If you’re in the majority like me , you’re part of the 86 percent of folks who are feeling election anxiety. That factoid is thanks to a survey conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA) and Harris Poll. According to those sources, the stress is due to the uncertainty surrounding the outcome.

As a former TV reporter, I know there is more good news than bad out there. I truly believe that there are more good humans than bad on this planet, even though what you read and hear may not reflect this fact.

So besides staying away from excessive TV watching and limiting my time on social media, here are some things I’m doing tonight to calm myself. I hope they help you calm yo’ self too, boo.

Take Action

1. Make plans to keep yourself busy. Take a walk, organize a distanced Zoom dinner or work on a DIY project. We all find pleasure and distractions from different activities, so you do you, boo! Read, write, craft, garden, exercise (motion is lotion, lol), watch mindless TV or enjoy a funny comedy.

2. News breaks. Speaking of TV, reduce your time consuming news and social media. ’Nuff said.

3. Connect with your tribe. In times when I’m feeling my highest highs and lowest lows, I call on my peeps to share and commiserate. I remember when Barack Obama won his first presidential election, I gathered at a bar with friends as the results came in and history was made.

Last year, we had a potluck at a friend’s home. This year, let’s be COVID-19 clear. I’ll be chillin’ at home and will probably do some FaceTimes and calls with my beloved. Support groups are the best and help relieve stress internally and externally.

4. Gratitude: You’ve heard the saying “darkness doesn’t live where light exists.” Likewise, fear and anxiety can’t take up the same space as gratitude. Count your blessings and pass them on to others.

5. Sharing is caring: Do something kind for a neighbor or friend. I’m giving some succulent plants I’ve grown to neighbors tomorrow!

6. VOTE. Like your life and the planet depend on it.

Lemme know your thoughts and share in the comments or tag me @toanlamtv & @goinspirego.

See you on the other side!

Be safe, sane and good to yourself and remember to do a kind deed for someone else.

Love ya,
Toan

The post How to Calm Yo-self: The 2020 Election Edition appeared first on Go Inspire Go.

Marianna has shared about how while struggles can bring us to our knees, they can also teach us some of the most important life lessons: humility, compassion and empathy — if we are open to it.

I know that the pandemic’s pause has forced me to focus on what truly matters in life. While you, me, we are facing unique challenges, we’re all facing a new set of seemingly insurmountable struggles collectively. However, I learned from my chat with Marianna that if we learn from the struggles, we won’t waste the lessons and opportunities they’re here to teach us.

When you watch this, I invite you to pause and think about these questions:
1. What are you struggling with?
2. How can you show kindness to yourself during difficult situations?
3. Are you wasting your suffering/struggle?

Take Action

I believe that all challenges are here to teach us something. The more painful the situation, the bigger the lesson, it seems. I once heard Oprah say, “Turn your wounds into wisdom.”

Now that you’ve watched my video diary, write in your own diary or on a piece of paper the aforementioned questions and be honest with yourself:
1. What are you struggling with?
2. How can you show kindness to yourself during difficult situations?
3. Are you wasting your suffering/struggle?

After you answer these questions, think about what you’ve learned. What are you grateful for?

For example, one of my biggest struggles was losing four family members in about a year’s time. Looking back, I don’t wish that grief and pain on anybody. However, I’m grateful how death has taught me to live life to the fullest. Death taught me that life is short and not promised, so worrying about what I can’t control will only steal away precious moments of my life.

These words and this exercise have been healing and cathartic. Please share your thoughts and tag me at @toanlamtv or @goinspirego on social!

To learn more about Marianna Cacciatore or to work with her visit mariannacacciatore.com.

#TooBlessedToBeStressed

Grateful for you,
Toan

The post Are You Wasting Your Struggle? appeared first on Go Inspire Go.

I need a detox.

My social media feed, personal conversations and exchanges on the streets echo the same sentiments. We’re tired. Sick and tired. We’re terrified. I get it. The day after the election, I went to my Facebook feed to find solace, but as I got sucked into all the negativity, anxious feelings seeped in again.

