creative, creative process, creativity, fear, product development, work

Beautiful: A Lesson from American Express and The Ellen Show – You Have to Rise Above Fear

Christa Avampato
The Ellen Amex photo gift card
The Ellen Amex photo gift card

When I joined American Express in the summer of 2008, my first project was to develop a photo gift card that would give customers the opportunity to put a personal photo on a gift card. On Thursday, that product was featured on The Ellen Show with the original template design I worked on. My VP at the time said I had a $200K budget and 7 weeks to launch the product from start to finish or I’d be out of a job. He also said he and my director had no time to help me. This happened the same day Lehman Brothers failed, the bottom fell out of the economy, and the company embarked on its first major round of layoffs as the stock price fell to a record low of $9 / share. Panic was everywhere, and for good reason. I put my fear aside and got to work because I needed that job. The project launched on time and under budget, and the product is still going strong today despite intense criticism from many of my then co-workers.

Some day I’ll write about everything I learned during those dark days of our economy. Here’s the biggest lesson: in every circumstance, we have to rise above fear and criticism to do our best work. We have to look way out onto the fringes and trust our creative gut to pull the trigger, even and especially during difficult times. In the short run, this is a tough path though eventually history rewards us with the knowledge that our intuition is one of our most powerful and valuable possessions. It will always guide us in the right direction if we allow it to have its say.

books, grateful, gratitude, inspiration, South Africa

Beautiful: Nelson Mandela, My Hero

Christa Avampato
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela

The summer of 2006 was not my finest hour. There was one light that I kept turning to over and over again during those difficult months – Nelson Mandela’s book Long Walk To Freedom. I bought it as I prepared for a class trip to South Africa with my business school friends the following March and it changed my life. From the moment I started that book, I committed myself to living my life as fully as possible in every single moment. I would never again say that something was impossible. He showed all of us that sheer will and the refusal to give up is enough to accomplish anything. Anything. To this day, that trip to South Africa is my favorite trip of all time. I knew when I left that I’d return there many times over in my life. It’s one of the very few places I’ve considered living if I ever live outside of the U.S. It is a magical country with some of the kindest people I’ve ever met.

When I heard the news of Mr. Mandela’s passing yesterday, I was home writing. My eyes immediately teared up and my heart felt heavy. Tears of gratitude mixed with tears of sadness. His light was so bright that I thought it would go on forever. And in many ways, it will. His light is alive in every person inspired by his actions and words. Against all odds, he shifted the world toward justice, acceptance, and fairness. Through his enlightenment, he enlightened all of us. How lucky we are to have had someone so good with us for so long.

choices, dreams, fear, hope, opportunity

Beautiful: Choose Hope

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.” ~ Nelson Mandela.

When faced with a decision, we need to follow the path paved with what we love. It’s the other choice, the “sensible” one, that’s really dangerous because it leads us away from who we really are and what we really care about. The sensible choice doesn’t take advantage of our talents and passions. It traps us by constructing limitations on our capabilities.

So break through and break out of that construction designed by fear. Focus your attention and energy on the possibility, and not on the contingency plans. You’re brave, smart, and resourceful. If things fall apart, you’ll find a way to adjust and adapt. You’ll have the strength to cross that bridge if and when you need to. If you take a chance on a dream, the dream will take a chance on you. And that’s where the magic happens – when we finally stop worrying about invented fears and take action on the opportunities right in front of us.

work, writing

Beautiful: Capture Your Moments

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“Keep a daily diary of your dreams, goals, and accomplishments. If your life is worth living, it’s worth recording.” ~ Marilyn Grey.

For the past couple of days, I’ve been taking my cue from The Big Bang Theory‘s Sheldon Cooper. To get comfortable with my new voice over microphone and recording software, I started creating “Christa’s log”. I spend a couple of minutes recording how I’m doing, what I’m worried about, what I’m excited about, and what’s top of mind for me in any area of my life. I don’t know if these recording will ever hear the light of day, but it’s been a fun way for me to capture what’s happening in my life. I feel like I’m experiencing a lot of change, and am gearing up for even more change in the year ahead. I think these voice logs are a fun way to capture my experiences.

