Author: 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.
career, choices, decision-making, education, teaching, yoga

Step 198: Decisions, Iriquois-style

Christa Avampato

I heard Jeffrey Hollender, CEO of Seventh Generation, speak at the World Innovation Forum and he explained his company’s decision-making philosophy with respect to the environment: they consider how their decisions will impact the world in seven generations (roughly 70 years.) Seventh Generation took a page from the law of the Iroquois. After Hollender’s inspiring talk, I created a similar decision-making rule for myself: when making important decisions, I think about how I’ll feel about my choice 7 years from now.

This has brought up some interesting effects that may seem small on the surface, though are huge underneath:

1.) I had a hard time figuring out how to fit my yoga teacher training into my schedule. I had to make trade-offs with some other projects like Innovation Station and finishing my first e-book. Ultimately, I decided that the yoga training could lead to a service that I could offer independently, giving me more flexibility to pursue so many of my interests. 7 years from now, I will be very happy I gave entrepreneurship a shot with Compass Yoga.

2.) I went to Greece a few weeks ago and soon after I made those travel plans my sister asked if I would visit for a week only two weeks after I returned from Greece to help her out with her kids while my brother-in-law was out-of-town. I usually wouldn’t ask to take my vacation days from work so close together. I’m in Florida now having a blast with my little nieces. 7 years from now, I will be so grateful for this time – I am already grateful for it now. Work will manage without me just fine.

3.) When the opportunity to teach at LIM College presented itself, working the class into my schedule was difficult. I could have just passed on the chance to make things easier at work. However, I’ve been wanting to teach a college level for the past few years, and that opportunity can be tough for a young professional to come by. So even though it was difficult to re-work my schedule, I knew that if I didn’t accept the teaching assignment 7 years from now I would regret it.

4.) Now 34, I’m considering how I spend my work life. For some time, I have wanted to turn more of my career toward the field of education in some way. It would be easy to just continue down the professional path I’m on, even though I know it’s not my passion. I make a good living at a popular company. 7 years from now, I know that I will wish I had made the move to education much earlier on. So even though making a career change can be challenging, particularly in this economy, I have to go for it.

This decision-making philosophy is helpful, but not easy to implement. It requires trusting my gut much more often than my head. The heart can take the long-view; the head can’t. In recent years, my head has won more often than my heart. The practical side of me has taken a bit too much control. I need a better heart-mind balance in my decisions. Thinking 7 years ahead helps me do that. I’m grateful to the Iroquois and Seventh Generation for the lesson.

The image above can be found here.

education, learning, teaching

Step 197: Teaching as Service

Christa Avampato

“Live each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each.” ~ Henry David Thoreau

The syllabus for my LIM College class is coming together. We’ve worked through some required reading choices, made some structural decisions, and began the search for final project ideas that the students will work on in teams. I’m an exceptional student, and I’m learning fast that there is not a direct correlation between student skills and teaching skills. Previously, I thought there was a strong linkage. Teaching, unlike studying, takes us to the very edge of our learning every time. We can only teach what we truly know and embody.

I have a lot to learn about how a college operates, how staff and faculty work with one another, and how to make a mountain of information palatable and intriguing for college students. I have no doubt that I’ll get there – it’s just going to take loads of muscle power on my part.

As I left my meeting at LIM this morning, I thought about the correlations between teaching and leadership. I have always believed that being a leader is not telling people what to do – it’s about paving the way for others to spread their wings. It’s about providing resources, support, and a knowledgable, empathic ear. It’s about helping people be the very best they can be.

Teaching, as I see it now, is the same thing. Give students some knowledge, resources, and a structure that fosters their own creative thinking. And again, that empathic ear is as useful in the classroom as it is in the boardroom.

As a new adjunct faculty member, I’m a student as well. I’m learning how to craft a syllabus and then bring it to life. I’m learning about new teaching technologies as my class will be done half in the classroom and half online. From the other side of the table, I’m now crafting and analyzing grading systems, workloads, objectives, and then figuring how to map objectives and tie them into weekly lesson plans.

I’m a doer – the strategic thinking phase of a project, I will admit, is not my favorite. I want to roll up my sleeves and get to work. I need to tinker and test and try on these teaching shoes. I’m anxious to get into the classroom, meet the students, and begin.

