ItStartsWith.Us

The Birth of ItStartsWith.Us – In 5 Minutes

2010-07-28T15:16:27Z

Last month I was invited to speak at the People Report Summer Camp conference down in Dallas, where I got the chance to talk to a lot of cool companies about new and innovative ways to mobilize their people to give back and make a meaningful difference in the lives of those they serve.

The bulk of my time since this event has been spent in two ways: expanding the Love Bomb idea (with the help of the amazing Lauren Lankford) and building out the business applications of ItStartsWith.Us. I’ll talk more about the business stuff soon, but for today I thought you might like to see the 5-minute introduction to my talk/workshop at the conference.

It’s in Pecha Kucha / Ignite style, which means there are 20 slides at 15 seconds each – and I can’t control them. They start, and I talk.

Enjoy.

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If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment below or subscribing to ItStartsWith.Us to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. If you want to hear my inane, uncensored ramblings, you may Follow me on Twitter. Thanks!

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My Contribution to the “Life in a Day” Film Project

2010-07-25T00:49:21Z

I’m enjoying doing these little videos. Five minutes, one take, all said and done. And I just get to talk about stuff, instead of sitting there trying to come up with the perfect way to say it.

Good stuff.

If you want to learn more about the “Life in a Day” project, you can check it out here. Thanks to all of you for enabling me to do something I love each and every day – I truly appreciate it.Similar Posts:

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My First Video Post

2010-07-22T00:01:44Z

One take, guys. No edits. This is how I’m gonna do it.

And so it begins.

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Love Bomb Update, And A Challenge.

2010-07-14T15:51:13Z

Last week we dropped a Love Bomb on Laura. She is an art journalism student and an oil painter, and she is slowly going blind. I am still choked up about this. Maybe it’s that she’s dealing with my greatest fear, maybe that she’s an art student like me, maybe it’s simply that she’s an absolutely gorgeous young woman losing her ability to see beautiful things. Maybe I’m still stumbling over her gracious humility in having to take the bus, and shower with her eyes closed.

Regardless, reading Laura’s blog reminded me how temporary this world is, and called me out on the unworthy weight I give to what I see.

Laura, this is a thank you for being faithful. You get it. You understand the world, your Maker, your purpose. It takes most of us a lifetime to come to this place, and I would argue that you see things more clearly than we do.

Our Love Bomb team left over 160 comments on Laura’s blog last week, and left her overwhelmed. In her words, “I had a truly difficult night last night, mostly due to family stuff and an especially emotionally trying day dealing with eye stuff. Those come up infrequently now, but yesterday happened to be such a day. I was shocked, and then incredibly loved and touched, reading all the comments… many of which brought tears to my eyes. It could not have been done on a more perfect day. I will be reaping the blessings of this love bomb for a long, long time to come.”

- – -

To the rest of you, the world needs you. I have a challenge. Who are you leading? Who is behind you? Who has acted out this week because you challenged them? There are hundreds of thousands more people like Laura that are in desperate need of encouragement and the strength of a community behind them.

Today, I ask you to find a project to expand. Be responsible for growing an established movement. Love Bomb is one of these movements, and there are others. Operation Beautiful is one that we will be partnering with for this week’s Love Bomb Mission. Operation Beautiful is a collection of thousands of people on a mission to end self-negativity. They leave post-it’s in various places with encouraging notes reminding whoever stumbles upon them that they are beautiful. I am thrilled for our joint mission with them as we combine our efforts to remind a girl this week that she is truly loved and beautiful.

If you want to help grow Love Bomb, comment here or get a hold of me on Twitter (@laurenlankford). There are easy, easy ways to go one step further and drastically expand the reach of our Love Bombs within minutes. I am more than happy to give you the suggestions and tools.

Please, don’t be passive. When something tugs at your heartstrings, re-blog it. Re-tweet it. Share the fan page on Facebook with your friends. Forward an email. Tell someone. 2010 has made it easy for you.

I love you all – thank you again, Love Bomb team, for all that you’ve done.

LaurenSimilar Posts:

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Even In Sickness, Hope

2010-07-12T14:42:26Z

A few weeks ago I put out a request to the ISWU team asking if anyone would be interested in writing an article or two for this blog. One of the responses was from Aniela, a 19-year-old college student. Today I’d like to give her the opportunity to share her thoughts.

