Month: July 2012

healthcare, medical, medicine, New York City, television

Leap: NY Med, the Best Medical TV Show I’ve Seen, Debuts on ABC

Christa Avampato

“If you don’t have a reason for your heart to keep beating, it won’t.” ~ Dr. Oz

In 2000, I developed a mild obsession with a show called Hopkins 24/7, a show that went behind-the-scenes at Johns Hopkins to show the lives of medical residents. Since then, dramatized versions of hospital shows have all fallen short. Real-life was so much more riveting.

Yesterday I read a feature piece in the Times about a new 8-part series on ABC called NY Med. (Incidentally, Hopkins 24/7 was also an ABC show and created by the same producer.) NY Med goes inside New York’s best hospitals to show real-life situations as they unfold from a wide variety of angles, including the perspective of Dr. Oz, who is a cardiothoracic surgeon at New York-Presbyterian, among many other roles. (He is also a Penn alum which is one of my alma maters so I have to give him a special shout-out.)

If you have even a mild interest in our healthcare system, this show is an incredible eye-opener. It is thoughtful, thorough, emotional, and professional. In other words, it’s a rare example of network reality television done right in every way that leaves us with more questions than answers and more hope than despair. The first episode ends with one of the doctors singing a a gorgeous version of Let It Be in the hospital’s chapel. I was crying.

Check out the show’s website – http://nymedshow.com. The remaining 7 parts of the series will air on ABC on Tuesdays at 10pm Eastern.

harmony, peace, yoga

Leap: You Already Have What You Seek

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

“The goal of life is to make your heartbeat match the beat of the universe, to match your nature with Nature.” ~ Joseph Campbell

In the hot, hot city last week, it was tough to keep our spirits up when all we wanted to do was lie down. In all of my yoga classes last week, the teachers emphasized balance. With the heat outside, we needed to take our practice slowly and with ease. Conversely when it’s cold outside, we tend to have practices that are more heating. We show up on the mat offering the practice that helps us to be in harmony with our nature and the Nature around us.

This same principle applies off the mat as well. When we find ourselves in a lethargic state, best to listen for what’s going on, and then give ourselves whatever gift we need to feel re-energized. When we find ourselves anxious, nervous, or out-of-sorts, we need to provide ourselves with comfort and security.

And here’s the best part: whatever we need at any moment can be found in the breath. As long as we are breathing, we have the ability to come back to balance. Balance is not a far-off goal; it’s a choice and we make it in every moment.

Right now, we have everything we need.

courage, future

Leap: Take Action

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

“We become what we repeatedly do.” ~ Sean Covey

Mission statements are great but nothing beats action.

We can spend all day pitching our skills, ideas, and intentions. We can talk about what we believe, but we will be remembered for what we did. If we want to be remembered as courageous, then we must be courageous. And if we want to be remembered as kind, then we must be kind.

Patterns are neither good nor bad. They just are and they set the stage for every impression we make on another person. We must decide who we want to be and back up those decisions with actions. Our reputation is not something that’s given; it’s earned.

dating, friendship, relationships

Leap: We Matter in the Lives of Others

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

“We don’t set out to save the world; we set out to wonder how other people are doing and to reflect on how our actions affect other people’s hearts.” ~ Pema Chodron

Some people have an incredible ability to be one person and pretend to be another.

In an unusual twist for me this weekend, I learned this lesson the hard way and a relationship that has been a part of my life in a variety of forms for many years crumbled away in a matter of minutes. It’s hard to get me down but these kinds of turns really set me spinning. I always expect people to be who they are, and it still surprises me when they aren’t. I let myself have a day to feel that sadness and loss for what it is – terrible.

I woke up this morning with a vivid realization – we have an enormous responsibility to one another because our actions have such a profound effect on the lives of those around us. Kindness is such an under-rated quality and yet, in the end, it’s the one that really matters because it can change the course of someone’s life.

Let’s be good to each other. Let’s be exactly who are because other people are counting on us.

Life, writer

Leap: Six Simple Guidelines to a Life Well-Lived Courtesy of Ernest Hemingway

Christa Avampato

These may be the only instructions for life we’ll ever need.

career, choices, courage, creativity

Leap: Breaking New Ground

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

“The woman who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. The woman who walks alone is likely to find herself in places no one has ever been before.” ~ Albert Einstein

I’ve spent the past two weeks pitching workshops and ideation facilitation services that utilize my background as a product developer and yoga teacher. Before I gave my first pitch, I wondered if this idea made sense to anyone other than me. Maybe this was just too far out there. Maybe I should be a bit more mainstream and be on the outer edge of the crowd rather than off on a whole new path on my own.

That train of thought lasted all of about 60 seconds.

I’ve never been part of the crowd and I never wanted to be. I’ve always pushed boundaries, my own and those of others. I left my last corporate job because the company wanted to do what it’s always done dressed up in a slightly different costume. I realized I needed something different, something more in line with my own philosophy: if we want change, we have to change, and change is the only thing that keeps life exciting. It’s also the only thing we can be certain of.

I packed my bags, headed out toward unbroken ground, and I’ve never looked back. I needed to get to places no one has been before, and so far that’s exactly where I’ve been spending my time. It’s pretty glorious out here under the open sky. There’s more air, more light, and more life.

