustin Miller who is an omni content creator, host of the Polymath Polycast, and creator of the Modular Degree Framework.

About Dustin

As an aspiring polymath, Dustin created PolyInnovator as a foundational means to build out the various careers he wanted out of life (A Polymath of Innovation if you will). He’s on a mission to create a Modular Education Platform to revolutionize how we approach education as whole and is currently building the Modular Degree System: a do it yourself, with help, framework for a modern approach to education.

He is the Host of The Polymath PolyCast, where he interviews multidisciplinary people. From a young age Dustin always wanted to make a difference, always thinking what can I do to change something, to make it better, more efficient, which led him to where he is today.

Dustin explains the meaning of the name of his business, poly means much or many and it just implies many different actions you can take and innovation being making a change in a certain area. The idea of a polyinnovator is someone with much or many learnings.

BIG IDEA 1

“When you have multiple skills, they are all applicable to different areas in your life” (08:59)

Dustin explains to us what it means to be a polymath and how a polymath has expert knowledge in many different areas. Unlike a “jack of all trades” that is an individual with maybe an average level of familiarity across a wide range of pursuits, when you have multiple skills there is an integration between these different knowledge areas, it can be used to expedite your learning in different skillsets.

BIG IDEA 2

“Create an education for people in a modern way.” (12:13)

He wanted to be able to learn a broad range of topics and he realised that he was not able to do this the traditional way. It would require doing several different university degrees and a massive time investment. He wanted to find his own way, a DIY education where he was able to create a foundation to explore any topic of interest. As the modern business world is moving in a direction where it requires people to be multidisciplinary, the traditional education pathways designed for specialisation is no longer effective. Dustin’s vision is a system of education that allows individuals to have the access to courses of programs to keep current in the ever-evolving industry.

BIG IDEA 3

“The idea of strategy plus automation multiplied by execution equals success.” (33:03)

Dustin’s goes into his personal formulae for social media success. There are so many different platforms that individuals and communities use to communicate and express themselves on, eg Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Slack, Discord and Clubhouse. It can sometimes be difficult, and time consuming to keep track and have a presence on all these apps, especially without a team behind you. He goes on to explain having a defined strategy and taking advantage of automation is the pathway forward.

Episode Links

You can find Dustin Miller, and more on Polyinnovator:

https://polyinnovator.space/

https://www.facebook.com/polyinnovator

https://www.instagram.com/polyinnovator/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/polyinnovator/

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In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Sarah Britz, who’s an e-commerce specialist and founder of Spend With Us, an online initiative to support rural and regional small businesses impacted by fires, floods and COVID.

About Sarah

Sarah loves meeting new people, connecting and helping them to grow their businesses, especially using her skills and knowledge to help them get online, get through difficult times and make a difference.

She is a web designer and developer and has been building websites for about 20 years. Sarah decided during the 2020 bush fires to use her skills and knowledge for small businesses that were impacted at that time. She realised that rather than creating individual platforms for each business to get online, that a centralized market place would make the most impact. This is how the idea of Spend With Us started.

BIG IDEA 1

“How could we help rural and regional small businesses around Australia suffering from bushfires to COVID?” (06:21) 

At the start Sarah was posting to Facebook groups that she created a way to help small business that had been affected by the bush fires. It was this first step that allowed her to get in contact with many business owners that needed help.  The organisation really expanded with the help of Lauren Hateley and Jenn Donovan, each bringing their own unique skillsets to Spend With Us.

They built a platform for rural and regional small business that people can access across Australia and across the world. Something that would raise awareness of these businesses and people, along with all their incredible products. This could only happen through collaboration, and talking to people within these communities. In Spend With Us there’s a private Facebook sellers group, where they do webinars to help them to get better product listings, take better product photos, learn to market their products and give them tips and advice to help them survive and grow.

BIG IDEA 2

“Community is the heart our platform.” (13:32)

Sarah’s goal for her company is to create a massive community of sellers and buyers and everyone supporting each other. The businesses share their stories with each other and gain hope and inspiration.