Everyone becomes ill at some time or another; it’s a fact of life. A common cold is bad enough, but a major illness can be debilitating, both physically and emotionally. It can be hard watching someone you love suffer and it’s just as hard going through it yourself. My younger sister and I were born with Situs Inversus Totalis (all of our internal organs are on the opposite sides – like a mirror image) and Kartagener’s Syndrome (Immotile cilia – the cilia in the body does not function properly). I’ve had an interesting nineteen years of life so far, but this past year was especially hard.

It was my first year of college, two hours from home on a campus in the middle of nowhere; my paternal great-grandmother passed away, most likely from heart problems; my maternal grandmother was hospitalized and is now pretty much homebound as a result; and my sister was also sent to the hospital due to complications with her Kartagener’s and a recurring bout of pneumonia. Because of all the stress and my already weak immune system, sleep was infrequent and I was getting sick a lot.

For me, the worst part of living with Kartagner’s and Situs Inversus hasn’t been the medications or the limitations, but the guilt. I’m not a person who likes to complain, never have been. I’d much rather bite the bullet and suffer alone, then to put my burdens on someone who already has enough problems of their own. I think that was my downfall. I’ve come to realize that it’s okay to cry, it’s alright to feel low, and sometimes you have to let your emotions out. It’s impossible to keep everything bottled in without imploding.

My family, although far from perfect, is a large source of my strength. I can’t even begin to imagine how difficult it must be for my parents to raise two children with our condition and yet, they never hesitate in encouraging us in anything we want to do, no matter how ridiculous it seems at the time. My sister, likewise, is someone I look up to more than I think she realizes. Throughout my life I’ve found that the support of family and friends is irreplaceable when dealing with illness. Knowing that you have people who love you, even when you’re at your lowest, is an amazing feeling and sometimes is all you need to keep going.

Hope doesn’t always come easily, particularly when you are being bombarded not only from the outside, but the inside as well. Above all, I have found that it is usually the smallest things that give the most hope; you just have to keep your eyes and heart open. A sunrise, a song that you can connect to, the warmth of the sun after a rainy day, the first signs of spring, a baby’s smile, or a stranger who reminds you that chivalry isn’t dead after all – little things that can have an indescribable impact on someone suffering or even a person who is just not having the best of days.

Cures are amazing when they’re discovered, but in the meantime, a gentle smile and a listening ear can be just as comforting. That’s why giving back, and sites like Itstartswith.us, is so important to me. When you give back you aren’t just helping others but you’re helping yourself. Volunteering has helped me to see what I have, rather than what I don’t. It’s caused me to realize just how lucky I am. And you don’t have to do something amazingly drastic to make someone’s day. Just holding the door open or saying “Hello, you look beautiful today.” can be enough. Little things add up and slowly but surely become big things.

Even if you’re at your lowest and have been broken and shattered until all that’s left is the dust of what you once were, there’s still hope. As long as there is the tiniest of specks, there is still a chance for growth and hope, even in the darkest and sickest of days.

Photo Credit: Jhong Dizon

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Every Life Has a Story

2010-07-05T22:14:12Z

I heard about this video last month when I was down at the People Report Summer Camp conference, and it’s taken me until just now to watch it. And now that I have, I want to share it with the rest of you.

It comes from Chick-fil-A, and I think (though I’m not 100% sure) that it was produced as an internal video to demonstrate to their employees the importance of thinking about the people they serve. Take a look:

I pulled this off the personal blog of Dan Cathy, the president of the company. When these are the kind of concepts that the company leadership is building and talking about, I think you have a really good thing going.

And not even in the business world, either. I think this video is powerful because it’s so true – and it applies anywhere. Walk into any public place in the world. Glance around for a minute and realize that stories like this are all around us. And we have an opportunity with each and every interaction to add to that story.

For some people, the smile you give them while talking may be the only measure of positive human emotion they get all day. When you go out of your way to do a small favor for someone, it could literally be the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for them. Think about that this week as you walk through your life. You have the ability to make a profound impact on those around you, no matter how small your actions may be. And when we change lives, we change the world.

Go to it.

