Join the entrepreneur movement. Stimulate the economy. Spread the word. Original music by Carly Comando. Written & Produced by Sonja Jacob.
http://grasshoppergroup.com – Empowering entrepreneurs to succeed!
Archive for the ‘INSPIRATION’ Category
Happiness Is
On February - 5 - 2011
Great movie to keep you headed in the right direction through lifes challenges.
Very good lessons learned from consumer business. To religion being a great source of direction on the pursuit of happiness. Acknowledging the power of self vs. relaying on anyone to help get you to your goal. Because once you start relaying on someone/something, you become less self-sustainable. Shows me to worry less about myself and more about the impact we can make on the great good. Follow the golden rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.
For many people, they’re not even sure what happiness is. And so, inspired and intrigued by this “unalienable” right, director Andrew Shapter set out to explore the myths and the truths of the “pursuit of Happiness” in America.
Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams
On January - 12 - 2011
Carnegie Mellon Professor Randy Pausch (Oct. 23, 1960 – July 25, 2008) gave his last lecture at the university Sept. 18, 2007, before a packed McConomy Auditorium. In his moving presentation, “Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams,” Pausch talked about his lessons learned and gave advice to students on how to achieve their own career and personal goals.
For more on Randy, visit: http://www.cmu.edu/randyslecture
The mayonnaise jar
On April - 29 - 2010
The Mayonnaise Jar and 2 CUPS OF COFFEE
When things in your life seem
almost too much to handle,
when 24 Hours in a day is not enough,
remember the mayonnaise jar
and 2 cups of coffee.
A professor stood before his philosophy class
and had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly,
he picked up a very large
and empty mayonnaise jar
and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.
He then asked the students
if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar.
He shook the jar lightly.
The pebbles rolled into the open
areas between the golf balls.
He then asked
the students again
if the jar was full..
They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand
and poured it into the jar.
Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full.
The students responded
with an unanimous
“yes.”
The professor then produced
two cups of coffee from under the table
And poured the entire contents
into the jar, effectively
filling the Empty space between the sand.
The students laughed.
“Now,” said the professor,
as the laughter subsided,
“I want you to recognize that
this jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things -
God, family, children, health,
friends, and Favorite passions –
things that if everything else was lost
and only they remained,
your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter
like your job, house, and car.
The sand is everything else –
the small stuff.
“If you put the sand into the jar first,”
he continued,
“there is no room for
the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.
If you spend all your time
and energy on the small stuff,
you will never have room for
the things that are
important to you.
So…
Pay attention to the things
that are critical to your happiness.
Play With your children.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your partner out to dinner.
Play another 18.
There will always be time
to clean the house
and fix the disposal.
“Take care of the golf balls first –
the things that really matter.
Set your priorities.
The rest is just sand.”
One of the students raised her hand
and inquired what the coffee represented.
The professor smiled.
“I’m glad you asked”.
It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for
a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.”
Please share this with
someone you care about.
I JUST DID.
Best online dating site-research pt1 2010
On April - 28 - 2010
Well, If I didnt get a $hit ton of b.s. from my friends for having a “love” category on this blog. Now I hit you with some results of what I have found to be the best online dating sites. In my defense: I am a 30 yr old entrepreneur that barely has time to eat a meal. Owning a micro management consulting firm and heavily involved in the club/music industry. I just dont have the time to waste these days.
The winner is Match.com in 1st & eHarmony in 2nd.
Time to sign up for both and give you an indepth look at their programing behind their multi million dollar marketing campaigns.
NOTE: When it comes to price for a service like this, I dont think anyone should complain about paying for the best ROI of your life. So fork up a few bucks chump!
==== USEFUL REVIEWS I FOUND====
Price: Free.
Users per month*: 2.75 million.
Registration time: 12.5 minutes.
Pros: Costs nothing; easy to use; has a huge pool of people to flirt and connect with; boasts 120,000 marriages a year.
Cons: Distorted or fuzzy images; unattractive website.
Since this is a free site, I’m going to the big players on this service. Since pay sites are constantly getting capitol from their user’s to invest in new programing/technology.
Price: $30 per month.
Users per month*: 2.75 million.
Registration time: 15 minutes.
Pros: Simple to navigate; finds matches based on keyword descriptions; provides apps for smartphones.
Cons: Poor screening techniques.
Positive Features
- Newly upgraded site (Dec 2008) has a much easier flow and not as busy as old design. The colors are not as dark.
- A first in the dating world, a Make Love Happen Guarantee. Read below in Costs for more details
- Keyword search on member’s profiles (called matchWords).
- Very large online dating service (maybe the largest general orinented dating site on the internet).
- Allowed to remove singles from your search results.
- Find out when your match reads the email you sent them with Email Read Notification.
- Customer Care available 7 days a week from 8:00am to 8:00pm CST – 1 (866) 962-8244
Negative Features
- To many ads are shown on the site about there other ventures. – UPDATE – They have greatly reduced this with their new update (Jan, 2007)
- New customer service hours. Match.com customer service is only open Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 8 PM CST. Their site is easy to use and has a great online help system but for people really new to the internet, they may need some live support. Since most of us use these dating sites after work and on weekends I am not sure what they were thinking here.