Through social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook, they aim to highlight the products through a program called ¨Meet the Maker¨. A newsletter helps promote what the sellers are advertising to any potential customer. On the website they also promote every week a different business, showing what they are selling and different campaigns, trying to raise awareness and to get as much exposure for the small businesses as possible.

BIG IDEA 3

“Be mindful where you spend your money” (15:18)

One thing Sarah would like people to do differently is to think about where you are spending your money and when you are buying something be mindful of the choice and choose to support a business where it makes a huge difference. When you buy from a small business seller that is in their Facebook group, then you're already supporting that person, you're making such a big difference in their life.

Sarah has been inspired by the corporates who have also come on board. They’ve sold many gift cards on their platform and several of big corporate companies purchased sitewide gift cards for their Christmas gifts, it was big businesses giving back to small businesses.

Episode Links

You can find Sarah Bitz, and more on Spend with us at:

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In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Jacqui Bloom, the founder of the Helping Hub.

About Jacqui

The Helping Hub is an online gift platform and registry service that allows people to support friends and family in need with thoughtful gifts and practical support such as laundry services, cleaning services, meal, delivery, pet care, personal care services, and anything else that might be useful, purposeful or meaningful when people are going through a hard time (or just because!).

Jacqui studied business management and marketing with sales and started out running the family business for 15 years in the fashion industry. She then transitioned into palliative care, in collaboration with Cure Cancer Australia. Her varied life experiences have led her to launching The Helping Hub.

BIG IDEA 1

“Wouldn't it have been amazing if there was one place that everyone could go in times of need that has a list of everything you need” (07:31) 

In 2005 Jacqui’s family endured the tragic loss of her young brother-in-law Rob, at the age of 37. Leaving her sister to manage the care and support of their four grieving children, while also dealing with her own personal stress of losing her husband. Less than 12 months after Rob’s passing, the unthinkable struck again and her mother, Evelyn was diagnosed with Cancer.

With a passion for helping others and through her own personal experiences of grief, loss, motherhood, illness, injury, and divorce Jacqui recognised that help is often the most difficult to ask for, but also the most appreciated. She thought it would have been amazing if there was one place that everyone could go that would have a list of useful, purposeful or meaningful things  that you need to help you, when things go wrong. When Jacqui lived through her own grief and loss, she experienced first-hand the way capable people still need extra support to get them through the ongoing challenge of dealing with the everyday. She was inspired to find an easier way to help people help themselves and others in need – as well as making ways to celebrate life’s happiest occasions more meaningful and memorable. In late 2020 she launched The Helping Hub.

BIG IDEA 2

“Making a difference in someone's life” (13:32)

Jacqui explains how her website works. You can hop on the Helping Hub and you can gift someone or yourself some extra time, things like house cleaning, meal delivery, babysitting, someone doing your washing, anything you need. You are gifting a product or service that will make a difference in someone's life. The recipient receives the help they need, something that they may be too afraid to ask for. It also gives the giftee the gratification of knowing that you have gifted them something that is useful and purposeful.

BIG IDEA 3

“Some people react by hearing other people's stories and they take inspiration and courage from that.” (22:14)

Jacqui is growing her community, that isn’t just from the buyers but also the sellers, creating a community where the business values align. It is that sense of helping someone, that's what your community do when they rally around you. The Helping Hub want to facilitate the sharing of recipient and giver stories/narratives in different ways, allowing people to relate to it in their own way. These stories allows people to draw inspiration and courage from others.

Episode Links

You can find Jacqui Bloom, and more on the helping hub at:

thehelpinghub.com

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacqui-bloom/
• https://www.facebook.com/The-Helping-Hub-510006919505544
• https://www.instagram.com/thehelpinghub/

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In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Trudy Rankin, who is the director of West Island Digital and the founder of the Online Business Lift Off program.