Tears flowed as I saw images of swastikas and heard stories of hate crimes on the rise (post election) and kids telling parents they’re scared they might have to pack up and leave the comforts of their home. One openly gay millennial posted on FB that he is scared for his safety and his rights to love openly. He asked for some words of comfort to calm his anxiety.

In the face of this, we have two options:
1. Be part of the change and spread light in the world.
2. Be part of the problem and fester in the dark.

I choose to move forward.

I am sick and tired of being sick and tired.

Here are several things I did to get myself out of what I call the #PostElectionPTSD:

1. Be of service: Many folks tell me they feel helpless. We all have the power to shift that energy.

I reached out to a few people I mentor who felt mired in depression. We spent time simply talking about their feelings and mine. It turns out trying to help them has helped me even more!

Still at a loss at what you can do? Put your money where your mouth is. Donations to organizations like the ACLU and Planned Parenthood have spiked since the election, so donate to causes you care about!

2. Spend time doing more of what you love. What brings you joy? Reading? Exercising? Binge watching a Netflix flick? Do it!

I love cooking, writing, designing (see flowers on right), spending time with loved ones and yoga. Actually, I’m going to yoga tonight at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco — yes, yoga in church! It’s a special session taught by renowned instructor Darren Main and the benefits go to Yoga for Change to benefit at-risk youth! All we have to do is show up with a mat and donate $20. Double yeah!

3. Gratitude. Counting and writing down the things you’re grateful for rewires your brain to look for them and brings awareness to all the awesomeness in your life.

4. Sing, laugh & dance. No explanation needed. My guilty pleasure is Googling “Adele news” to see what’s up with my favorite chanteuse. Sounds creepy, I know, but HELLO, how can you not love her?

5. Share kindness/kind news. The first thing I did after the election was write this bloggity: “The KIND of America I see.”

Now it’s your turn — let’s flood people’s social media feeds with positivity.

I started to feel better when I saw this Instagram post:

Calling all creatives: get creating! I had an idea and a challenge as I deal with this #PostElectionPTSD. I’m a creator. If I’m not creating, arranging, writing or doing something creative, I feel stifled. It also helps me relieve stress.

So write, design or create something that brings light into the world and share it with your network and me! Alternatively, I urge you to share something positive you’ve experienced or heard on your social feed or in real life. Would love to spread the kindness y’all are seeing: Tag me: #PostElectionPTSD @toanlamtv @goinspirego

If you’re sick and tired of being sick and tired, let’s change what we see, say and think. According to a study by the University of British Columbia, good news results in better people.

I believe this so much, I left my successful TV news career seven years ago to discover and share positive stories — and their impacts have been more uplifting than any storybook out there. We all have the power to spread light.

Please take a moment to share your light with me. Together, let’s set the internet on fire with kindness, compassion and love. Don’t forget to share the good you’re seeing in the world with me! #PostElectionPTSD @toanlamtv @goinspirego

Onward and upward,
Toan

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The post A Call for Creative Lights in Wake of Post-Election PTSD appeared first on Go Inspire Go.

Breathe deeply and with each deep breath say it with me three times… and it will change your chemistry… and your life:

I am complete.

I am complete.

I am complete.

This seems to be the mantra and thread throughout many conversations with friends lately… that we are enough. Truth is we were born enough. This isn’t some “aha” revelation that I came up with because I’m a spiritual superstar (which I think we all are — some of you just don’t know it yet). It’s been taught in many religions, including Buddhism, where the core belief is searching for enlightenment.

I recently reconnected with a friend who seems to have it all. Professionally, she’s worked as an international correspondent and is currently a network anchor. Personally, she has a beautiful family, lives in one of the prettiest neighborhoods in America, has a handsome hubby and a gorgeous little girl. To add to the package, she is good looking, has mad style and then, there’s her light. Wow. Her light.

