I read Fast Company cover to cover every month. By chance, it usually arrives in my mailbox after I’ve had a particularly rough day. Just seeing the cover restores me. Like a giddy child, I run to my apartment, throw down my bag, and dig in to the info bursting from those pages. It helps me celebrate my inner social geek.
This month, Robert Safian wrote his Letter from the Editor to introduce the main topics addressed this month: how Barack Obama and Shaun White are tapping and energizing the elusive youth market, influential women in tech (a million thanks for this inspiring story!), and celebrating Darwin and his On the Origin of Species.
The most powerful part of Robert’s letter is captured in the last paragraph. With strong emotional appeal, he elegantly and sincerely describes what he and his team strive for every day and why they do it. “Our goal at Fast Company is to get you to pick your head up, at least periodically, and consider what happens when the sun comes out again.” With much thanks and appreciation, I am grateful to Fast Company for doing just that: they give me hope about my career, even if times are tough now, they give me faith with their inspiring stories of entrepreneurs, and they spark my creative thinking. If you aren’t a subscriber, you should be no matter what your field or interest. It’s the best $10 you’ll spend this year.
Published by Christa Avampato
The short of it:
Writer. Health, education, and art advocate. Theater and film producer. Visual artist. Product geek. Proud alumnae of the University of Pennsylvania (BA) and the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA). Inspired by ancient wisdom & modern tech. Proliferator of goodness. Opener of doors. Friend to animals. Fan of creative work in all its wondrous forms. I use my business skills to create passion projects that build a better world. I’ve been called the happiest New Yorker, and I try hard to live up to that title every day.
The long of it:
My career has stretched across Capitol Hill, Broadway theatre, education, nonprofit fundraising, health and wellness, and Fortune 500 companies in retail, media, entertainment, technology, and financial services. I’ve been a product developer and product manager, theater manager, strategic consultant, marketer, voice over artist, , teacher, and fundraiser. I use my business and storytelling to support and sustain passion projects that build a better world. In every experience, I’ve used my sense of and respect for elegant design to develop meaningful products, services, programs, and events.
While building a business career, I also built a strong portfolio as a journalist, novelist, freelance writer, interviewer, presenter, and public speaker. My writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, PBS.org, Boston.com, Royal Media Partners publications, and The Motley Fool on a wide range of topics including business, technology, science, health, education, culture, and lifestyle. I have also been an invited speaker at SXSW, Teach for America, Avon headquarters, Games for Change, NYU, Columbia University, Hunter College, and the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. The first book in my young adult book series, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, was acquired by a publisher and launched in November 2017. I’m currently working on the second book in the series.
A recovering multi-tasker, I’m equally at home in front of my Mac, on my yoga mat, walking my rescue dog, Phineas, traveling with a purpose, or practicing the high-art of people watching. I also cut up small bits of paper and put them back together as a collage artist.
My company:
I’m bringing together all of my business and creative career paths as the Founder of Double or Nothing Media:
• I craft products, programs, and projects that make a difference;
• I build the business plans that make what I craft financially sustainable;
• I tell the stories that matter about the people, places, and products that inspire me.
Follow my adventures on Twitter at https://twitter.com/christanyc and Instagram at https://instagram.com/christarosenyc.
View all posts by Christa Avampato
I read Fast Company cover to cover every month. By chance, it usually arrives in my mailbox after I’ve had a particularly rough day. Just seeing the cover restores me. Like a giddy child, I run to my apartment, throw down my bag, and dig in to the info bursting from those pages. It helps me celebrate my inner social geek. 
Christa Avampato 