books, choices, decision-making, technology

Beginning: My E-reader Dilemma, Solved

Christa Avampato

I’ve changed my mind a hundred times on which e-reader to buy, that is once I decided I did want an e-reader. I love books, the feel and smell of them. I even like the feel of the weight in my hands, but not on my shoulders.

I just finished Conversations with Myself, a collection of papers, interviews, and letters from Nelson Mandela’s archive. At 480 pages, it is a hefty item to tote around on the crowded NYC subway to and from work. I looked around the car and saw everyone on their devices that slide easily in and our of their bags, no sign of trouble when flipping the page or holding it close to them as they navigated the too-small space between them and their closest neighbors.

I, on the other handle, was fumbling to such a degree that I just packed the book away in my overstuffed bag, where it barely fit. On my subway car, I was the only person with a paper book, a book I borrowed from he library! Despite that I make my living working in mobile technology, I was a relic of a time gone by. Books made out of paper? They call those antiques!

And now it was time to take a serious look at my decision tree. I have been comparing models of e-readers since the first Kindle was a whisper in the market. I took my friend, Susan‘s, advice from job searching and applied it to my e-reader decision. I stopped comparing models and considered my perfect e-reader, available options aside.

Here’s what I need, in order of importance:

1.) A comfortable reading experience – I spend so much of my day looking at shiny screens and I’m already worried about my eyes. I need a near-paper reading experience.

2.) Borrow library books – I love the New York Public Library and I’d like to be able to download e-books from the library to my e-reader.

3.) An electronic notepad – I do my best writing while I’m traveling and carrying my laptop with me is getting to be a burden. I don’t need anything too fancy – just a way to easily jot down my thoughts and upload them to my laptop when I get home.

Now that I knew what kind of e-reader I really wanted, it was easier to evaluate options. By getting clear on my needs, the clear answer rose to the top: meet my new e-reader, the new Kindle Touch, featuring e-ink, library book borrowing, and personal annotation capabilities (Kindle does one better on this last point by sinking all my documents across all of my devices.)

And this is just the beginning of what it offers. It will be ready to ship around November 21st and I can’t wait to get started on it. My shoulders are going to be so happy with this decision. Already I can hear them sighing, “It’s about time!” Indeed, it is.

business, career, yoga

Beginning: Moving Away from Welfare Yoga

Christa Avampato

Last week New York magazine ran an article entitled “Welfare Yoga” about the current state of yoga teachers and their lack of income sources. Below is the letter to the editor I wrote in response. The points raised in this piece further confirm that I made the right decision by turning away from the traditional studio teaching route; my gut steered me toward a brighter future by seeking to integrate with the traditional healthcare system.

“Dear Editor,

Thank you for your excellent piece “Welfare Yoga” on October 2, 2011. As a yoga instructor, I’ve been disappointed to see how the value of yoga classes in New York has been deeply diminished by offers through Groupon, Living Social, and other similar sites, as well as the less-than-savvy marketing efforts of many studios.

In many ways, yoga teachers have created the trend of cheap-to-free yoga to their own detriment. Now their own efforts have put them in the bind of people expecting free yoga and the studios not being able to keep their doors open. Rather than fixing this broken business model, an increasing number of studios are compounding the problem by generating their income through teacher training programs that produce even more teachers who compete for an ever-decreasing number of paying teacher gigs. It’s a vicious cycle that yogis are feeding at a dizzying rate.

Unfortunately, “karma” has been equated with “free” in the yoga world, and some teachers and practitioners have come to believe that all yoga should be free to everyone, regardless of the means of their students. We live in a world where eventually there is a cost for everything. In the case of yoga classes in New York City, the ones truly bearing the cost are the instructors who have to work several jobs in addition to (their often free) teaching so they can meet their own basic personal expenses.

Sadly, the only people we have to blame for this situation are ourselves.

