
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
relationship

At this point in my life, what’s most meaningful to me are my relationships. Life is all about relationships – our relationships with ourselves first, and also with the environment and all the people in our lives. The people in our lives are, of course, the people we love and who love us, but it’s also the people in our communities, including online.
I’ve been coming to this realization about relationships as I’ve gotten older. When I was younger, what was important to me were things like getting an education, being popular, and making money. But since I’ve been writing and have become a mother and a wife, I’ve realized it’s important to me not merely to do things, but to do things that are meaningful and that make a difference in the world. I don’t want to work for the sake of working. I want to work for the sake of service.
If I lose track of what’s meaningful, if I lose track of feeling connected, I become anxious, stressed out, and nervous. When I start to feel that way, I know I’m out of balance. My way of getting back on track is through the Ayurvedic lifestyle I practice. Ayurveda is India’s 5000-year-old science of life. It explains the nature of everything in the universe. In Ayurveda, there are three mind/body types, or doshas: Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. I’m Vata, which is made up of air and space. I have Attention Deficit Disorder, which is too much Vata in the system. Meditation helps to ground me and shift my focus back to what’s important.
We’re all connected all the time, but we aren’t always aware of it. I think our society is moving from competition to cooperation and from consumerism to citizenship. As we become aware of this and tune in, as we really listen to our hearts and our natural state, which is a state of connection, then we feel better.
– Lissa Coffey
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