I spend a lot of time on this blog, social media, and on the media outlets I write for in an attempt to capture what’s happening in my life and what’s happening in the world that catches my interest. My hope is that this helps others. It certainly helps me. It’s my anchor and my compass. When everything is in flux, my writing is always there to help me find my way. Each post is its own little stake in the ground to say, “I was here and this is how today unfolded from my vantage point.” Like breadcrumbs, they give me a way to look back to see where I was, how far I’ve come, and appreciate how far I still have yet to go. In my writing, I can always find my way back to my path.

choices, future, happiness

Beautiful: Take It From Snoopy and Look Up for a Better Tomorrow

Christa Avampato

“Keep looking up. That’s the secret of life.” ~ Snoopy

Sometimes things don’t go according to plan. We get disappointed, dismayed, and discouraged by events out of our control. But here’s what’s within our control: how we use today to help us tomorrow.

Every circumstance, and especially difficult ones, teaches us about the world and our place in it. We can use that learning to make better choices and take better actions. They teach us that we’re strong, capable, and adaptable. We fear less because we trust more. We’re secure in the knowledge that no matter what situation arises, we can handle it. No matter where we are today, we have to believe that tomorrow will be better because we will make it so.

writer, writing

Beautiful: A Few of the Reasons Why I Write

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

I write to think clearly and to stay aware and awake. Being a writer has helped me to see the world with more hope. It’s helped me excavate my own past for lessons I can carry forward into my future. It’s also given me the great good fortune to dig into stories, some known and some not so known, to give other people hope, help, and inspiration. I write to help people let go of their disappointments, to embrace their opportunities (even if they don’t readily see them), and to show people they are not alone in their experiences. I write to learn, to piece together disparate data points that lead me to new discoveries. I write to make a life and make a living that’s infused with meaning and purpose.

Why do you write?

faith, grateful, gratitude, Second Step, work

Beautiful: Thankful for Unknown Blessings

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“Give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way.” ~ Native American Proverb

Every day I wake up with two thoughts – “Thank you” and “Today something amazing is going to happen.” I’m thankful that I get to wake up at all, that I’m healthy, and that I spend my time doing things I love. I’m a news junkie and one of the wonderful / awful side effects of my news addiction is that I hear a lot of stories of hardship and struggle. This keeps me from taking anything for granted and it motivates me do things to help make this world a better place.

I recently added the “today something amazing is going to happen” bit to my morning meditation. I believe in the power of intention and I’ve seen that the more often I intently look for blessings, the more likely I am to find them, create them, and recognize them when they cross my path. This belief restores my faith every day in our ability to attract wonder and absorb magic so that we can pass it on to others in our words and actions.

Every day behind the scenes, the Universe is working on blessings to send our way. So long as those blessings find us deeply engaged in work we love, we have the opportunity to hitch our work to the shooting star that races across the sky of our lives. This is the thought that keeps me going and will keep me saying thank you every morning that I have.

clarity, cooking, dreams, Second Step, sleep

Beautiful: Making Bread Overnight and Writing in Dreams

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

Bread making and sleep are magical processes. I put flour, salt, yeast, and water into a bowl in specific proportions, mix them up, cover the dough, and let it sit for 20 hours. When I wake up the next morning, it’s transformed into the perfect sticky consistency because I left it alone. When I need a booster shot of inspiration for my writing, I stuff my brain full of information that relates to what I’m trying to write and then I let my brain work it out while I sleep. Just as the light of day starts to filter into my apartment, the words I need start to filter right into my mind as I’m half-awake. I grab my pen and paper to get it all down.

The trick is to give your work what it needs and then walk away. Get the right ingredients into the right environment to work together. Arm yourself with data and information that your brain can sift and mesh together. The process is about you, and it’s also about you getting out-of-the-way. There’s a little mystery in creativity, a little magic inside each of us. There’s a time to work and a time to give up, and we need to do both to come up with something that’s inspired and inspiring.

good fortune, grateful, gratitude, happiness

Beautiful: Gratitude is the Beginning

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

The act of giving thanks is powerful. And contagious. When we give thanks for one thing, we inspire others to do the same. And as we see one blessing, others begin to come into focus. Joy is what bubbles up when we realize there is always something to be grateful for. We don’t need to seek happiness. Once we start giving thanks and happiness will find us.

grateful, gratitude, holiday, thankful, thanksgiving

Beautiful: Lights, Camera, Thanksgiving

Christa Avampato

“Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action.” ~ W.J. Cameron.

There is so much to do on Thanksgiving. So much to consider, celebrate, and embrace. We’re cooking, setting the table, welcoming guests, traveling, and giving thanks. I’m thankful for all of you because we cheer each other on, encourage one another, and keep the light going in every circumstance. Every day I feel more fortunate than I did the day before and that’s because of you. Wherever you are, whatever you do, whomever you’re with today, I hope you find love and gratitude and joy in every single moment. Happy Thanksgiving.