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Overcoming the Intimidation of Volunteering

2010-07-05T14:10:35Z

The people I work with at SnagAJob.com volunteer – a lot. No really, my co-workers volunteer like it’s going out of style – giving their time, money and sometimes even their bodies (in a legal way) to dozens of charities. Some of them have even started their own organizations just so they would have more opportunities to volunteer.

“Oh my.” I thought when I first started working here. “I am SO out of my league.”

It’s not like I was a stranger to volunteering either. My mother (named “volunteer of the year” by her community) taught me the importance of giving back. I volunteered all through high school at the Red Cross, our elementary school and for a youth group. In college, I tutored disadvantaged kids, was a rape crisis counselor and volunteered my time at a domestic violence shelter. Right? I freakin’ know how to volunteer.

And yet, when faced with a group of amazing volunteers – I froze (at least the part of me that volunteers did). I admit it, I was intimidated. It was like having Heidi Klum stand next to you in a photo. Oh sure, you might be pretty any other day, but stick her next to you and all of a sudden you start looking more like Sloth from the “Goonies.”

How are you supposed to compete with that?

Here’s the thing. When it comes to helping others, you don’t have to (modeling, however, is another story). Giving of yourself, no matter how infrequent or how small you think it is, makes a difference. You just have to do it.

So the next time you find yourself intimidated by super-volunteers, remember this. Each one of them started out with zero volunteer hours. Each one of them is doing something small to make the world better. And each one of them is not you.

Something you do today could change someone’s life.

So what are you waiting for?

Photo Credit: ground.zero

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A Busy Week

2010-07-01T15:52:45Z

The Love Bomb team

This is not gonna be one of those posts that gets you all emotional and teary-eyed. So if you’re looking for your daily dose of inspiration, head on over to GivesMeHope, okay?

I’ve been super quiet on the blog front lately, and I want you to know that I’m working on that problem. I now have five or six people who will be writing articles for ISWU, so watch for those as they come up. Right underneath the title of the post you’ll see the date and the author, in case you’re wondering who wrote a certain piece.

On Saturday I hopped in the car and drove down to Ohio/Kentucky for a week of project launches, big ideas, and no sleep. Here’s what went down:

Saturday I arrived in Columbus, Ohio to meet Lauren Lankford in person for the first time. This is her main site. But if you want to get a little better feel for who she is, check out her latest blog post.

That’s how cool she is. So is it any wonder that I chose her to lead the first ISWU spinoff project, Love Bomb? Yeah, that launched this week. The two of us spent the weekend working on it together (that’s us in the pic up top). With Love Bomb up and running and safely in Lauren’s hands, I left Columbus for my next stop: Dayton, OH.

Dayton was just a quick afternoon pit stop in order to say hi to someone who’s been a friend and member of ISWU from the very beginning: Krista Sheehan. That drive was so nice, guys. When I drove the 9 hours down to Columbus, it was 93 degrees and humid as all get-out. My car has 200,000 miles, no AC, no cruise control, and a radio that works . . . sometimes. It was pretty gross. The drive to Dayton was only 1.5 hours, though, and it had cooled down to about 80. Gorgeous driving weather.

So I hung out with Krista and her husband Will for the afternoon, and got a chance to connect in person with someone who’s meant a lot to me over the last year. I love doing that . . . it’s the whole reason I extend my business trips by a day or two each time, and a big reason why I drive instead of fly. Making those personal connections, not just online, is really important to me. Oh, want a picture of that too? Here you go.

I left Dayton after we ate supper (yes, supper) and hit the road on down to Lexington, KY. That’s where I met up with my girl Amanda Hite and the Talent Revolution team for three days of work, planning and fun. You may have noticed that we kicked it off with the fun Random Acts of Awesomeness Day, where we spent some time sending meaningful messages to the important people in our lives. I shot so many videos, I got tired of hearing myself talk. But yeah, it was great. Oh, want a picture of that too? Here’s command central.

Amanda and I are talking through a number of topics, not the least of which include building clarity around the purpose and principles of our respective endeavors, architecting the brand and business models behind them, and working up our strategic plans for growth.

Oh! Almost forgot – I finally got the new ISWU team platform launched this week as well. We had a slight delay, which I apologize for, but now we’re good to go. It’s not perfect yet, but it’s getting close to the vision I’ve had for a long time with this project. It’s a place for all of us to come together and get connected with each other, keep track of our weekly missions, and build meaningful relationships centered around the concept of micro-giving and making a difference.