I was shocked to find out that recently things seemed to have crumbled beneath her designer heels. She split with her husband, work has been uncertain because she isn’t locked into a contract (what workplace doesn’t have uncertainty?) and her spirit seemed low the last time we spoke on the phone.

When I met up with her, she had a lightness around her energy. Her aura was clear as though she had just finished a long yoga sesh. Why? We both agreed that we are complete and are always on the right path, even if it seems like the wrong path at the time.

Traversing these routes shows us the way to life lessons, blessings and miracles that unfold through the grace which is our life, our breath, our connectedness to one another. We talked about our lives and how far we’ve come in our personal, professional and spiritual paths. We agreed that no matter who you are, even Oprah in all of her Oprah-ness, she sometimes, I believe, still has days where she, too, doesn’t think she is as complete as she is (although she seems mighty close to complete). That I know for sure.

The truth is, thanks to ego, we seem to think we are never enough. Release that thought when it comes and instead, live in gratitude — that is the true meaning of grace. If you’re feeling way off your path, like your dreams aren’t unfolding as you think they should, here are three spiritual snackables to nibble on:

1. Anxiety is wanting to be where you’re not. Guess what? Even after I achieved ALL my dreams at an early age — TV reporter in a big market, co-host for a PBS show and instructor at the university level — I still felt like I hadn’t arrived. First I thought, “Will I ever get a paid TV reporting gig?” Then after achieving that I wondered if and when I would jump to a bigger city. “What now, what next?” That’s the ego talking. Be OK with the now. How? Start by breathing. It will chemically change the way you feel and shift your perspective.

2. Don’t compare yourself with others. It’s futile. We are all on different legs of our journeys. My friend mentioned that sometimes she got caught up in comparing herself with others, their jobs, buying luxury homes, having more children, etc…. I told her that I learned long ago not to compare — it wastes energy. I remember quitting my first TV job in Wisconsin to take care of my father who was battling cancer. I thought to myself, “This feels right, but my friends are jumping to bigger TV markets and I am so far behind.” Guess what? I got back into the biz a couple of years later and landed in San Francisco, the No. 5 market at the time, before the friends I was compared myself to did. I realized that it didn’t matter that I got here before them and it doesn’t matter that I’m out of the biz now. We all are being guided by something greater. We can’t control timing. Just be here enjoying what is….

3. You are complete. Born complete. Start by writing a gratitude list. It doesn’t matter if you’re on your last dime. You have something to be grateful for. Maybe it’s the check coming your way when you didn’t expect it. Or a loved one who loaned you money to pay rent. Begin with your breath. If you’re alive, you’re blessed. You’ll see before your eyes how real your completeness is. A few days ago, I was inspired to go to my rooftop and practice yoga. I joined Oprah and Deepak Chopra’s 21-day meditation challenge, “Manifesting Grace Through Gratitude.” That day’s entry was perfect for this lesson on being complete and grateful for what we have now:

Day 3 — Awaken the Energy of Gratitude

“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.” –Karl Barth

In today’s meditation, we learn how to recharge our gratitude batteries. If we are tired, upset, or stressed, then our heart is closed and we are not able to feel or express real gratitude. Genuine gratitude comes from a feeling of contentment, safety, and being welcomed in your life — what Buddha called the “gladdened heart.” This natural energy of gratitude is awakened when we meditate. Our intention in meditation will be to invite this warm attitude of appreciation into our awareness and perception. With this recharged heart of thankfulness we will find reason to be grateful wherever we look.

If you do all three exercises, you too will feel the shift. Nothing else has really changed around you, but something is changing within you. Honor this moment. The only thing that is real. You are complete. You are complete. You are complete.

Onward and upward,
Toan

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The post The Complete Guide to You appeared first on Go Inspire Go.

From divorces to uncertain times at the workplace, I’ve had many friends confide in me recently about physical, mental and spiritual problems they’re blessed with. While the issues and life lessons are different — there is an underlying theme here: these problems are making them stronger. There are life lessons to be learned and ultimately I’ve told them we are are too blessed to be stressed.

