What are you grateful for today?

The Gratitude List

October 6, 2012Nina KovnerGIVE BACK, GROW

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

Melody Beattie

What are you grateful for today?

Today is my Dad’s birthday.  It will be the first time in 45 years that I cannot pick up the phone to call him, or give him the super special poems, CD’s or handmade cards I found so much joy in making for my #1 guy.  Instead, I dedicate this post to him, and hope that since he got to heaven 10 months ago, that he made sure they got an Internet connection.  Cause if anyone could make it happen, it’s my Dad.

So what does this have to do with gratitude you ask?  One of the gazillions of lessons I have learned on my amazing, difficult and crazy journey, is about focusing on gratitude.  And when I do, it makes dealing with the hard stuff a way easier.  The quote above has incredibly deep meaning to me, so much so, that I tattooed on my arm, just in case I forget to be grateful.  It happens.

So many of us get stuck in all the craziness that life throws our way.  Each of you take in so much everyday, listening to your clients and team mates troubles, and sometimes we absorb that energy, sound familiar? The awesome news is we have a choice of what we get to do with the crazy, and when we choose to focus on gratitude, its amazing what can happen. Try it, I dare you!

One thing I was taught several years ago is when I get into a dark, sad place, which for me, is more often than I think people know, is to get out a piece of paper, or phone or whatever, and write 5 things I am grateful for.  Even in the toughest of days, we can all find 5 things.  Here is my list for today.

Nina’s Gratitude List
1. The 45 years I got to spend with my awesome Dad. I cherish each moment and memory, even the not so pleasant ones.
2. The love and support of my family and friends, no matter which decisions I make for myself, they’ve always got my back.
3. My unconditional loving dogs, Faith + Zen, without them, my life would be beige.
4. The journey I have been on learning how to match my outsides to my insides.
5. For Passion Squared (and my biz soul mate Gordon) which allows me to share my passion with the people I love.

Now it’s your turn.  What 5 things are you grateful for today?  If you are feeling courageous, jump on over to our Facebook page and share your list on our wall, or click here to share it just with us.  Or text it to a friend.  Just make one.  It works.

(shared with LOVE + GRATITUDE from your passionista Nina)

PS: Happy Birthday Dad, I love you infinity and beyond.

Kickstart My Heart

July 27, 2012Nina KovnerENGAGE, GIVE BACK

Kickstarter

Crowd Funding
“The collective cooperation, attention and trust by people who network and pool their money together, usually via the Internet, in order to support efforts initiated by other people or organizations.”

We heart Kickstarter.  As the social and digital revolution continues to explode, there are so many great things that have come from it.  Kickstarter is one of those really “great things”.

In three short years, Kickstarter has raised over $119M to fund creative peoples dreams.  WOW!  This is such a cool and innovative way for entrepreneurs and creative types (that’s YOU) to be able to bring their projects to life, and shows so much about the people in our world who will support a total strangers dream if they feel compelled by their message and the projects impact on our world.

Here is one of our favorites, the true passion, love of her craft and creativity in raising funds is just some of the reasons Amanda Palmer raised nearly $1.2 million (her goal was $100K) to fund her music project and passions.

Have you contributed on Kickstarter to help fund a passion?

To learn more about this incredible young women and on how this digital platform is a game-changer, check out Seth Godin’s Domino Project blog post @ http://www.thedominoproject.com/2012/05/brick-by-brick-building-a-digital-platform-right.html

To learn more about how to create a compelling Kickstarter Campaign, check out Seth Godins blog post on the topic @http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2012/06/reflections-on-todays-kickstarter.html

PS: A big shout out of love to passionista Nikki Waller of Red Magnolia Beauty for inspiring this post.

(shared with LOVE from your passionistas Nina+Gordon)

Cyber Bullying

Bullying Sucks!

July 10, 2012Nina KovnerENGAGE, GIVE BACK

We already know the horrifying stories of kids being bullied at school and have witnessed the tragic consequences.  Now bullying has moved into the social and digital space in a BIG way, thanks to young peoples 24/7 engagement on Facebook, Twitter, and one of the biggest daily activities for teens, texting! This is both a lesson in awareness, how we can do something to help, and in seeing the HUGE shift the future generation has made towards the social and digital web.

While the stats below are disturbing, there are several organizations that are available to help kids hang on through the toughest and darkest of days.  We love Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation, Its Gets Better, The Trevor Project, and Boo2Bullying.org just to name a few.  We can all help, by creating awareness and stepping up when and where we can to put a STOP to BULLYING, both online and off.

Cyber BullyingCyber BullyingCyber BullyingCyber BullyingCyber BullyingCyber Bullying

(shared with LOVE from your passionistas Nina + Gordon)

 

 

 

Can You Keep a Secret?

May 4, 2012Nina KovnerENGAGE, GIVE BACK

“Secrets can take many forms. They can be shocking or silly or soulful. They can connect us with our deepest humanity.”

Frank Warren, PostSecret.com

Who hears more ‘secrets’ than hairdressers? It’s part of the unique bond you share with clients. It’s a reinforcement of the important role you play in the lives of many – often unknowingly. As this Ted Talk  highlights, people have a need to share their deepest secrets. Doing so can be empowering. Never underestimate the power to do good by sometimes simply listening.

“Ted Talk featuring Frank Warren, the founder of PostSecret.com, who shares some of the half-million secrets that strangers have mailed him on postcards.”

(shared with LOVE from your passionistas Nina + Gordon)

IT GETS BETTER…The Power of Hope

April 3, 2012Nina KovnerGIVE BACK

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7skPnJOZYdA

Beginning with one inspiring video, Dan Savage used the web to create the It Gets Better Project–a movement that has generated thousands of uplifting videos that give hope to teens.

We  LOVE this video first because of the message it has of hope to the untold numbers of young people it has and continues to inspire to overcome the burden of bullies and negativity they face every day in being who they are.

We also LOVE this video as another example of the power of the social web to engage, inspire and empower (!!) us personally and professionally.

The social web is changing how we communicate, share and learn – and is leveling the business playing field between individuals, small companies and the mega brands.  For sure, “it gets better” is a message of hope for us all.