Note from Dewi: Marissa Feinberg is a friend based in NYC and Founder of Green Spaces co-share workspace in Tribeca.
Her new company flockd is an exciting initiative that applies the concept of online status updates IRL “in real life”.
Learn more about what’s poppin’ with flockd!
Aloha my friend; you made it to Video 2 of 5 in my A-L-O-H-A video series!
In this video I share my mana’o on what the “L” in ALOHA stands for: LOKAHI… Lokahi in ‘olelo Hawai’i means Unity.
Be sure to check out Video 1 of the series if you missed it here: The first “A” in ALOHA stands for Akahai.
Share with us below: How can you invite more Unity into your life, your relationships, your work and your community?
Aloha Kakou sweet Be Your Brilliance readers!
I missed posting yesterday as it’s honestly been super fun for me to get into the habit of regularly sharing with you and my fellow Ultimate Blog Challenge friends.
I’m inspired to share a 5 part video series I created a few years ago in the next few posts I have lined up for early this week.
Each video is on the topic of ALOHA, the Hawaiian word for Love most often thought of as a greeting. As you’ll find through this series, ALOHA is all of this plus a whole lot more!
Here is Video 1 of 5 in the A-L-O-H-A Series: A is for AKAHAI…
In Joy and be sure to share your experience of ALOHA with us in the comment section below.
Small kid time… Hanabadda days…
Back in the day…
There was a time when opening the mail box was like Christmas for me… and this was a near-daily occurance! I had over 300 pen pals at one point and my record for receiving the most letters in a day is 25. Each envelope was a colorful work of art onto itself and came stuffed with slams (see below), confetti/sticker packets, custom address labels and yes, a handwritten letter.
Slams are little handmade booklets that are swapped from person to person where responses to a series of questions are written down. It begins when a friend makes one for another friend. When the booklet is full the last person to fill his/her answers sends the slam to the person it was started for. As the slam travels, each person adds their address label to page one. You can meet and add new pen pals this way in a similar manner that requesting to “friend” a new person on Facebook functions today.
Imagine my delight as I discovered something called the Liberate Your Art Postcard Swap in one of the blogs (we have over 600 folks participating!) that caught my eye yesterday on the Ultimate Blogging Challenge Wall on Facebook. I’m now signed up to participate thanks to Fellow UBC blogger and creative Jo who lives in Aotearoa (aka New Zealand). Check out her process here: JosLittlePictures
Collage Cards Re-Purposed for My “Positioning Your Story and the Dream You Serve” eBook Cover
Earlier this year I purged most of my art supplies in a whirlwind of “get rid of it” energy… I did however keep some key items (YAY!) that I’ll be using for this project: my bold color Crayola marker set, watercolor pencils and Prismacolor pencils. Add into the mix a peppering of collage elements and voila.. Instant FUN!
Is there something you enjoyed creating when you were a kid that you currently practice or want to bring more of into your life? Share it with us here…
Yesterday has disappeared
For the waking of the sun
Like rain touching the earth
New life has begun
Ho’omaka Hou
Live out what your life means
Ho’omaka Hou
Life runs in your veins
Ho’omaka Hou
The song begins again….
Ho’omaka Hou by Olomana
The theme of Rebirth is common this time of year. Yes, we’re a week into 2012 and more than ever before I’ve been noticing an abundance of commentary, exercises, suggestions, stated intentions and resolutions for the year ahead. Given the excitement around 2012 that’s been building for the past several years, the general consensus seems to be “it’s now or never”, “make this your best year yet” and “go for the gold!”.
Last year I got into saying “2012 is now” whenever I heard someone referring to, preparing for or anticipating 2012 (and more specifically, 12/21/12 – the end of the Mayan Calendar). It was my way of saying to them (and mySelf) let’s get present; we don’t need to wait until 2012 to shift whatever it is we want to shift; do it now!
I admit, I recently jumped on the bandwagon and installed a free widget on my Mac that now says that there’s 11 months and 13 days until “the hour is up”. Plus I’ve gotten some use out of what others have suggested to reflect on related to the awareness, gains and growth I’ve experienced in 2011.