Here’s an email I sent to one of my friends who is going through personal and professional tribulations as I processed a recent call:

1. Write down five things you’re grateful for every night. It will rewire your brain to pay attention to the lovely little things in life that really matter. Start with Bella’s gaze into your eyes and excitement when she sees you after a long day of work.

2. It’s YOU time. Do something nice for yourself every day. Phenomenal, fabulous, stylish — lovely you. I believe friends are like mirrors that shine the light you emanate back at you. Every time I think of you, I think, “She’s got mad style, sexy, fabulous, classy lady, good heart and wicked smart. Anyone who is lucky enough to be in your life and heart space is better for it, blessed for it.”

3. You are blessed with breath. Listen to your breath when you get stressed to bring you in the now. If you live in the past you’re filled with regret. Live in the future and you are anxious. We have no choice but to live in the now. Try it and it will calm those crazy nerves.

This too shall pass. I wish I could take a bit of the pain and hurt away — but like the little butterfly, you need to sit with these challenges as they are teaching you invaluable life lessons about yourself, the light and shadows.

Be well my fabulous friend.

Big hug,
Toan

P.S. Please share with someone in need and let us know in the comments section how a challenging time has blessed your life.

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The post Too Blessed to be Stressed appeared first on Go Inspire Go.

I’ve never really made New Year’s resolutions. But last year, I resolved to do one thing that changed me (from the inside out) every day of 2012.

I finally got around to keeping a journal — why did I wait so long?!

It’s not just one of these woo woo journals for the sake of saying you keep a journal. Instead of a sole gratitude journal, I started an evidence/gratitude journal — inspired by two people, one of whom I know, another who I will know or at least meet one day: Devyn Rush and Oprah Winfrey.

I’ve always been a fan of Oprah and have always kept her crusade to inspire folks to keep a gratitude journal in the back of my mind. It sat on the back burner until December 19th of 2011 — that’s when I finally lit the flame.

An inferno of miracles ensued.

I always thought, why keep a journal? I am present now, enjoying the now already. Well, what I realized is that this is where the magic happens — when you actually put them down on paper, effervescence happens… your thoughts manifest into something tangible, something real.

My friend Devyn Rush, a former American Idol contestant who is also a national spokesperson for Hey U.G.L.Y., a bully prevention organization, told me about this journal, “Building the Best You.” If you get the privilege to know Devyn, you will walk away feeling reenergized by her infectious positive energy. At her behest, I decided to finally put pen to paper and took the penning plunge promise. My goal was to write in it everyday — I knew this would be a big feat for me because I get bored easily — but I’m proud to say I did it. Woo hoo. And whoa! Wee. Wow.

This viscerally changed me from the inside out.

What’s the difference between a gratitude journal and an evidence journal? The evidence part is when you log what you did for the day — then the gratitude part is when you write down things that unfolded that you’re grateful for.

Everyday I wrote down what I did that day, then at least five things that I was grateful for. The Building the Best You journal is a two year journal, each page is split in half. The left fold is year one, the right fold, year two.

I remember Oprah saying, “Some days I’d be grateful for seeing a squirrel in the park.” And boy wasn’t that the truth. She’s right, it doesn’t matter how simple something seemed or the lack of things you felt grateful for, it’s the fact that you’ve put this gratitude exercise into practice. And like a muscle that is put into action, I’ve become more aware and conscious of the beauty surrounding my life everyday. My favorite author, Eckhart Tolle, calls this “awareness.”

No matter how bad my day was, I found myself grateful for the lessons that came in different ways, shapes and forms. I started searching for things that I was grateful for during my days: a phone call from a loved one, discovering yet another street-corner style hero to feature in my nonprofit, Go Inspire Go, or a walk with a friend along the pier. It became habit.

I randomly flipped through my journal a couple of nights ago and was happy to see that I was grateful for “being present” and “my breath” and feeling connected to something bigger than myself were constant themes. What a big accomplishment.

