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
found
Davy Rothbart
publisher. contributor. FOUNDer
Davy Rothbart, creator of Found Magazine, is an author, frequent contributor to the radio program This American Life, and the subject of a documentary released in 2011. [www.foundmagazine.com]
I have a strong curiosity about the people I share the world with. And I like connecting people who wouldn’t ordinarily connect. One of the ways I play with this is through Found Magazine, an online collection of notes and things people have found on the ground, in the street, on the sidewalk, on the floor of a city bus or subway.
People find very personal, raw, and intimate notes and send them to me from all around the world. Reading these notes is a window into a deep and personal aspect of people, allowing us to really get to know strangers. We don’t know who they are, but we get to know them in a powerful way through the love letters, to-do lists, and journal entries they write and lose. They express themselves unselfconsciously – there’s often something beautiful and moving about the found notes. Some are heartbreaking. Some are hilarious. I feel I’m crossing paths with people in a powerful and intense way as I get a sense of what they’re going through.
I think it’s natural to be curious about what other people’s experiences of being human are like. Sometimes, when I pick up the Found Magazine mail, I go through it and laugh. Other times, I sit there laughing at myself, recognizing the same kind of pitiful note I myself have written a hundred times. Sometimes, I find myself crying, reading a note that’s particularly heartbreaking or full of longing. For the past nine years, these peeks into other people’s lives have brought me great meaning.
I also make documentary films. Right now I’m in southern Indiana making a documentary about a high school basketball team in this small, struggling town. What I love about making documentaries is the chance to meet people, to be in their homes, to see where they work, and to ask them what I want to know. It’s kind of like doing Found Magazine, but instead of being introduced to a stranger through a note they wrote and lost, the person is sitting right in front of me.
I’m always noticing the similarities between people, how alike everyone’s experiences are, whether they’re in a small town in Indiana or writing a note that’s found in a prison yard or in a fancy bank in Connecticut. What’s on people’s minds – love and loss and all those emotions – is noticeably universal.
– Davy Rothbart
Explore More Meaning
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designer. artisan. spirit elevator.
Calleen Cordero brings the Old World art of handmade artisan footwear and accessories back to the United States, elevating the spirit one sole at a time. [www.calleencordero.com]
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marketing expert. calfinder. community builder.
Gabriel Luna-Ostaseski co-founded CalFinder, where he directs global sales and operations. Before that, he managed Varsity Painting, one of the largest construction companies in California. [www.linkedin.com/in/gabelunaostaseski]
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happy mom. adventure planner. champion of family.
Jenny Solar is married to Josh and they have three kids, Max, Ava, and Lia. They created The Happy Family Movement to encourage and inspire family togetherness through memorable family experiences and simple ideas for happy family living. [www.thehappyfamilymovement.com]
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empowering dad. motivating coach. difference maker.
Gordon Myers is a Namibian life strategist living in Los Angeles. He teaches teenagers how to create their own luck regardless of their current personal circumstances. [www.streetsmartkids.com]
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surfer. fashion designer. marine life crusader.
Lisa Burke is a surfer, marine life activist, and fashion designer who founded the swimwear line Lisa Blue. Lisa Blue donates 25% of its net profits to helping protect whales and dolphins. [www.lisablue.com.au]
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Writer. Former Political Aide. Identifier.
Roger Wolfson is a television and film writer who's written for four different hit TV series. A former political aide, he was staff to Senators Lieberman, Kerry, Wellstone, and Kennedy. [www.rogerwolfson.com]
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dream midwife. contributor. possibility example.
Deborah Barron is a life coach, writer and curious explorer, passionate about expanding feminine consciousness on the planet, one courageous woman at a time. [www.deborahbarron.net]
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campbell resurrector. storyteller. hero inspirer.
Pat Solomon is the producer and director of Finding Joe, an exploration of famed mythologist Joseph Campbell's studies and how they provide a narrative for living a fully realized life. [www.findingjoethemovie.com]
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