author. speaker. motivator.
Affectionately known as "America's #1 Success Coach," Jack Canfield is the originator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series and a leading authority in the areas of self-esteem, achievement motivation, and peak performance. [www.jackcanfield.com]
political powerhouse. media mogul. author.
Arianna Huffington is the co-founder and Editor in Chief of the Huffington Post and the author of twelve books. [www.huffingtonpost.com]
author. speaker. linchpin.
Seth Godin is a prominent author, blogger and speaker. [www.squidoo.com/linchpin]
yogi. philanthropist. dynamic teacher.
Krishna Kaur is the founder of YOGA for Youth, a program that takes yoga, meditation, and stimulating discussions on the philosophy of yoga to urban youth. [www.yogaforyouth.org]
producer. philanthropist. tv legend.
Norman Lear has enjoyed a long career in television and film. He is also a political and social activist and philanthropist. [www.normanlear.com]
race car driver. activist. carbon free girl.
Leilani Münter is a professional race car driver and an environmental activist who uses her voice in the number one spectator sport in America as a catalyst for change. [www.leilanimunter.com]
Freedom Fighter. Philanthropist. Game Changer.
By going undercover to meet slaves and slaveholders, Kevin Bales exposed modern slavery's penetration into the global economy. He co-founded Free the Slaves, which has helped to liberate thousands of slaves. [www.freetheslaves.net]
mom. big dreamer. lady in red.
Sophie Chiche, lifebyme.com founder and curator, enjoys asking deep questions and living a life of meaning. Today she's launching Shape House, an urban sweat lodge, a place to melt away fears and fat. [www.shapehousela.com]
Writer. Entrepreneur. Daily Lover.
Entrepreneur and writer Mastin Kipp founded TheDailyLove.com, which merges pop culture with inspiration, and co-founded The Love Yourself Company, an apparel company that has started a global self-esteem movement. [www.TheDailyLove.com]
singer. musician. crier.
Liz Phair is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. [www.lizphair.com]
archbishop. author. peaceful leader.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu is Chairman of The Elders, a group of world leaders who address some of the world's most pressing problems. He works energetically for human-rights and in his ministry. [www.tutu.org]
author. ceo. humanitarian.
Zainab Salbi is the founder and CEO of Women for Women International, a group dedicated to helping women survivors of war rebuild their lives. [www.womenforwomen.org]
speaker. psychotherapist. life embracer.
Despite his physical challenges, Sean Stephenson has taken a stand for a quality of life that has inspired millions of people around the world. He's a professional speaker, psychotherapist, and author. [www.timetostand.com]
yogi. meditator. teacher.
Kia Miller teaches Yoga at Yoga Works in Los Angeles, leads teacher trainings, and runs retreats and workshops on meditation, chakras, pranayam, and mantras, and other practices. [www.kiamiller.com]
creator. writer. idea geek.
Simon Mainwaring is an ex-Nike/Wieden creative, former Worldwide Creative Director at Motorola/Ogilvy, branding/advertising writer, author/speaker/blogger, Australian, idea geek. [www.simonmainwaring.com]
Strategist. Writer. Life Coach.
Shannon Bindler is a style editor, life coach, and the co-founder of Get Up Girl, an empowerment company that inspires women to shine. [www.getupgirl.com]
Designer. Art Director. Passionate Creator.
Grammy-nominated art director/designer/photographer Mathieu Bitton has designed over 450 CDs and movie posters. He's a renowned collector of and authority on black films and their soundtracks. [www.candytangerine.com]
Agent. Producer. Photography Enthusiast.
Opus Reps founder and agent-producer Jorge Perez travels the world producing photo shoots with great photographers and celebrities. He's also very involved with Meals on Wheels in Los Angeles. www.opusreps.com
gaia
Chris Johnstone
bio-physician. pond builder. whole person.
Dr. Chris Johnstone is an author, bio-physician, and coach. He writes and teaches about resilience, happiness, and positive change. [www.chrisjohnstone.info]
As a child, I was fascinated by pond life. I loved paddling in streams with my little fishing net, collecting tadpoles, water beetles, and stickleback fish. I’d take them back home and keep them in a bucket, but many would die. The breakthrough came when we dug a pond in our garden. Now my new friends had a home.
Learning how to keep a pond healthy was an education for me. I came to understand how different species acted together to keep the ecosystem of the pond in balance. More than a decade later, when I was a medical student in London, I came across this same principle applied on a vastly larger scale. Gaia Theory, a new idea from science, proposed that life on Earth, like life in a pond, could be seen to act together as a whole.
At that time, I’d become interested in the holistic approach to healthcare. Rather than focusing on individual cells or organs, “whole person” medicine involves recognizing how each element contributes to a larger whole that’s more than the sum of its parts. A heart is more than just a bunch of cells, a person more than just a collection of organs. My medical training had been teaching me a lot about cells and organs, but missed important aspects of dealing with people. The holistic approach filled in some of those gaps, particularly when it came to understanding how people can play a role in healing themselves.
If your skin gets bruised or cut, within a few weeks it’s likely to have repaired itself. If you get a cough or a cold, your body’s natural self-healing abilities act to bring you back to health. The ecosystem of a forest has a similar restorative capacity, bringing itself back from the brink after a fire, flood, or drought. Gaia Theory proposes that life as a whole acts with its environment to regulate itself. So does the living Earth have the ability to self-heal after trauma? If so, could that ability act through us, its parts?
The word Gaia tells a different story about who I am and what my purpose is. On one level I’m an individual with my own dramas and concerns. But on another, I’m rooted in something much larger than myself. There’s a bigger story going on, and I’m thrilled to be part of it.
– Chris Johnstone
Explore More Meaning
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hand model. artistic explorer. inner excavator.
Adele Uddo is a super hand model, but please don't judge a girl from the wrist down. She's also a writer, determined to contribute more to society than nice nail beds. [www.adeleuddo.com]
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Author. Lecturer. Wellness Authority.
Deepak Chopra is a world-renowned authority in the field of mind-body healing, a best-selling author, and the founder of the Chopra Center for Wellbeing. [www.chopra.com]
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coach. empowered introvert. green thumb.
A coach with a passion for introverts, Joan Shulman supports heart-centered professionals who love what they do but struggle to self-promote. She believes everyone possesses the innate wisdom needed to create fulfillment. [www.fullcirclelifecoach.com]
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17 cents dreamer. adversity ignorer. julie's daddy.
Daniel Milstein recently chronicled his rise from cleaning bathrooms while enduring hunger and relentless bullying to becoming the #1 loan officer in the U.S. and head of one of America's fastest-growing finance companies. [http://danmilstein.com/book/]
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angel of music. hypnotist. guide.
Daniela Torres-Mattus uses hypnosis, NLP, and her skills as an interviewer to empower people around the world. Her passion is guiding people to live extraordinary lives.
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hotelier. author. inner seer.
Bestselling author Chip Conley is the founder and executive chairman of Joie de Vivre, America's second largest boutique hotel company. He writes about his company's techniques and transformational leadership practices. [www.chipconley.com]
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designer. self-described perfectionist. knitting enthusiast.
Angela Mayhoe is a retail girl by day, fashion designer by night, and blogger when time permits. [www.themuslin.com]
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sales psychologist. president. connector.
Gregory Stebbins, Ed.D., is the co-founder and president of Insight University.
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