I love this commercial for its focus on the use of technology to connect people across generations in a spirit of joy and fun. This is the promise I’m intent on fulfilling in my new role as the Director of Envolve Innovation Lab, a healthcare tech innovation center owned by Centene, where I will be working on artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR) products. I’m using my love of business, design, and technology to help people live healthier, happier lives. This is the kind of work I was born to do.
Month: July 2016
Wonder: Be patient with yourself
“Nothing in nature blooms all year. Be patient with yourself.” ~Unknown
You won’t be at the top of your game every hour of every day for your entire life. It’s a balance. Sometimes you’re flying high and sometimes you’re hiding under the bed. Life is a wild ride, not a steady path. I spend a lot of time being very tough on myself. I know a lot of you do, too.
So as a reminder to us all, let’s remember there’s an ebb and flow to our days. Enjoy the highs and learn from the lows. Understand that it’s all a cycle, and eventually all we really need to do is take care of ourselves, take care of others, and do as much good as we can wherever we are with whatever we have.
Wonder: Be everything that you are
“You are allowed to be both a masterpiece and a work in progress, simultaneously.” ~Unknown
This quote bubbled to the top of my mind as I listened to Tom Friedman talk to Charlie Rose about his new book, Thank You for Being Late. We are pushed to go so quickly in this world, to change with the times. To keep up, grow, see, hear, and do faster, better, and more than ever before. It can lead us to be very tough on ourselves for not getting everything done perfectly every single time.
It’s no coincidence that this unprecedented level of change at an unprecedented pace has coincided with a happiness pandemic in the U.S. This article in MarketWatch outlines some of the reasons, but I think it’s Tom Friedman who’s really onto the crux of our deep unhappiness. We are much too hard on ourselves. We don’t let ourselves be beginners. We don’t let ourselves be works in progress. And we don’t let others do this either. We are going too fast.
So right now, take a moment. Think about what makes you marvelous, even the smallest slightest things. Maybe things no one else even knows about you. And then also think about all of the things you’re learning. Follow your curiosities with wild abandon. Don’t apologize for being at the start of your journey. Don’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle, as Jon Acuff so beautifully said. Let yourself be amazing, and also be in the process of becoming someone even greater. And love all of you—who you were, who you are, and who will you be.
Wonder: My new podcast idea
For about a year, I’ve been thinking of creating a podcast. Several years ago, I received voice over training and made a commercial demo. I took a podcasting class through the DC Public Library in October. I’ve got all of the software and hardware that I need to get going. What I’ve been needing is the time, space, and an idea to make it happen. And now, those three stars have aligned and I want to run the idea by you for your feedback.
So here’s the idea: what if I invited a person or small group of people who are interesting and interested over to my house, made a meal, and let the conversation flow around a specific topic? And what if by listening to the podcast you would have a seat at the table, too, to hear everything that’s said? The conversation might go in any number of directions. It could be about about food, art, music, politics, a news event, society, fashion, technology, science, media, medicine, health, education, travel, books, movies, the past, the present, or the future. Or all of those things combined. Would you listen? Would you be a guest at the table and on the show?
Possible names might be:
– A Seat at the Table
– Sunday Dinner
– Sunday Night Dinner Party
– Breaking Bread
What do you think?
Wonder: Let’s be United Outside with REI in D.C. this summer
Tired of the election season already? Me, too. To take my mind off of the chaos, I’m excited about REI’s summer of events in and around D.C. just announced on Unitedoutside.com. Want to join me on some of these adventures (and have some s’mores along the way)?
This campaign is heralding the arrival of REI’s flagship store 2 blocks from my apartment in Washington, D.C. To gear up and celebrate its impending arrival on October 21st, REI has put together an incredible slate of events that kick off this week. Most of them are free and all of them are fun. From trivia nights to how-to workshops to outdoor movie screenings, there is something for everyone. They’ve also put together a handful paid excursions to places like Great Falls, Virginia, a kayak tour of the D.C. monuments, and outings to local restaurants like Cappy’s and Birch & Barley.
Getting outside into nature is one of my promises to myself this year and I’m so excited to have REI to help me plan and take those adventures! Let me know if this interests you and we’ll link up!
Wonder: Happy birthday, America, from the nation’s capital
I went to the Nats game on Saturday night and when I heard that national anthem just before the game started, I got a little shiver. I know we have enormous, disgusting, hideous problems in this country. There are still too many people struggling and falling through the cracks in our economy and in our society. There is too much hate, too much intolerance, and too much violence. And still, I believe in this country because I know we can and will do better.
I got to Nats Stadium by taking a very long walk from my apartment right through the center of Capitol Hill. Every time I see that beautiful dome and the lawn that expands down the Washington Monument, I can’t help but fall in love with this city and this country again. America, you’ve come a long way in your 240 year history, and you’ve got a long way to go. Today, I celebrate your journey and promise to do my part to help you become all that you are capable of being for everyone who calls you home.
Wonder: Zoe
On Monday morning, Phineas and I are driving out to Virginia to meet Zoe, a beautiful 3-year-old chiweenie (half chihuahua / half dachshund) whom we hope to adopt. Zoe’s mom recently went into hospice care and passed away. One of her final wishes was for Dogs Deserve Better, an incredible dog rescue organization in Northern Virginia, to find Zoe a loving forever home.
Zoe means “life” in Greek. If she and Phin are a match, I promise her (and her mom, foster mom, and Dogs Deserve Better) that Zoe will have the happiest, healthiest, and most joyful life. She will be considered a gift that will be honored and respected and loved, as all lives should be, for all of her days.
Wonder: Narrative’s soul
“Specificity is the soul of narrative.” ~Judge John Hodgman
I’m using part of this long weekend to get back to writing. Emerson has been waiting for me for a few months while I traveled, moved, and got my life set up again in a new place. So today I dust off those cobwebs and look at her life and trials with new fresh eyes to begin the next and final round of edits.
As I take up the task of these edits, I’m reminded of what it means to literally create the soul of a character. Not a hollow shell with a name who faces challenges in a setting, but a living, breathing soul whom you root for, who conveys her emotions in a way that is visceral. You hurt when she hurts. You cry when she cries. You smile when she smiles. You win when she wins.
The only way to do that is to get specific, to place the reader right into her mind and her heart. That’s not an easy thing to do, but it’s always fun to do the impossible.
Wonder: Manifest what you need
Recently, I’ve had some pretty remarkable reminders that we can attract and create what we need. Even if it seems improbable or impossible, somehow once we decide we are ready for something to happen, the way opens. Our state of mind is especially important during difficult times, when all seems lost, when it seems that nothing we do will make things better. It’s times like these that I stop. I regroup. I let my mind and body relax. I breathe. I let go.
And then something rises up – an idea, an image, some untapped source of strength I didn’t even know was there. Just when I’m as down as I think I can be, I find myself floating back up to the surface. Life’s like that. A wave, a roller coaster, a trip with plenty of winding roads.
Maybe you’re in this cycle right now. Maybe something difficult or sad or disappointing happened. Maybe you’re worried, confused, or unsure. Close your eyes and imagine the best possible outcome. Imagine leading yourself out of your situation today and into a brighter tomorrow. Believe that it will get better and when you open your eyes, work hard to make it so. You can do this.
Christa Avampato 