REVIEW 1 – With over 15 million subscribers, Match.com is the largest dating site catering to a diverse population. Reviews praise it for ease of use and excellent search options; however, the site doesn’t offer automated matching based on any scientific approach. You can search and browse for free, but you must subscribe for one month or longer to send or reply to emails. Match.com experts help you create a profile, which can include up to 26 photos, video and a voice greeting. The site offers mobile access, but you must pay an additional fee and subscribe for at least six months.
REVIEW 2
Editors of DatingSitesReviews.com provide overviews, pros and cons, and fees for more than 50 online dating sites. For the third year in a row, Match.com is the editors’ top pick overall in 2009. Editors primarily base this award on popularity and the website’s new mobile application. Readers also get the opportunity to vote on their favorite fee-based and free online dating sites. For 2009, Match.com wins in the fee-based category with 201 votes, representing almost 30 percent of respondents. EHarmony takes second place with 153 votes. The top choice for free online dating website is PlentyOfFish.com, which earns one-third of the votes. This site also has articles about dating and the online dating industry.
REVIEW 3
Our Assessment Online dating industry professionals vote on their favorite dating site in 11 categories. We don’t know how many votes were cast. Match.com is named the best dating site and also earns honors for site design. Zoosk.com is named best mobile dating site and best up-and-coming dating site.
Price: $50 a month.
Users per month*: 2.5 million people.
Registration time: 10 minutes.
Pros: Safer than some sites, since members must submit to a background check; has a fun, flirty environment.
Cons: Tacky advertisements.
Positive Features
- Every True.com member is screened against one of the largest criminal records databases on the Internet before they are allowed to communicate with other members. They are looking for felony offenses.
- Member’s marital status is checked against public records.
- Free Trial for 7 days which is extended for another 30 days if you upload a photo.
Negative Features
- More and more dating services seem to be displaying ads on their web sites and True.com is no exception. At least there are not a lot of ads listed and the ads are integrated into the site so they are not obtrusive.
- Some member complaints of difficulties in deactivating their True account.
Price: $60 a month.
Users per month*: 1.75 million.
Registration time: 25 minutes.
Pros: They do the matching for you, based on a detailed questionnaire; an advice section with expert and member tips.
Cons: Generic profiles; more expensive than other sites.
Positive Features
- Very detailed matching model based on 29 key dimensions that predict relationship success as well as examines 10 areas vital to your happiness and a fulfilling marriage.
- For men who are serious about a relationship eHarmony is one of the few sites that have a fair number more women then men.
- No more endless searching. You are shown just the members that match your profile.
Negative Features
- One of the more expensive dating sites.
- This point can be a positive or a negative depending on the person: They present to you the matches based on your profile you created, you can’t perform your own searches.
- You can only communicate with other single members who have paid for a subscription.
If you prefer a guided approach to dating rather than searching through online profiles on your own, eHarmony touts its 29 “dimensions of compatibility” to match singles that have the potential for a successful long-term relationship. This information is collected through a time-consuming questionnaire containing 256 questions. After signing up for a subscription ranging from one month to a year, the site encourages members to follow a guided communication process that uses multiple-choice questions to break the ice. Certain features like anonymous phone calls require paying an additional fee. Although the site’s claim to 20 million members is enticing, critics say the site is more expensive than many other sites and doesn’t allow users to perform their own searches. EHarmony only matches up straight couples, but now offers a spin-off same-sex dating site, CompatiblePartners.net.
REVIEW2
Unless you’re brand new to the internet and don’t watch television, you’ve heard of eHarmony. The reason why I feel 2010 will be a great year for eHarmony is because over the last couple of years, it has become one of, if not the, largest online dating site for singles who are seeking true love and more importantly, marriage. That is where eHarmony excels. If you are tired of the “dating scene” and truly want to find your soulmate that you want to marry and spend the rest of your life with, eHarmony is the site for you.
Unlike other sites, eHarmony is different because it actually finds people who are compatible to you rather than you browsing thousands of photo profiles to find someone you find physically attractive. For this reason, the signup process is extensive, but worth it if your goal is a long-term, serious relationship. As with most sites, you can signup for free to get started. Frankly, if you’re single, you need to at least have a free account on eHarmony.
*The numbers for users per month are based on research by ComScore.
Pasted from <http://www.realsimple.com/work-life/money/cost-comparison-internet-dating-sites-00000000028239/index.html>
referencing sites:
http://www.consumersearch.com/online-dating/reviews>
http://www.alternative-dating-sites.com/top-five-dating-sites-for-2010.html>
Embrace fear
On March - 2 - 2010
I’m not going to lie, it is a lil scary to choose an untraveled path by yourself against the unknown. Fear can either paralyze you or drive you into action. Which for some bring on more fear and anxiety.
Although that is the same thing that attracts me to it . I personally strive under pressure’s from fear, which requires quick thinking (reflexes). Through out my life I have been known to climb the tallest tower’s (even surrounded by high voltage at times). Even skydiving, motorcycles, Ariel flips on my rollerblades and the list goes on and on. Yes the risk’s are much higher, but so is a payoff of complete freedom.