About Trudy Rankin

Trudy Rankin is a digital strategist, an online business coach and a consultant. After more than 15 years working with big organisations, helping them use digital technology to achieve their goals, she wanted to continue her practice of giving to the next generation through work experience. After starting West Island Digital in 2015, she was on the hunt for an intern.

Thanks to Jan Hauser, from Vision Australia’s employment service, Shahan Cheong joined the West Island Digital team for 3 months. During these months, Trudy discovered that Shahan had been writing a blog for years and had a significant number of people coming to his website every month. What Shahan didn’t realise was that his blog could be used to generate an income for himself.

Over the rest of the internship, and some coaching beyond that, Trudy helped Shahan figure out how to use his blog to start earning money. Now, Shahan has built himself a business, buying and selling antiques online! He has his own YouTube channel – where he makes videos about restoring antiques – and he’s still blogging about antiques and history on his website, Throughout History.

The Online Business Liftoff Program was born, available to all who struggle with finding traditional “9 to 5” work – students, stay-at-home parents, carers with limited availabilities or even older job seekers struggling to find work.

BIG IDEA 1

“I believe in supporting people get experience so that they can just get their foot in the door.” (06:53)

When it came to building her own business, Trudy had the chance to make the choice to either do it now, or never do it at all. So, she decided to make the leap and start a business. She thought she knew what she would do, but quickly discovered that it is one thing to work for a corporation and have a massive team around you, supporting you, and another to becoming just one person in a small business doing everything.

She said that one of the things she has always done, is to have and support an internship program. These programs are a great opportunity to provide people with experience and give them the chance to get their foot in the door. She mentions that she had an intern that had sight difficulties and for that reason, it was difficult for him to find a job. It wasn’t until she found that as a hobby, he was always writing blogs about thing he was passionate about, so she coached and taught him how to monetize that blog. Through helping him develop his writing skills he was able continue doing what he loves and maintain a living from it.

Trudy realized that there are many more people that could have similar problems, so she ended up creating a pilot program with Vision Australia. Through the growth that program they were able to turn that into a government funded project to enable those with disabilities to gain work experience.

BIG IDEA 2

“What is it that our customers need?” (17:11)

Trudy tells us where her community members are. She is currently using a private Facebook group as a medium. This Facebook group is a place for people who aren't quite ready to take the leap, to just be asked questions, talk about where they are and for her and her team to give them tips and hints etc. Facebook is great for creating awareness and...

In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Paul Dunn, the co-founder of accountants for good and B1G1 business for good.

About Paul

Paul is a four-time TEDx speaker. He is a senior fellow in one of the world's leading think tanks and consults with the mentors of cutting-edge businesses around the world. He was honoured as a social innovation fellow in his new home of Singapore, something he shares with film star and philanthropist Jet Li and Walmart chairman, Rob Walton.

He was one of the first 10 people in Hewlett Packard in Australia. He then created one of Australia's first computer companies, and then the Results Corporation, where he helped develop and grow 23,000 small and medium scale business enterprises. His programs are used by an estimated 226,000 companies around the world, and he continues to push the boundaries. He is featured in Forbes Magazine alongside Sir Richard Branson in a global piece on disrupters in business. He is the co-founder of accountants for good and B1G1 business for good, the global giving in initiative. B1G1 has already enabled businesses to create over 220 million good giving impacts globally.

BIG IDEA 1

“Entrepreneurs, in particular, do things that allow them to make more impact, so it becomes this lovely flywheel that is based on impact” (03:34) 

Paul says that there are three key ideals that can impact your sense of direction. The first one is having some sort of North Star, something that drives you, that is bigger than yourself and that is the key. The second thing is to understand something that we have always known and is that we are all connected, we've always been connected, but we realize it now.  Finally, the third one is asking yourself the right question. Was that the right track? to be able to know what the best for you and your business is.

He explains that in B1G1 they are playing a significant part in that, in terms of making it easier than ever before for entrepreneurs to do it and to add meaning and purpose to what they do. As a business leader, once you get that big North Star, which involves meaning and purpose, it is not about you anymore, it's about something bigger than you and that will be your guide.