And on the first of the year I went to Mauna Kea, Hawaii’s most sacred mountain, to participate in a ceremony where we released the things and ways of being that we no longer wanted to keep around and invited forth the things we want to experience more of.
This is all fine and great. I do appreciate myself for giving mySelf the experience of reflecting on last year as well as beginning to focus on what I’m Co-Creating going forward. And, what I know to be True at the core of my essence is that Every Moment is an Opportunity to be Birthed Anew in Spirit.
It doesn’t matter if it’s Jan. 8, 2012 or Dec. 21, 2012 or next week Saturday at 11:11am. NOW is where the miracles are experienced; that’s why it’s called the Present!
All it takes is making a decision; activating the Power of Choice – which is available to us each and every moment. Kind of like the choice I made to begin again with blogging here. Hey, it’s been over 6 months and I say now is as great a time as ever to post!
Ho’omaka Hou – Begin Again.
And again.
And again.
And again.
Everything you’ve experienced in life has led you to this very moment. A neat thing about this is that you’re always free to CHOOSE how you allow these events to color your reality and support or discount your perception. How you view the world and your place in it very much depends on how you consciously (or unconsciously) choose to process, learn, lift and grow (or not) from your life experiences, however challenging or graceful they have seemed.
This post is inspired by one of my teachers, Money Map to Freedom creator Alexis Martin Neely. I’ve borrowed the concept from a recent blog post of hers: Events That Have Changed My Life.
I now too am inspired to share some events that I’ve ALLOWED to have a positive impact in my life. The event itself hasn’t changed my life, rather, it’s my EXPERIENCE of that event – how I’ve chosen to frame, process and appreciate the lessons available (in some cases years later) that has had a lasting impact.
Note that every event Alexis mentioned and all the events I’m sharing were LIVE SEMINARS! There’s no better place to meet like-Souled folks and build your community than energetically-aligned events!
It was by some kind of a miracle that I attended Humanity Unites Brilliance (HUB)’s Awakening Your Brilliance Event in Kona on the Big Island in December of 2008. I had quit my job at a lovely art gallery just months earlier; I knew I wanted to do something that was more “my thing” and I was longing to work with kids again… but I left without a back-up.
The Awakening event announcement came into my inbox via Hawaii Health Guide and I was intrigued by those involved with HUB; folks I admired like Jack Canfield, Michael Bernard Beckwith and Barbara Marx Hubbard. None of them were in attendance but others I’ve come to love were (Janet Attwood, Faith Rivera, Charlie Stuart Gay, Lynn Rose and Rev. Karen Russo to name a few).
At the event I met local singer-songwriter Howard Shaprio of Recycle Hawaii and Performing and Fine Artists for World Peace. Less than a week later I was sharing a pidgin spoken word piece with teens at Pahoa High School! Since then I’ve made over 10 presentations with Howard and Recycle Hawaii’s Artists In The Environment Program all over East Hawaii.
Hand analyst Baeth Davis’ Life Purpose Soul Summit took place in Las Vegas early June 2009. Just reading the phrase “Soul Summit”, I knew I had to be there. At first I had little interest in the Hand Analysis that was included with the ticket. When I got my reading upon checking in I was floored. The message in my hands was “Big-Shot Innovative Spiritual Teacher” and the career in coaching I’d been considering was affirmed as well; whoa!
That weekend I some AMAZING women, many of whom I still keep in touch with. Vrinda Norman was my roommie, Heather Dominick became my first coach and I discovered Kendall Summerhawk’s brother in law was my aforementioned friend Howard! Other notable ladies I met: Heather Gray of Soul-Filled Life, Katrina Sawa of Jumpstart Your Marketing and Shirley Sukhanil. What happens in Vegas doesn’t stay there…
Two weeks later, I did end up meeting both Jack Canfield and Michael Bernard Beckwith (along with Rickie Byers Beckwith on my Birthday) at my second HUB event, Actioning Your Brilliance, this time in San Francisco. My dear friend Nachhi Rhandawa and I met for the first time in person too! She did really well capturing the moment with photos of us with other luminaries like Danish Ahmed, Freddie Ravel, Cynthia Kersey and Spryte Loriano.