On my way out from LIM this morning, I saw the Henry David Thoreau quote on their bulletin board and I took a deep breath. It’s okay, and actually a privilege, to be at the beginning. And the more time (within reason) we spend at the beginning, the better the end result will be. Every task, just like every fruit, has its season. Thank you for the reminder, Mr. Thoreau.

relationships, silence, values

Step 196: The Angry Truth

Christa Avampato

”The truth will set you free. But first it will piss you off.” ~ Gloria Steinem

I laughed out loud at this quote and then I thought, “You got that right, Gloria.” The truth may lead us to liberation, though first it does make us uncomfortable, particularly if that truth goes against a long-held belief. And what if you’re the truth-sayer of your friends, family, co-workers? What if you and the truth have come to an agreement that it will present itself and you will give it a voice? Do you turn into someone who sets others free, and first makes them angry?

I have this role. Of course I have biases, lens, that filter my view of the world. Everyone does. I am very conscious of the fact that I don’t say the truth, but my truth. I call things as I see them, though I admit that may not always be how they are from every angle. And I encourage other people to say their truth, to gives their points of view freely and openly. The truth, however biased, teaches us something – about ourselves, about others, and about the world. I’ve noticed that my closest friends share my truths. We found each other by speaking our minds. The truth leads us to our pack.

That said, speaking our truths is a tall order. Someone, always, will disagree with us and be angry about our point of view. Even the most saintly of human beings, Ghandi, Dr. Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, dealt with this same difficulty. No one who speaks the truth is immune to some type of backlash.

Take the tall order. Freedom isn’t free – it takes guts to find it for ourselves, and even more guts to help others find their own freedom. The alternative is that we all stay kind of content and trapped. That sounds like a serious degree of hell to me. I’d rather speak up and deal with the consequences.

business, entrepreneurship, yoga

Step 195: The Speed of Impossible Tasks

Christa Avampato

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” ~ Nelson Mandela

Compass Yoga feels like this to me right now, but my history of finding a way through keeps discouragement at bay most of the time. I struggled a bit to find a yoga studio that provided comprehensive, affordable teacher training with a flexible schedule. A very logical service to provide seemed unattainable as I flipped through the glossy pages of Yoga Journal. Sonic Yoga made that type of training possible for me – it just took me a while (and lots of internet searching) to find my way there.

Then I started to think about how I could us yoga to help the world and attract students, either private or in small groups, that wouldn’t require me to open up my own studio. I took a page from companies like Print for Change and Design 21 who donate a part of their proceeds to nonprofits. I do the same, giving the tax deduction to students and giving them the option to choose what charity to fund.

I put up a website – which I thought would also take a while to craft and was actually done in a weekend. WordPress, and my experience with this blog, made that task easy, or at least relatively easy. Now I’m working on a plan to market myself as a teacher by applying to do some speaking engagements, writing for well-known yoga sites, and offering some free classes to nonprofits in public spaces. The progress is slow – actually at this moment it’s crawling along though moving forward. Sloooowly and steady. After all, that is what yoga teaches us: the beauty of slowing down.

I get frustrated when I think about just how slow it’s going, despite the many hours of work cultivating and following leads. I think about how I’ve transitioned quickly into new parts of my career, to new cities where I’ve lived, to new hobbies and projects I’ve taken on. My life, for as far back as I can remember, has been about speed. Starting and running a business is more about what’s right than it is about what gets me the quickest win.

It seems impossible to me – this idea that slowing down will actually serve me better in the long run. I constantly battle the idea of “if I don’t do these 10 things right now someone else will.” I have SBP – small business paranoia. Though when I force myself to stop racing, when I stop trying to be one (or 100) more step(s) ahead, I can think more clearly and the task at-hand doesn’t seem poised to crush me under its hefty weight. It’s just sitting there, a mountain of work, waiting for me to carry away one stone at a time.

There are a lot of stones. Some of them are really heavy and I’m going to need to ask for help to lift them – yet another thing I am not so good at. I do see the benefits of taking my time with this new venture. The question is did I really learn to master my mind to exist, at least for a little while, in stillness.

The image above can be found here.

finance, money, yoga

Guest Post on Elephant Journal: Yoga and Personal Finance

Christa Avampato

I have been considering the idea for a book about yoga and personal finance. Here are the very needs of the idea in a guest blog post on Elephant Journal. Showcases what the yamas and niyamas taught me about managing my money. Let me know what you think!

books, leadership

Step 194: Dragons, Fires, and Hornets, Oh My!