BIG IDEA 2

“Imagine every time you buy a cup a coffee, a child gets access to life-saving clean water” (12:32)

Paul explains how B1G1 was created and that when he was mentoring his now co-founder Masami Sato, she approached him one day with a brilliant business idea. She told him: “I want you to imagine a world where every time business is done, something great happens in our world”.  This idea excited him, and he wanted to know more about it, “you want to buy a TV because you want a better or bigger picture, imagine how would it be if, when you did that, someone who could not see got the gift of sight”.

At that moment he realised that this was the best idea he ever heard in his life, so he asked her if he could keep mentoring her for the rest of her life!

He clarifies that sometimes people start saying that they are lost, what he recommends to people is to look outside, look at some of the issues that you, as an entrepreneur could have an impact on. It is finding a way to hook your business onto those ideals. This also translates to potential customers, investors or team members who hear what you are doing, and then they start saying I want to be part of that as well. 

The larger the purpose the more people are likely to come on board, the more likely your business is to be a magnet for talented individuals. The existing members or stakeholders within your business are more likely to be engaged and involved. It becomes this beautiful sort of virtual cycle, where the people you are influencing getter...

In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Ben Teoh & Emma Carbone, founders of Bricks N Bytes. Bricks N Bytes was created in response to COVID restrictions to continue providing kids and parents a way to discover more about Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM), how to be creative with Lego and, find fun educational apps.

About Ben Teoh and Emma Carbone

Ben and Emma are from the City of Marion Libraries in South Australia. After being forced to close all the libraries because of COVID, they started thinking “what can we offer to families” as many kids will be at home and parents will need a little bit of support. After some research exploring what parents needed, what are the challenges they were facing with home schooling, they found the best approach was to create Bricks & Bytes. Established to build community groups where the kids can learn to create things with Legos and offering resources to parents on STEM related educational programs for their children. They also provide opportunity for hosts and business previously associated with the libraries to engage and support their audience. Both Ben and Emma love to work in a place where they can give back to people and provide something that often encourages and supports them.

BIG IDEA 1

“We are all about the community, about supporting them and providing them with all the services that we have.” (6:40) 

Ben and Emma notice that in many homes, families will have and use iPads and many other electronic smart devices, they came the conclusion that they needed to create something fresh that allowed them to engage with both kids and parents. Their STEM show has had positive feedback from the audience and only continues to grow.

At the beginning they started just on Facebook, but within couple of months they have expanded onto YouTube and now also Instagram. The focal point of Bricks & Bytes is their live shows, where they build Legos and explore educational topics to connect with their audience. Their emphasis has always been to support and provide for community by any medium possible.

Ben and Emma talk about how they try to bring a special guest on to the show from time to time, this is often someone from the science community. In the past they have had guests that have explored topics such as insects, rocket science, marine biology, and drones. All with the purpose of providing kids with an avenue to be creative and learn about the many different topics that can be explored within the STEM community.

One of their key programs is the App of the week. This initiative was created specifically with parents in mind. It was to give parents a resource to discover new fun educational games that can be played with their kids. 

BIG IDEA 2

“It’s fun to get that engagement with people.” (12:32)

They mention that it has been a very interesting journey, where they have learnt a lot about technology and social media, and how they can use these platforms to engage with people. What really surprised them and gave them encouragement and motivation was all the support and the positive impact that they are having with their audience. They made a point mentioning that they don’t like to pre-record what they are going to say, as they believe this is the best way for them to be completely genuine and the kids love when they make mistakes building Lego. In this whole process they have made many good relationships with external people and parents are very happy to see that their kids are having fun and learning.

Ben and Emma so far have used Facebook as their preferred social media platform. They have created groups where people of all ages can chat and post videos of the Legos they have created. This community has...

In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Luke Faccini, founder of The Sponge that specialises in helping the next generation of business owners rebrand with purpose.

