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
explore
Jesse Gros
coach. inner travel adventurer. tribal truster.
Jesse Gros, a unique outdoor adventure guide, is just as passionate about the inner journey as he is about the outer adventure. [www.insightadventures.com]
What’s most meaningful for me at this point is exploring and connecting with projects I love that feel primal. They’re the ones that bypass the brain’s filter. When we tap into this kind of desire, we don’t notice time going by. We don’t notice we haven’t eaten in a while. We don’t care if we made money or not. It’s that feeling of really yearning to get going, and then we do, we get a feeling of being filled up. That’s where power comes from.
A turning point for me was leaving my job as an insurance adjuster after a thought I had standing on a roof in Louisiana. I worked on Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita and other disasters. Two of my friends had fallen off of roofs the week before and injured themselves. I stood on the roof that day and thought, If I fell off of this roof and broke my leg or my neck, ended up crippled or dead, would I be proud of what I’ve done with my life? The answer was, No, there’s actually so much more I want to accomplish.
I got off that roof and – with a little help from a speech I heard Barack Obama give about people tapping into their desires and innate abilities and wanting to help others – I called my boss and walked away from that job. That was a big moment. I felt my whole body light up with energy and knew I was doing the right thing.
Then, about two years ago, I had a breakdown when I realized I couldn’t do it all myself. At first, it felt like failing, because I was working from a mentality of “I’ll build my own house and my own fence and ….” It was all “me, me, me.” But I made the switch from being upset that I couldn’t do it alone to getting really excited about saying, “Oh. I can’t do this alone. So how many people can I involve?” I had to give up a lot of control and add a lot of trust.
We’ve moved from a tribal mentality to hyper individualism – where everyone’s on their own and separate, and now it feels like we’re all moving back into tribes. I think that’s beautiful. There’s so much more power in collective energy than in every individual running around trying to make their own little things by themselves.
– Jesse Gros
Explore More Meaning
-
venture capitalist. kiteboarder. dream achiever.
Bill Tai rides the waves of the stock market as a successful venture capitalist and the waves of the ocean as a sponsored kiteboarder. [www.about.me/BillTai]
-
life by me’er. comedian. pretty thankful guy.
Life By Me’s Content Editor, Mikey Scott, gets to hear stories from people around the world creating meaningful (and pretty darn fun) lives for themselves. And he thinks that’s pretty neat. [www.mikeyscott.com]
-
publicist. author. soulmate attractor.
Arielle Ford has spent 25 years living and promoting consciousness through all forms of media. [www.arielleford.com]
-
songwriter. artist. full potentialist.
Joshua Smith is an Emmy nominated singer and the creator of "Home on the Road," a gathering of stories shared by common folk about where passion and commitment can lead. [www.listentojoshua.com]
-
legacy architect. earth mama. celebrity stylist.
Maya Corinne teaches conscious creative visionaries how to magnify privilege. Her studio has raised millions, and crafts values-infused giving plans for clients collectively worth more than $14 billion. [www.moon-storm.com]
-
public intellectual. social activist. provocative spiritual artist.
Center for World Spirituality co-founder Marc Gafni is a gentle and provocative spiritual artist and teacher, public intellectual, bestselling author, television personality, social activist and lover of people. [www.ievolve.org]
-
near-death survivor. critic silencer. natural spirit.
Anita Moorjani is the bestselling author of Dying to be Me, the moving, true story of her near-death experience at the end stage of cancer. [www.anitamoorjani.com]
-
goal accomplisher. finish line crosser. adrenaline junkie.
Jonathan Hippensteel is an Ironman triathlete, adventure traveler, part-time model and full-time banker. His passion is inspiring people primarily by what he does, but also by what he says. [www.linkedin.com/in/jonhipp]
- More
Comments