If you’re already a team member and want to jump in, check your email for a link. If you’re not on the team yet, you can sign up here.

I’ve also been working with an awesome company in Chicago over the past week to form a cool partnership and launch our biggest “Change the World” mission yet. Stay tuned for more info on that, hopefully next week sometime.

Um, I think that’s all for now. It’s a busy week, but much good is being done here. Pretty soon I’ll start telling you guys about some of the plans for this project in the near term – I really think you’ll like them.

I’m around and working today; feel free to drop a line or two in the comments. I love hearing from you guys.Similar Posts:

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2010-07-01T15:17:39Z

It starts with us to help others, to love and give, to have that beautiful, always calm, real good compassion. However, in order to have pure compassion for others you must have compassion for yourself. It is simple to get caught up in the messy memory web realization entanglement of ‘should’. I should have worked out this morning. I shouldn’t have said that. I should be more outgoing. So we become enraptured with the past and future and forget about the now. Now is the best moment of your life because it is happening right now.

It wasn’t until my freshman year at college that I was truly able to befriend myself. During the first few weeks of school my roommate would return to our room drunk and crying about a boy in a tracksuit from the first floor that was breaking her heart. Seeing her hurt, hurt me so, I focused all of my energy on being there for her. I convinced myself that I should stay up until 4 a.m. telling her that she was pretty, talented and a good person. I meant all of these things, but the mornings would wake us up after a few hours of sleep and I was mentally drained. Unable to pay attention in class, my dedication to schoolwork weakened.

As the weeks progressed her outbreaks intensified and we no longer had equal conversations as our time together revolved around her problems. I wanted to help her. I thought, “I am a good person I should help her,” but in that process I forgot about myself. I was her friend, but not my own as I would tell her precisely what she wanted to hear instead of being honest. I could not truly be a good friend because I was not being honest with myself. I needed to be my friend first. I had stop being upfront with myself, disregarding necessary things like time alone, or being kind to myself. I decided to give myself time to meditate, read, do yoga and simple actions to let my energy balance out so that when she would come to me, I could be level-headed and not feel as if I had sacrificed so much of myself.

Having compassion for yourself is being able to step back from the situation and look at how you are reacting. Are you getting irritated with those around you because of their actions or is it because you have not gotten a full night sleep in days? Do you find yourself jealous of someone’s fortune because you think you deserve it or because you have not provided yourself with time to cultivate that talent?

If you want to do good, feel good, be good you must remember that you are good.

Don’t forget to love yourself first. The moments where we love ourselves pierce through the sadness and when you truly sparkle every one else can feel the light.Similar Posts:

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Join the Love Bomb Team. NOW.

2010-06-29T19:26:49Z

Alright, everyone. The time has come.

For the last several months I have been (somewhat) holding my tongue about a new project I am very, very excited to be a part of. And I want ALL of you guys to participate.

I have been working with Nate at ItStartsWith.Us on the Love Bomb project, and this week is the big release. The concept is simple. We change the lives of those desperately needing hope, love, care, & encouragement – together, once a week, for five minutes.

We are all busy, I know this. But the next time someone asks you what you’re doing with your life, I bet your answer isn’t “cleaning up,” “going grocery shopping” or “sitting at a desk.” I know that all of you want something More.

A homeless man asked me a couple days ago what my life objective was, and without hesitation I replied, “to love people.” It’s taken me a long time to get here. To the place where that is my default answer, where it comes naturally. Yes I want to get married, yes I want to live where I want to live, there are activities and careers that I dream about. But what do I want to do with my life? Love people.

And it’s a genuine fight to fit what you’re doing with your life into your daily routine.

This is why I’m pouring a good chunk of every day into Love Bomb, and why I am the new Team Leader for the project. I want to help you fit what you truly care about into your daily or weekly routine. So please, put your name and email into the little box below, and every week when you get the email linking you to someone who desperately needs to be reminded that that love is real, take 5 minutes to do something about it. I want to see all of you grow into the place where you are content to simply respond, “I want to love people” when you are asked what you’re doing with your life.

Come on guys, you are bloggers. This is what we do. We comment to show our love.

website | @dropalovebomb

And welcome to the Love Bomb Team.

- Lauren
@laurenlankford

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