Among the highlights of things I’ve logged:

1. Being more present than ever before: to nature, people and my spirit — not the “ego” or “thinking thing” rather, what Tolle calls “the watcher” — my inner compass.
2. Connections to people. I felt like the Universe sent me personal and professional connections that continue to help me grow as a person as well as progress within my nonprofit, Go Inspire Go.
3. Realization that when you become present and surrender to the ebb and flow of life, you are open to receiving more. Gratitude begets more goodness (and things to be grateful for).

What I’ve realized is that the miracles have always been there; I just became aware that they were happening — which in turn created and ignited more miracles. That’s the law of attraction at work. Ever notice how when you start the day by saying, “This is going to be a bad or stressful day” — the universe delivers a “Terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day?” What about those days when you say, “It’s going to be a great day!”

As a kid, I always woke up thinking, “What will I learn today? Who will I meet? What will happen?” Now I go to sleep logging the days happenings, building awareness and counting my blessings. In a sense, keeping this journal brought back the child within and has taught me to unlearn certain things we’ve learned as adults and to go back to that innocent, creative, awe-filled child’s lens we all had when we were discovering the world as children.

I’m glad I finally took action to count the miracles and enjoy them fully — I’ve evolved physically, mentally and spiritually thanks to the simple five-minute exercise of keeping an evidence/gratitude journal.

Are you aware of the miracles showing up in your life everyday? Write them down and witness them multiply.

My favorite author Eckhart Tolle says that the universe conspires to help us all. “But if the shutters are closed the sunlight can not come in.”

Cheers to a new year of counting your blessings and logging the light that comes through your window.

Happy New Year — Happy New You.

Sincerely,
Toan

P.S. What can YOU do?

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The post No New Year’s Resolution, Instead One Thing That Changed EVERY DAY of My Life Last Year appeared first on Go Inspire Go.

It also doesn’t have to be fancy, expensive or time intensive. My favorite thing to receive is a handwritten thank you card. However, this time, because I love you so much — I’m going to kick it up a notch.

Thanks to my good friend and Go Inspire Go advisor, Sirima Sataman, who offered to use her amazing artistic swag to help me and the GIG team show a heartfelt thank you to those who have helped us along the way. This was perfect because GIG’s mission to inspire people to discover and use their power — talents, resources and network — to help others.

So when Sirima, founder of ink.paper.plate and an amazing artist who knows the letterpress better than I know my alphabet, offered to help me create handmade thank you cards, I had no better words to express my gratitude than “Wow.”

I hope you enjoy watching this GIG video we produced as much as we enjoyed producing it:

I honestly didn’t expect this to be such a cathartic experience. Here’s what I learned:

1. The letterpress ain’t no joke! It’s harder to do than it seems. However, Sirima did an amazing job coaching me through it. If you’d like to take a class from her, contact her through her website: InkPaperPlate.com

2. Schedule time to play. My life is crazy busy, and I’m sure yours is too. As I get older and busier, I realize that finding time to do something outside my comfort zone and enjoy is as important as cranking out the work. Amen to that!

3. Let go. Let loose. Just have fun. Ironically, I learned to unlearn protocol, strategy and color outside of the lines. In this picture you can see that the left logo was my first attempt to be perfect, in hopes of not making a mess. Sirima encouraged me to have more fun and let loose… and voila, the logo on the right is what I felt resonated with me most. I am trying to apply this to the rest of the things I do in life.

Thank YOU for watching and reading. What are your favorite ways to say “thank you”?

We want to hear from you! Please answer in the comments section below.

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The post The Best Way to Express Gratitude appeared first on Go Inspire Go.

That inspiration came in many forms: sunlight beaming through my window — as you will see, it was a beautiful, crisp San Francisco spring morning — a fresh bowl of strawberries and an early morning phone call with an old college friend, Sandy, who wanted to spontaneously drop by for a visit. A series of events led me to the theme of today’s video and blog post: Gratitude — and how it can change the trajectory of your day.

So I blog today in honor of being aware and grateful of everything around me as I go about my daily routine.