As you put yourself in the path of fear more and more. You start to feel calm (immune)… which leads to an inner peace… which leads to a sense of freedom searching for bigger and bigger obstacle’s that life can bring. Like anything done repeatedly, you’ll be ready to take on anything when you face it.
What begins to happen as you “rise above” the emotion is that you begin to “see” yourself as if you’re almost an unconcerned third party (confidence). You’re no longer trapped in anxiety and instead of making bad decisions, you can now enter in a solution mentality because your mind is thinking more clearly (as done more often).
“Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live.”
– Dorothy Thompson
The same goes for entrepreneurs that see an opportunity that no one else does. Yes, the road is going to be tough, but the payout is something so much greater then what the standard can provide.
“If it was easy, everyone would be doing it”
Being a business owner there have been MANY days to wake up and think ” I wish i had a standard, steady 9-5 like everyone else”. Although I have since I was 14 and it left me with no stability to start a family (explained here). I think besides the know how, fear is a big reason people block creativity from happening. The worst that can happen is that you learn a lesson to pass on to the next generation of creative minds.
When it comes to the work place, most company’s dont embrace creativity from their employee’s. I’m not sure why, but in doing so will make the difference between a successful company and one providing slower growth or even destined to fail. Depending on where the chain of command to the top stops.
Look at google for instance. Google is one of the most sought out company’s to work for because of they embrace creativity instead of fearing it. Most of Google employee’s are working on their own side projects.
Probably why they have one of the highest traded stocks in the U.S. market and the fifth most valuable company in the country. I’m just sayin…
Here’s a GREAT blog article on embracing fear on a personal level that I highly recommend and kinda jealous i didnt write it. haha
http://theboldlife.com/2008/11/embrace-fear-and-live-life-out-loud/
If you forget me (poem)
On February - 24 - 2010
|Pablo Neruda|
If You Forget Me
I want you to know
one thing.
You know how this is:
if I look
at the crystal moon, at the red branch
of the slow autumn at my window,
if I touch
near the fire
the impalpable ash
or the wrinkled body of the log,
everything carries me to you,
as if everything that exists,
aromas, light, metals,
were little boats
that sail
toward those isles of yours that wait for me.
Well, now,
if little by little you stop loving me
I shall stop loving you little by little.
If suddenly
you forget me
do not look for me,
for I shall already have forgotten you.
If you think it long and mad,
the wind of banners
that passes through my life,
and you decide
to leave me at the shore
of the heart where I have roots,
remember
that on that day,
at that hour,
I shall lift my arms
and my roots will set off
to seek another land.
But
if each day,
each hour,
you feel that you are destined for me
with implacable sweetness,
if each day a flower
climbs up to your lips to seek me,
ah my love, ah my own,
in me all that fire is repeated,
in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten,
my love feeds on your love, beloved,
and as long as you live it will be in your arms
without leaving mine.
Pablo Neruda
J.K.Rowling speaking at Harvard (1,2 and 3)
On December - 7 - 2009
Inspirational Video’s part 2
On August - 13 - 2009
Frozen in Grand Central
Life Lesson: Great things can be achieved if we work together.
One in a Million Shot
Life Lesson: Small miracles can occur.
Turn a Paperclip into a New House
Life Lesson: A big heart and a little persistance goes a long way.
Yes We Can
Life Lesson: The first step is believing.
Throw out your thoughts of any political sides, this is a great speech that was writtin.
Add music and I’m a fan.
Woman With No Arms
Life Lesson: Passion and determination can allow anyone to overcome their physical limitations.
Autistic 3 Pointers
Life Lesson: Sometimes all someone needs is to be given a chance.
Blind Painter
Life Lesson: Tragedies can open new doors of vision.
Inspirational video’s part1
On August - 11 - 2009
The following list contains y favorite inspirational and motivational YouTube videos. Each video clip tells a different tale, a unique story conveying subtle lessons about life, love, happiness and success. I’ve been bookmarking these slowly over the course of a year or so. Each one is certainly worth watching at least once.
Commencement Address by Steve Jobs
Life Lesson: Find what you love, trust in your instincts, and follow your heart.
This video was created for the AARP U@50 video contest and placed second
It is based on the Argentinian Political Advertisement “The Truth” by RECREAR
Life and Music
Life Lesson: Don’t sacrifice your life for someone else’s idea of success.
Ninja Almost Defeated by a Bug
Life Lesson: Change your thoughts to change your world.
Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture
Life Lesson: Be honest, be tolerant, and lead a life you are proud of.
Al Pacino’s Inches Speech
Life Lesson: Short consistent steps in a positive direction will eventually lead you to victory.
Autistic Anthem Singer Gets Help in Boston
Life Lesson: Genuine kindness and hope exists in humanity.
Disabled Athletes
Life Lesson: No disability is an excuse for not trying.
Patrick Henry Hughes Inspires
Life Lesson: Everyone has a gift, it just needs to be found and unleashed.
