
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]

Arianna Huffington is the co-founder and Editor in Chief of the Huffington Post and the author of twelve books. [www.huffingtonpost.com]

Seth Godin is a prominent author, blogger and speaker. [www.squidoo.com/linchpin]

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]

Norman Lear has enjoyed a long career in television and film. He is also a political and social activist and philanthropist. [www.normanlear.com]

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]

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]

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]

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]

Liz Phair is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. [www.lizphair.com]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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
simplicity

I was born a spiritual seeker. I don’t remember a time in my life when I wasn’t observing, questioning, and seeking a deeper answer, a pathway through the obvious to the mystery, to the magical connections.
What calls to me as I mature is a life of inner peace, an inner balance. This is not something that’s static or fixed, but something alive, fluid, and flexible, a way that gives me freedom to access the world I live in and the life I want to live. Simplicity and consistency are how I journey to inner peace. I do this by taking the time I need – through journaling, meditation, yoga, and body movement – to review and refine my choices to serve myself and the world around me for the highest good. As I explore and evaluate my choices, I embrace my humanity and am patient and forgiving with myself when I falter.
Simplicity, to me, is more than having a tidy closet or a clean in-box. Those are good things, but what I value most is a clean and tidy heart, because my life can get messy and full of distractions. Simplicity is making choices I can live with, choices that reflect my caring and stewardship for the world around me. To me, simplicity is eating organic, locally grown food whenever possible, walking in nature, and taking time to enjoy a sunset or gaze out over the Pacific deep into space, relaxing into the wonder and radiance of a sapphire blue sky. It’s about contributing time and resources to causes that call to me. Simplicity is treating myself and the people and things around me with loving kindness.
I’ve come to see that my life is a constant reflection of my choices, how I engage with my world, and how, in turn, my world reflects back to me the sum of those choices. In these times, it’s my choice to live simply, consistently choosing what keeps me at peace with my own heart.
– Cirelle Raphalian
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