Christa Avampato

I live in a cool building. Residents leave books, magazines, and nicknacks of all kinds down in the lobby on two community tables. Recently, I picked up several books down there that I’ve been wanting to read, one being The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson. I’ve been seeing Larsson’s trilogy all over the place – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire are the other two. I haven’t a clue what the books are about; I just love that a man is writing about women actually doing something in the world that’s perceived as risky. And I like the book cover art.

I did read Larsson’s biography on the inside cover. He was the editor of Expo Magazine and a leading expert on anti-democratic activity. He delivered the manuscripts for all three books at once shortly before his death in 2004, having never written a novel before. 6 years later, they are all the rage. I’m sure there’s a story in there somewhere.

Inspired by Larsson’s titles, I did a little hornet nest kicking of my own. Yesterday I went to hear an executive from a Fortune 500 company speak. This executive, while known outwardly as an innovator, has recently been quoted as calling product development in the digital space “chasing shiny new objects.” That phrase makes me giggle. The world isn’t going digital, it’s gone digital. I fear for the people working at this company. In 10 years, despite its current dominance, I’m predicting that it will cease to be a relevant player because of its leader’s short-sightedness on how important digital is to its customer-base.

The Q&A session arrived, and I wanted to ask about the mobile technology projects that were recently and publicly cancelled by the company. When I was younger, I never hesitated to ask questions. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve tempered that impulse a bit, packaging my many questions of my youth in one pointed, more mature question. I asked very calmly about the leader’s thoughts on digital and received the response, “Well we definitely have to win there. I will just DIE if our competition beats us to that space,”she said through a very toothy grin.

If that Q&A session was an episode of The Office, the next frame would show me staring at the camera with a deadpan, bored look on my face. Newsflash Your Executive Excellency: the competition has already beaten you to the space, placed major PR bucks against their new digital products, and you don’t even know it. Your team has my sympathy.

My question had a bit of an agenda, and my agenda, as my pal Kelly would say, was morbid curiosity. It is amazing to me how many people in leadership positions think they’re too busy to be forward thinking. Having a vision, which means knowing where they are, where their competition is, and where the subtle and not-so-subtle shifts in the market are taking place is THE job of leadership.

Though the executive’s answer was hardly fulfilling, I’m still glad I asked. Calling in the Dragons, fanning fires, and disturbing the hornets involves some risk, but I think it’s better to call a spade and spade and understand it for what it really is rather than pretending that bad decisions are justifiable when better decisions are available. I wonder if that’s what Larsson is getting at in his trilogy, too.

change, future, yoga

Step 193: Changing Course

Christa Avampato

“How much pain they have cost us, the evils which have never happened.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

“Fear paralyzes; curiosity empowers. Be more interested than afraid.” ~ Patricia Alexander,
American educational psychologist

Thomas Jefferson and Patricia Alexander talk to us about worry and its cohort, fear – that nagging little voice in the back of our minds that has us concerned with circumstances we cannot control, imagined scenarios, or thoughts akin to “what makes you think you can do (x)?” I’ve had this ill of worry since I returned from Greece. Greece and the Greek people I found to be a beautiful; the yoga retreat fell short for a variety of reasons – the biggest being that I just didn’t fit with the school of thought being promoted. The yoga, as defined by the retreat, was not my yoga.

I’ve been on the worry path wondering, “now what do I do? How do I move forward? Or worse yet, do I not move forward at all?” After a number of conversations with friends, the worry has subsided. I won’t move down the path I thought I was going to be on. I’m hopping off that train and looking for a new road. My yoga doesn’t exist where I thought it should be. It’s out there somewhere – destination TBD. I’m not standing still, just making the conscious decision to move on.

It’s hard to leave the nest, the nurturing home that felt right yesterday, and today which I recognize is not my own. For the next little while, I’m going to try out a few different styles and follow my gut to find what’s right for me. My friend, Laura, and I have talked about planning a retreat in the near future, the kind of retreat we’d like most to be on, because we don’t need permission any more to “do”, just the will to give it a go. Details to follow.