About Luke Faccini

In 1999 he started his professional brand design journey since then he has helped thousands of people put their brands on the map. While beginning as a trained graphic designer, the entrepreneurial drive took him on a path of transformation. He has experienced first-hand the impact that purpose and values have in business and the connection to brand story. Having had a “purpose moment” that transformed his outlook on business, The Sponge obtained B Corp certification in 2017. Luke is a firm believer that business can and should be a force for good. His purpose is to help good businesses become a better brand by all means necessary, this includes a book, an online program, and helping to grow the GoodNorth good business community.

BIG IDEA 1

“Until that point in my life, I hadn’t actually thought about the true cost.” (6:14)

Luke felt that his life was like a hamster wheel, just making money and spending money. One day he watched a documentary “The True Cost of Things”, an exposé, showing how everything works within the fast fashion industry, how that affected people, and in that moment he said “I’m going to start doing things differently”. He decided there and then that he will no longer work for brands that were involved with that type of abuse. Since then he has made a concerted effort to work only for brands that have a positive impact in the world. This decision forced him into firing clients and imploding his business, to practically starting everything again from scratch.

He built an app that was designed for people that were conscientious to tell the community which brands are actually having a positive impact. From his research, Luke found an organization that certifies good ethical business practices. Following his own beliefs, he began the process of getting The Sponge B Corp certification. His vision is to help businesses on a large scale to have more positive influences in the community. He mentions that he has very good clients that trust him to help and guide them on that journey. The opportunity to collaborate with others, to solve the wicked problems in the world, and being involved in a community over and above business.

BIG IDEA 2

“It's not what you do. It's what your intent is.” (13:37) 

Luke explains how B Corp certification works. The company cannot be good in just one attribute, it needs to be decent as a sum across all things. It helps business leaders to think about aspects of their business, that they may not have considered before.

What he is passionate about, is helping embrace and encourage people to get involved, but also providing a benchmark to improve as a team.

Luke’s ley advice is when you find yourself at an event, you shouldn’t ask people, “what do you do?” As this will put you in a ladder of you comparing yourself to someone else. Instead of asking that, say what are you passionate about? You will immediately see the difference in how people will respond. This line of conversation can lead to sharing something, which can bring on collaborations, eventuating in creating solutions to problems quicker.

BIG IDEA 3

“Simplicity is the key because it's not the story that you tell. It's the story that they tell.” (27:24)

 Luke commented that a common mistake that companies do is making themselves the hero. By doing this you push people away because subconsciously there is only one hero in a story. People think that there is one audience for their message, this isn't the case. As a...

In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with Evan Shellshear, the Head of Analytics at Biarri, a world-leading mathematical and predictive modelling company.

About Evan Shellshear

Evan is an expert in artificial intelligence with a Ph.D. in Game Theory from the Nobel Prize winning University of Bielefeld (in Germany). He has many years of international experience in the development and design of AI tools for a variety of industries having worked with Australia's top companies on all aspects of advanced analytical solutions. He is also the author of a number of books including the best-selling book on Amazon, Innovation Tools.

He is passionate about making an impact and seeing the work he does change something for the positive. Within industry he is involved with the analysis and reporting of key information to give companies a competitive edge. He gets excited when people are consistently improving their business models which leads to greater efficiencies and a more effective / productive way of working.

BIG IDEA 1

“We need to do things better” (2:21)

In 2009 the founders of Biarri created a company that had a primary goal of making the world operate more efficiently. They noticed that if we as business leaders keep doing the same procedures, at some point it will not be enough. Biarri wanted to be the catalyst that could help find a better way to use the resources available to be more efficient. 

He told us that at the beginning a large organization in Melbourne Australia was having problems managing their transports needs. It was all being managed on excel sheets with major inefficiencies. It got to the point that they had thousands of deliveries in specific time windows and locations, that it was just becoming too difficult for them to try to follow, and employees were starting feeling like their time was pointless. Biarri built the company a web-based tool in the cloud which gave them everything they needed. Their employees could access it from an internet browser automatically, and they could see what the best routes were and if there was any traffic. This tool could work with real life problems like road accidents and then in real-time update and optimise travel routes for drivers.