I invite you to slow down and do the same.

Back to this morning… I was surprised to hear Sandy’s familiar voice. “Toan I am quitting my job, so I thought I’d give you a call to see what you’re doing today, maybe we can hang out and catch up?” Sandy said.

After she told me that she was excited to reconnect, I replied, “First off, congrats for quitting your job and yes I’d love to hang out, it’s been a while.” It just so happened that I had no plans (which is a rarity for me because I teach four classes at the Academy of Art and run a nonprofit). No classes to teach, no meetings with anyone from my nonprofit and no conference calls. So, like a little kid who just set a playdate with a long-lost friend, I jumped at the opportunity to reconnect with Sandy.

The phone call left me feeling tingly, excited, grateful for what the day has in store. After my morning ritual of brushing my teeth, washing my face and a moment of silence, I decided to eat some strawberries before going on my morning run. The water running over my bowl of strawberries stopped me for a moment. Time suspended. I was mesmerized.

I took a moment to look at the berries, which were vibrantly red, ripe and juicy — Mother Nature’s gift. I thought to myself, “How often do we ever stop, amazed at the beauty that surrounds us during our daily journey?” The shape of the fruit, juxtaposed with the green stem — every little seed seemed perfectly crafted onto the berry. I never imagined strawberries and a phone call would cause me to pause for a moment and reflect.

After a busy week, I finally stopped once to realize, WOW, I do really have a lot to be grateful for: fresh fruit, connecting with an old friend, a morning jaunt in one most beautiful cities in the world and oh yeah, I have jobs that I love (trust me, I’ve been at many jobs that I didn’t enjoy). Teaching and inspiring a new fleet of multimedia content providers at AAU and of course, my nonprofit, Go Inspire Go, where I create videos with a call to action and inspire people to use their resources and talents to give back to the community.

So, my instinct told me to do something I’ve never done before in my life — I pulled out my flip video camera and decided I was going to document what I was grateful for during my morning jog today. Initially, I was going to keep the video for my own reference, but had such an insightful run, I decided to share it with you. It was just the same route that I take regularly, but how I felt was very different.

Just by being aware and focusing on things I was grateful for, I discovered things that I never stopped to appreciate during my daily jaunt. Come along on the journey with me and watch what I found — I hope that it inspires you to be more aware and grateful for the beauty that surrounds you.

As you watch, ask yourself, “What amazing things do I overlook every day as I go about life’s hustle and bustle?”

There were so many highlights on my run: The pure joy that emanated on little three-year-old Ethan’s face — I could literally feel the joy while watching him and his grandmother connect and laugh while running up the hill. Then there were my two new friends, Orla and Danielle, enjoying the sun at the cafe. Orla is a TV reporter with SKY TV in London. Danielle just moved into the neighborhood to attend medical school. Welcome new neighbor! Orla invited me to give her a ring when visiting across the Pond.

This euphoria you receive from being grateful isn’t just make believe. There are many health benefits when you become aware of what you’re thankful for. Prof. Robert Emmons and his colleagues conducted a research project on gratitude and thankfulness at UC Davis and found there are an abundance of benefits by being grateful.

1.) Greater Optimism and Physical Fitness: Those who keep regular gratitude journals exercised on a regular basis and were overall had more optimistic outlooks on life.

2.) Reaching Goals: Thankful people also consistently achieved more personal goals, especially after keeping a gratitude journal for two months.

3.) Stress Relief: Being grateful is also an effective way to release stress, according to Emmons. “Gratitude research is beginning to suggest that feelings of thankfulness have tremendous positive value in helping people cope with daily problems, especially stress.”

4.) Children who practice grateful thinking have more positive attitudes toward school and their families. (No wonder that being grateful for strawberries and a phone call from a long lost friend brought me way back to the days of being a little boy, who shot out of bed, ready for the day’s possibilities.)