The most recent noteworthy event was Max Simon’s Sold Out Seminar Secrets in San Diego last October, 2010. Another show stopper, no doubt! I met several new friends who are now clients of mine and cried three times (mainly tears of JOY)! Some of the lovelies I met were Vinca von Muhlenberg, Elizabeth Purvis, Kendra Thornbury, Kate Harrington, Tanya Laurin, Heather Vaughn and Esperanza Universal. (BTW, I found out about this event by being on Baeth Davis’ list).
The point I want to get across by sharing this with you is that you never know who you’re going to meet at an event and how they might help bring forth the next amazing experience in your life and vice versa. If you aren’t able to travel for an event that catches you eye, start one of your own in your local area! Be specific about the type of people you want there, the experience and transformation attendees will receive and have your friends and colleagues help promote it!
What fun, amazing events have you been to and who did you meet there? Do tell…
Aloha! Yesterday I found an amazing post on Personal Branding written by Dan Fonseca of www.whoisdanfonseca.com that I’m re-posting here, paired down along with my additional comments in italics. Dan generously agreed to allow me to do this; Mahalo Dan!
As member of the Be Your Brilliance community I know you are moved to share more of yourSelf with more people so you can make an even greater contribution to others. The Internet is THE place to share of yourSelf when you’re ready to step-up your game and fully claim your Brilliance on the world stage.
Although Dan’s post was written with job seekers looking to be hired in mind his suggestions are relevant even for us trail-blazers who are moved to Co-Create lives of difference and be of Loving Service. Enjoy and please post questions in the comments below!
So what is your personal brand? Well it could mean a lot of things but I tend to think of it as a window into a person’s heart and mind. An opportunity to learn their passions, beliefs and ideas.
A traditional brand carries ideology, missions, stories and images; a personal brand is no different. We must be willing to showcase ourselves and what easier way to do it than online using social media?
Social media has revolutionized our world and it gives you the tools you need often for free. Having a blog, Twitter account, Flickr page and/or any other social media profile lets you communicate who you really are in a different light. Depending on what you want to communicate, you may want to consider a few social media sites.
Blogs
Probably your best asset out of the bunch. With tons of customizable templates and platforms, you really can’t go wrong. I personally use WordPress but Tumblr and Blogger are also solid options. With a blog you can easily communicate who you are. Think of it as your living, breathing, adaptive, and always current resume.
Twitter
The benefits are almost identical to the blog but as you can imagine they are simply communicated in smaller doses at a more frequent pace. Using Twitter in conjunction with a blog helps paint a beautiful picture of the type of person you are not to mention promote your posts. As they say, links are the soul of the Internet, it’s no different for your online personal brand.
Other Social Media Sites
Depending on the nature of your career and passions, other social media sites can be appropriate. Are you a graphic designer or a photographer? Flickr is the perfect addition to your ensemble. MySpace or BandCamp are good for musicians and Quora or TED is ideal for the thinkers out there. Put a nice bow on it and create a profile on LinkedIn, this will help aggregate yourself professionally and make it easy for the potential employers to find and discover you and your personal brand.
Overall, the personal brand will be critical moving forward. Use the Internet to your advantage and illustrate the kind of person you are. Are you creative? Have a technological side? A closet economics buff? Having yourself out there makes future opportunities more available and networking simple. Help companies (clients and customers) make sure they are picking the right person and have a personality before you walk into the door. Who knows, you may gain an audience in the process! Go forth and brand!
Here’s a link to Dan’s original guest post in it’s entirety http://reviewzntips.blogspot.com/2011/03/building-personal-brand.html. Learn more about Dan’s blog Synapses here.
If you’re looking for assistance in forwarding your mission and personal brand in service to Being Your Brilliance more fully, contact me for a complementary Get-to-Know Strategy Session at: dewi@generationnextsummit.com
Dewi here, super excited to introduce a monthly interview series I’ll be featuring here on the BeYourBrilliance.com blog. The name of the series, Talking Story With, refers to a term we use here in Hawaii when conversing with friends: “Talk Story”.