Worry can paralyze us – it has certainly paralyzed me for the past week. I slept a lot, talked to friends who could help me reason through my disappointment and disillusion, and considered how the future may take shape, a different shape than I’ve been planning. At the moment it’s a tiny speck out there in the distance. The next few weeks, I’ll be trying to bring it closer and more into focus.

food, health

Step 192: Why I joined a CSA (Community-Supported Agriculture)

Christa Avampato

I grew up in a rural area in upstate New York. At that time, CSAs did not exist where I lived. Eating local was the only affordable option.

Now, our societal eating habits have made a 180. Cheap food comes from many miles away, is mechanically manufactured rather than raised and harvested, and is largely unhealthy as its practically steeped in “sanitary” chemicals we can barely pronounce. American consumers are now in a catch 22 – how to live within their means and eat healthfully is a complicated matter. Too complicated for even many PhD scientists to decipher.

Sorting out the myths and marketing in grocery stores is a complicated puzzle. I recently watched the movie Food, Inc., both a realistic look at our modern food chain (which is scary) and a possible look into our future of supporting sustainable, small-scale agriculture (which is hopeful). The findings in the movie are so horrifying that I needed to do something, to somehow participate in supporting a more sustainable lifestyle and local farmers who are trying to do the right thing.

To do my own little part, I signed up this year for a CSA, a group of people who get together and pre-pay for a season’s worth of weekly fresh deliveries of fruits and vegetables (and sometimes eggs, meat, and pasta) from a small-scale local farmer. I found mine CSA through http://www.justfood.org. I paid $250 for 20 weeks of fresh veggies – $12.50 / week. A good deal. I’m trying some new vegetables that I’ve never even picked up in the store – bok choy, anyone? – and it feels good to connect with other people who care about the local eating movement.

Our CSA’s farm is in Connecticut and we’ll be able to visit later this summer. For now I’m enjoying my plates of fresh produce knowing that my small contribution, combined with the contributions of others may be at the beginning of turning back to a healthier past.

The photo above depicts a recently weekly delivery of radishes, parsley, and a variety of leafy greens from my CSA.

community, work

Step 191: The Respect of the Few or the One

Christa Avampato

“The respect of those you respect is worth more than the applause of the multitude.” ~ Arnold Glasow, American author

For my social media class at LIM College, I’m planning to set up a series of projects that the students will complete so that they actually participate in social media, not just consume it. The class will include a section on analytics, which gets at a core question with no clear-cut answer: “Was the campaign effective?” Which begs the question, “What does effective mean?”

It’s easy to measure clicks, site visits, comments, even to track a social media consumer’s journey through an entire site. What’s not so easy to measure is inspiration, influence, and respect. When building communities, online or off, it’s worthwhile to consider whether our primary goal is a large group or a highly-engaged group, no matter what the size. Did they respond to our call to action? Did they take up their own project thanks to our courage to carve our own path?

Some say that [mass] imitation is the highest form of flattery. I’d rather a single, simple email, phone message, or comment from someone I admire that says, “nice work.”

change, choices, education

Step 190: Structured Flexibility and Flexible Structure

Christa Avampato

“At the moment of commitment, the universe conspires to assist you.” ~ Goethe

This morning I had a terrific meeting with Dudley Blossom, the head of the Marketing Department at LIM College where I’m going to teach a class this Fall entitled “Guerilla, Viral, and Social Media Marketing.” We were tossing around ideas for the syllabus, getting it all down on paper. My first draft netted out at 6 pages, about 4 pages too long. To do that much editing, we needed to go back to the basics. Simplify, simplify, simplify.

This subject is so interesting because just when people think they’ve pegged the future of social media, there’s a beautiful disruption that takes content creators, consumers, and trend analysts in a new, never-seen-before direction. The way that the social media world exists today may be turned on its head by the time we wind up the semester in December. Still, we need to give students a sense of direction and give ourselves a way to change direction if the market warrants it.

What we need for this class is structured flexibility, or flexible structure. Social media, like yoga, like writing, like performance of any kind, needs to live in this in-between world. We have to be able to adapt on the fly. The more I think about my life and its directions, the more I see that I’ve been working on the skill of adaptation for many years, from so many different angles. A millieu of commitments made and commitments changed. As my friend, Amanda says, “You can choose 1 side or the other of an argument, but sitting on the fence is the weak position. And know that if convincing, contrary evidence is presented to you, you can change your position.”

I’m taking Amanda’s sage advice, and applying it to my syllabus for the LIM class and my life in general. Choices, and conviction behind those choices, do have a magic to them.

The image above can be found here.