5.) Helps Cope With Illness: Among people with a neuromuscular disease, Emmons found that a “21-day gratitude intervention” produced more “high-energy positive moods, a greater sense of feeling connected to others, more optimistic ratings of one’s life, and better sleep duration and sleep quality, relative to a control group.”

I realized that when you go about your day and you look for things that you’re grateful for, you stop worrying about what you don’t have, you worry less and you live in the present moment, you feel and experience life from a whole new space. Your lens shifts. Then you wonder, what can I do to make someone grateful today?

Today’s gift taught me many things. Like the perfectly embedded seeds on the strawberries and the flowers blooming alongside Telegraph hill today, I realized that I too am exactly where I am supposed to be at this point in time, in my life, both personally and professionally. And I am thankful for that. Sure I sometimes wish that I could have a bigger house, more money in the bank and that I could afford to own a home here in San Francisco, etcetera etcetera… Then I think about the series of events that have ensued after being laid off from my major market TV reporting gig and deciding to live off of my savings for a year so I could use my storytelling skills to give back through Go Inspire Go team.

I reflect on how much my team and I have been able to accomplish, inspiring and helping tens of thousands of people around the world through our videos. When I embarked on this journey to inspire people (to use their resources and talents to help others) through this project, one year ago, I hoped that at least a handful of people would pay attention and be inspired to act. On a weekly basis, viewers from around the world email to tell us what they’ve done to help others, purely by being inspired by our website and our stories — I would have never imagined that through helping people help others the biggest receiver would be me.

When I stop and think about the things I’m grateful for, I lose count. I just have to make sure I continue to be aware and grateful on a day to day basis. I think I’ll go and download that “Gratitude Journal iPhone application, to remind me to be grateful for all the greatness that surrounds me. I challenge you to go out and look for 10 things you’re grateful for today — and every day. I’m sure that you and those you cross paths with — on your journey to work or play — will thank you too! Thank you for reading…

Whoa, I didn’t thing that a bowl of strawberries and a phone call would lead me to this experience, video and blog today.

The post Jog Blog Adventure appeared first on Go Inspire Go.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone! I feel like the luckiest leprechaun today. Why? Because I am living my dream and I am aware and grateful for what is happening; my movement, not only to inspire people, but to inspire everyone to create a change in your community.

That’s why I’ve decided to call this movement “GO Inspire GO” — I even bought the web domain as I continue to develop this platform for people to get up and make a change in your community. I hope that people get up and GO, look at this site and be inspired. Then, INSPIRE and be INSPIRED by the rich, moving and hopeful stories on the site to take it a step further and GO do something about it.

After most videos there will be a “CALL TO ACTION” message. It’s a simple one, asking you “What you can do?” and it includes some resources of where you can go to do something. All I ask is this: What skills/gifts do you have and how can you apply them to help others in your circle or how can you help?

It could be as easy as having extra clothes in the closet that I can donate to charity, or I have extra canned food items in the cupboard that I can give to the needy. You can also make it fun. My friends and I get together and pack food at the local food bank every so often. What can you do?

I also feel so amazing this St. Paddy’s Day because I got an e-mail/Facebook message from a former co-worker who was also laid off. She now is working for KXTV Channel 10 in Sacramento. She pitched my story and talked about my friend in Sacramento, a high school teacher who was inspired by this site and my Tent City story and is taking action. We will be interviewed this Thursday and I’ll keep everyone updated on when you can see it. I will also post it as a link to my channel after it airs!

Meanwhile, as I sign off this St. Patrick’s Day 2009, I want you to think about why you feel lucky in your life. (The homeless people in the Tent City Sacramento story had so much to be thankful for, even though they lost their worldly goods, their homes, and jobs and cars, but they told me they’re thankful for every breath, every day of life, because they’re hopeful for the chance — the opportunity to rise above their adversities). SO, please check out the story and send in your comments (You can follow me on Facebook here) and ask yourself, what do you feel grateful for today and … what can you do? “GO Inspire GO…”

The post Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Why I’m feeling lucky… My movement will be headed to the tube… appeared first on Go Inspire Go.