A written interview format is one of my favorite ways of showcasing the Brilliance of folks I’m inspired by and for the first installment of the series I am honored to present singer-songwriter and all around fabulous woman McCall Erickson!
I’ve yet to met McCall in person but from the moment we first encountered each other on Facebook we instantly connected. I simply LOVE her authenticity! It’s my honor to introduce you to Talking Story With McCall Erickson…
How did you get started on this path and how have you managed to sustain yourself through the ups and downs of your journey?
From a young age, I’ve been on a quest for truth–my true self, my true life, my true path. But I’d say my deepest awakening started when I was 18. And you know how awakening looks sometimes. It’s not pretty. I went through addiction, an eating disorder, suicidal depression, losing relationship after relationship, losing my beloved childhood religion, basically all the familiar life structures and paths fell away. But I followed this all through. I got the help, recovery and healing I needed. I bless all these things because they were cries of my soul that woke me up. The suffering itself helped me realize I didn’t have to suffer.
Of course personal growth is an on-going process, and my “truth” has shifted over time as my path reveals and re-reveals itself to me. The mysterious shifting and amazing beauty of the path itself is what sustains me. I live in the face of the unknown, as many of us do these days. Once I made friends (and lovers) with the mystery, life got a lot easier and super delicious.
Tell us about the inspiration behind your music and the message you share.
Ah, the music! I’ve always loved music, but I never considered myself a musician, and I never thought I’d be doing it for my life’s work. I started writing songs “accidentally” during one of those dark nights of my soul that I mentioned above. It was a sink or swim moment. On the brink of suicide, I found myself sitting on my bed with a guitar that I’d always had but never learned to play. A song came out. Then another and another. Now there are dozens. Dozens of songs that I’ve written and sung to bring my soul back home—back to my true path.
Over time, my songs have woven themselves into my life’s work and message. That message is to bring joy, courage, beauty and love into the face of the unknown. I call this Loving Life At The Edge.
What is most rewarding to you about music and how has it transformed your life for the better?
It’s very simple. Music saved my life. And the rewarding thing is seeing the songs that saved my life and brought my soul home do the same for other people. Music reaches a universal soul level that changes people. Being part of that creates a circle of love and healing that is unmatched anywhere else in my life.
What is it about living a creative life that most excites you?
There are no boundaries, no rules, no secrets that you have to be privy to when living creatively. It’s sheer imagination. Molding from the ground up. This is scary for some people, and in the beginning it was for me too. But, again, that’s where my work lies: helping people see that where the comfort zone of the known rules and boundaries ends is where life begins!
What suggestions for living a more fulfilled and joyous life do you have to share with us?
To me, living joyously is showing up for whatever life brings me. I need my down times as much as I need the up times, quiet times as much as loud. I am here to be a whole person. I want the whole experience. So I always maintain a curious attitude. I inquire, I explore, I wonder and I meet life where it meets me! No matter how hard it gets, I follow every experience through to the end and extract as much joy, beauty and love as I can from it. Also, I have this deal with myself that I seem to have made even before this life, and that is to follow my true path and true voice no matter where it takes me. Again, not always easy, but for me it’s where the truest joy is!
Tell us about current projects that you’re working on.
I started an online community through Facebook called Loving Life At The Edge for all people wanting to connect, create beauty, embrace life and blaze their own unique soul paths in the face of the unknown. Our Universal consciousness is increasing rapidly, which brings many of us to the edge of old ways, old life patterns, old horizons more often than before. I see this as our opportunity for unprecedented growth on a soul level. Now is our time. This is my small part, my contribution to the Universal work at this time.
Also, I started a program called “Writing Your Song” where I create custom songs for people using their words and their stories in order to guide, comfort, aid in transformation, facilitate personal discovery, celebrate significant life passages and encircle them with love and truth at their specific places on the path. This work is incredible, makes me giddy and brings me great joy. It’s just me taking what I learned to do with my own songwriting and using it in the same way to help others.
How can we learn more about you and get in contact with you?
My website www.McCallErickson.com is my home base. I always update it with new projects, new songs and offerings etc. I also interact, muse and connect daily at
Be Your Brilliance 