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
balanced
Caspar Poyck
therapist. conscious chef. wave balancer.
Chef and Culinary Coach Caspar Poyck's business, Consciously Culinary, is well-known throughout the central and southern California coastal regions. [www.consciouslyculinary.com]
We live in a world of binaries, of dichotomies: light and dark, love and hate, savory and sweet. When there’s uncertainty and fear some tend to focus on extremes: becoming orthodox or dogmatic seems to provide us a sense of safety.
When I was four, my father had a stress-related breakdown. His body shut down because he’d been completely out of balance and that led to disease. When he got better, he became a yoga teacher and started his own yoga institute. The symbol for the institute was a scale, with a moon on one side and a sun on the other.
One of the most meaningful things in my life is staying balanced. The safety and security we find in extremes is an illusion. Each extreme may have a philosophy or a teaching that can shed light on our experience – and sometimes I think it’s valuable to put things in harsh contrast for the sake of learning – but once we start empowering those extremes to be literal paths for living our lives, we end up losing touch with reality and the dogmatic becomes exclusionary.
The definition of polarization is to divide into two contrasting sides. To remain balanced, we must acknowledge both. Light can’t exist without darkness. The mind can’t exist without the heart, nor the heart without the mind. Happiness is sweeter against the backdrop of sadness.
I don’t actively seek to push my life into the balanced space between the highs and lows, or to keep it there. I don’t aim to be balanced moment to moment. I like to taste life and to push boundaries. I’ve pushed myself to great highs and dropped to deep lows. It’s like a sine wave. As long as my highs and lows match each other though, the line through the middle is the steady growth path of my life. That growth path comes from oscillating on those ups and downs. Life finds itself on the median line.
From a picture of a man on a ladder it’s hard to tell if he’s going up or down.
To me, what’s important is that when I take a step back, I recognize that the rise or fall of the moment is just that…a moment…the long walk is the search for balance at the end.
– Caspar Poyck
Explore More Meaning
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goddess. writer. guide.
Goddess Leonie is the creator of GoddessGuidebook.com, a popular creativity + spirituality website for women. [www.goddessguidebook.com]
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fitness expert. lifestyle changer. anti-aging guru.
Jeffry S. Life, M.D., Ph.D. is the bestselling author of THE LIFE PLAN and MASTERING THE LIFE PLAN. He is a Senior Partner at Cenegenics, the world’s largest age-management medicine practice. [www.drlife.com]
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tv host. satisfied customer. car washin' smiler.
Melissa Francis, author of Diary of a Stage Mother's Daughter, hosts two daily business shows on the Fox Business Network, including Money with Melissa Francis. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Harvard University. [www.melissafrancisofficial.com]
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entrepreneur. coach. congruency connoisseur.
Scott Dinsmore is an entrepreneur and coach who helps people discover passion and purpose through his coaching company, Live Your Legend, and his investment partnership, Cumbre Capital Partners. [http://liveyourlegend.net]
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brilliance advocate. student of nature. peaceful storyteller.
Joan loves people and their stories. She's been working on hers for a long time and shares it in books, speeches, and through her inner peace organization. [www.peacebeginswithme.org]
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author. entrepreneur. playful brit.
Mark Simmons is an author, branding expert, and entrepreneur who believes in the power of ideas to change the world. He founded the social enterprise useless.org. [www.useless.org]
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publisher. meditator. connecter.
Tami Simon is founder and publisher of Sounds True, an independent multimedia publishing company whose mission is to inspire, support, and serve personal transformation and spiritual awakening. [www.soundstrue.com]
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spiritual connector. yogi philanthropist. magic carpet rider.
Brian Hyman teaches donation-based yoga classes at Strand Street Yoga in Santa Monica, and 12-Step Yoga at various Los Angeles facilities. He's writing a book about his path to wellness. [www.brianhymanyoga.com]
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