BIG IDEA 2

“If we see a startup or a company that we think will have a significant impact, we will assist them” (07:36)

Evan explains that they don’t just work with big brands like Google or Australia Post, they seek out startups that could have a significant impact or to disrupt their industry in a positive way. The only piece of the puzzle that they are missing is the mathematical capability, to know how to frame a problem. Biarri steps in and assists them to make good decisions with amazing tools.

One example includes a company who put a computer chip in cricked balls, to improve sport analytics and science. Biarri assisted by developing machine learning algorithms to help the company understand the speed and the spin of the ball from the data that was coming from the chip. They consolidated a partnership with them and with many small startup companies around the globe to pass on a key piece of technology that they needed to better serve their target market. 

BIG IDEA 3

“Technology will not make a bad business model be good, technology will not make a bad business idea be good” (16:24)

 Evan describes artificial intelligence (AI) as just a computer program that can mimic the pattern recognition and detection skills that all humans possess. AI has been a part of several important improvements to society, for instance the improvement on how cars and vehicles are made. He goes on to mention it is about being proactive in the...

In this episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort chats with M.J. Ryan, change expert, thought leader and one of the creators of the New York Times bestselling Random Acts of Kindness series and the author of The Happiness Makeover (nominated for the 2005 Books for Better Living award in the Motivational category), Attitudes of Gratitude, The Power of Patience, Trusting Yourself, The Giving Heart, and 365 Health and Happiness Boosters, among other titles. Altogether, there are 1.75 million copies of her titles in print.

About M.J. Ryan

M.J. is a coach, mentor and adviser to founders of startups around the world, as well as executives in organisations large and small. She also serves as the lead Development Guide for SheEO, a global community of women radically transforming how we finance, support, and celebrate female innovators. 

She has appeared on The Today Show and CNN, and is a contributing editor to Good Housekeeping and Health. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and daughter.

M.J. shares with us that what inspires her is the possibility of helping others, using her ability to understand what other people are going through.

When we asked her how she created the publishing company, she said ‘’it was an accident completely and totally’’. The idea started, when a friend who wanted to be a book publisher, decided to create a company without any money, but luckily for them, the first book published was very successful. They started publishing books for women in the area of personal growth, self-help, inspiration and more.

When the idea of Random Acts of Kindness came up, it was a collection of stories of many different people, talking about small positive experiences that had been happened within their lives. She realized and started understanding the real power of those small encounters, then the book became a worldwide sensation.

BIG IDEA 1

“I had no idea how to be happy.” (3:36) 

M.J. studied Psychology because she had a deep interest in how the human mind works and associated feelings. Looking to understand more, and going through therapy herself, she noticed that she wasn’t happy, but not just that, she didn’t know how to be happy. It was coming to this realization that she needed to start practicing what she wrote, these acts of kindness were the key to her happiness. 

Building upon her first book, she wrote several more about gratitude and generosity. Every time she put what she wrote into practice her happiness improved. She wanted to explore this more and how it this could beneficially impact people. So, she started doing researching and working with other people, to understand as much as she could. It wasn’t until later on that the “Positive Psychology Movement” began to publish the research results that back up what M.J. had found anecdotally.  She goes on to tell us that all the positive emotions exist to help us recover from the negative ones. If we experience fear, anger, sadness, etc we send our bodies into a negative state, physiologically and emotionally and when we practice the positive ones we bring ourselves back into balance. 

BIG IDEA 2

“I decided what I wanted to do is work more directly with people rather than writing books only.” (12:22)

M.J. recognized that she didn’t want to be in her business anymore, she decided to sell her publishing company, so she could work more one on one with people. It was helping people that she was so passionate about. She started helping local businesses and their employees...