And as for the pitches that I was afraid were too far out there? They aren’t. They’re going really well. People do get it and want it, so much so that they wonder why it’s never been done before. And that’s just about the greatest piece of encouragement I could ask for at the close of my 3rd week of my freelance life.

inspiration, writing

Leap: A Free Gift of Inspiration Straight to Your Inbox – The Start of My Monthly E-newsletter

Christa Avampato

Someone recently sent me an email and asked, “You clearly spend a lot of your time reading. Could you cut through all the chatter of the news and just send me links to the things you think are most interesting?”

Yes. Yes, I can.

I’ve been overwhelmed and honored by the number of people, some whom I know and some whom I don’t know, who have reached out to me in one form or another to say how excited they are about my leap into my own business. They ask me to explain how I made the leap and the planning that went into it. They want to know how they can apply it to their own lives and ideas.

I noodled on how to efficiently get this information to anyone who wants it and decided that the oldie but goodie mechanism of a monthly e-newsletter was the best way to go. After 5 years of daily blogging about living a creative life, I’m putting together the e-newsletter to highlight great books I’m reading, intriguing people I’m meeting, links to interesting articles on creativity, and helpful advice for entrepreneurs and people who are thinking of becoming entrepreneurs.

Get this goodness delivered to your in-box every month by clicking here or following the link at the top of this page.

free, inspiration, time

Leap: Use the Founders of Our Country as the Inspiration for Your Own Leap

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

As I reflect today on the meaning behind the 4th of July, I’m thinking of independence from a new vantage point – freedom and liberation in my work life.

Today I’m inspired by the people who took the Greatest Risk for all of us and founded our nation. When the time to rise up arrived, they didn’t shrink back from their chance at freedom. They risked a sentence of treason and death for the sake of liberty. The risks were high but so were the potential rewards.

In comparison, any leap we take isn’t even close to that scary! They took a chance, a planned and passionate chance, and they worked like hell through tremendously difficult circumstances to create the nation we have today. We are blessed by their courage and taking our own leaps, however large or small, is our way of saying thanks for all that they sacrificed for us.

Now that I’m out on my own, I’m realizing the triumphs and challenges of a freelance life. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Every morning I wake up and pinch myself – I am so fortunate to have this time and space to work on projects with my whole heart. And after a moment set aside for pure gratitude, I get to work.

The same is true for anyone who takes a risk and goes out on a limb to tear a dream right out of the sky. It’s scary and thrilling, and both of those feelings motivate in equal measure. Sure, you can absolutely be bogged down by the idea of, “What if it doesn’t work out?” But you can be equally raised up by the idea of, “And what if it does?” Rise up out of the bog. Life is so damn short. Do work that matters.

This road ain’t easy but good God it is worth it – today we’re all living proof of that. Happy 4th!

career, entrepreneurship, time, work

Leap: Working for Yourself Doesn’t Equal Leisure

Christa Avampato

People are funny.

Yesterday someone asked me how I was enjoying my life of leisure. Someone else asked me how it feels to have all this free time now that I am unemployed. I was equally confused by both of them and set them straight (quickly):

A.) I am hardly living a life of leisure. I’m working a lot more now for myself than I was a few weeks ago when I was working for someone else. The difference is that now I work on projects that light me up and that I decided were worth my time rather than having someone else dictate work that I felt was largely pointless given its lack of usefulness to just about anyone.

B.) I’m not unemployed; I work for myself and not out of necessity. I chose this path.

Here’s the lay of the land in my new world of work:
When you work for someone else, you set aside a (big) portion of your day in exchange for a stable salary. Usually that time is blocked off on a regular schedule and you get into a routine: getting ready for work, the rhythm of the work day, and then traveling back from work into your personal life. When you work for yourself, the boundaries are a lot less clear. You need to set up your schedule with discipline and you work far more hours for yourself than you do when you work for someone else. Luckily, your passion for the work makes the longer hours worthwhile.

Working for yourself is a huge time commitment. Remember, you’re doing everything yourself – from the mundane administrative work to the big picture strategic thinking. It’s rewarding, but it’s not leisure. It’s work and it takes time.

You keep your current clients happy, you pitch new business, and you research for new leads. That cycle of work has to be maintained to keep the business going. The freedom and the passion you feel for your work provides a tremendous amount of satisfaction with opportunities to constantly learn and grow. It’s a ball and a half but it needs near-constant attention, especially at the start.

This life isn’t for everyone, but it is most certainly for me. I’ve never felt better about my career and life, present and future. There’s so much opportunity all around us and I’m grateful for the time to make the most of it. We only get one crack at this life in this form; every second counts!

books, career, entrepreneurship, time, work

Leap: Your Time Is Priceless

Christa Avampato

Would you run out into the street, open your wallet, and hand out money to anyone and everyone you saw? Probably not. So why would you do that with your time?

Escape from Cubicle Nation by Pam Slim and The $100 Startup by Chris Guillebeau are must-reads for anyone who has taken, is taking, or is contemplating taking a big leap into a freelance life. They are both loaded with inspiring and practical information.

Of all the tidbits of wisdom and tools that they offer, the one that truly stands out like a shining beacon of reason has to do with valuing time. Nothing will get you to understand the worth of your time more than working for yourself. Pam Slim goes so far as to say that entrepreneurs, and particularly those just starting out, need to “be ruthless with their time.”

Pam and Chris are right on: your time is now at a premium. And not just the hours you may set aside for work, but all of your time. Working for yourself you become acutely aware that your time is your most valuable asset because it is at the core of every decision you make in your business. Don’t just give it away to to everyone who requests it. Treat it like the greatest treasure you could hold because it is.