Sincerely,
Christa Avampato”
economy, politics, Steve Jobs, success, Thomas Friedman

Beginning: The Secret to Everyone’s Success, a la Thomas Friedman and Steve Jobs

Christa Avampato

“The melancholy over Steve Jobs’s passing is about the loss of someone who personified so many of the leadership traits we know are missing from our national politics…He did not read the polls but changed the polls by giving people what he was certain they wanted and needed before they knew it; he was someone who was ready to pursue his vision in the face of long odds over multiple years; and, most of all, he was someone who earned the respect of his colleagues, not by going easy on them but by constantly pushing them out of their comfort zones and, in the process, inspiring ordinary people to do extraordinary things…There isn’t a single national politician today whom you would describe by those attributes.” ~ Thomas L. Friedman

This quote is excerpted from Tom Friedman’s immaculate weekly column in The New York Times. He has been perhaps the lone voice in our current policy debate who has been able not only to articulate our problems with laser beam accuracy, but to also formulate a plan of how to dig ourselves out. Friedman has been highly critical of both sides of the aisle – he’s not running for office, he’s not trying to make friends, and he’s not trying to support anyone’s agenda. He’s on our side – the side of people who are willing to buckle down and turn our economy around through our own volition. He’s giving a savvy and brutally honest voice to our concerns and worries, and also giving us a ray of hope that there actually is a way for ordinary folks to put our nation back on track toward a future that’s better than our present.

In the article he goes on to say that while it’s very easy to get caught up in what is being said – by Occupy Wall Street, politicians, and armchair pundits, “sometimes the news is also in the silence. “ What does that silence mean for us and for our communities, and for the many people who will come along after us? We need to put our own egos aside and consider what we’re leaving for them. My experience has been that the more frustrated people are, the more they shut down. Frustration leads too often to a feeling of power lost, and once someone feels completely depleted of power they have two choices: crawl into a corner or lash out.

Though I strongly disagree with the methods of Occupy Wall Street, I do understand their underlying emotional motivation. They are frustrated and feel like there isn’t anyone in policy listening to those concerns. Rather than slink off, they found others who have many of the same feelings. They have banded together in the hopes that their combined voices will be loud enough to stir change.

What they need to do now, what we all need to do, is what Jobs did so well – he didn’t like the future as it was so he invented his own and won people over to his way of seeing. As The Onion’s obituary of Steve Jobs so eloquently, if painfully, stated, “he was able to sit down, think clearly, and execute his ideas.” That was his secret and his legacy. It’s a blueprint we can all follow.

business, nonprofit, yoga

Beginning: Compass Yoga Files with the New York Department of State

Christa Avampato

Compass Yoga has taken another step on the journey toward incorporation. A few weeks back our attorneys filed our Articles of Incorporation with the Department of Education. The Articles of Incorporation explained our reasons for being, and the board and I worked closely with the attorneys to get our objectives and the associated language just right. These Articles set the stage for the financial, governance, and programming structure. Get those wrong, and the whole mission is at stake. Luckily, our phenomenal attorneys have given us top-notch support from the get-go.

The Department of Education gets involved because our mission is primarily one of teaching and instructing. Yesterday I found out that we sailed through the review process and they have given their consent for us to move to the next step – filing with the Department of State. The Department of State will now review the articles and if all goes well, then will officially give the incorporation green light for Compass Yoga.

So many of you have generously offered your support and advice in this process. On behalf of the board, I am so grateful to each of you and wanted to share this exciting update. The adventure continues, and there will be more to come!

loss, New York City, sadness

Beginning: My First Visit to the 9/11 Memorial

Christa Avampato
Freedom Tower

A few weeks ago I visited the 9/11 memorial site for the first time. The last time I set foot in that area was just a few days before September 11, 2001. I was home for a few weeks during a break from The Full Monty tour. I had never been to the World Trade Center, it was a beautiful day, and I decided to be a tourist in my own town. On September 9th, 2001 I flew back to Chicago to rejoin the tour and from there I watched as those towers came crashing down. I still have a hard time believing how those events unfolded, even though I now work right across the street from the site.

I was not a fan of the design when I first saw it. I wanted it completely covered over in grass, a sanctuary to honor the thousands of souls who lost their lives there on that ground. And though I do think a park would have been better, the designer really does pay tribute to all the people we lost. A great deal of care was taken in constructing the design. There will be no way for any future visitor to forget what happened on that ground.

Flowers to honor those lost on 9/11

The fact that hit me hardest during the visit was the idea that for many families and friends, this site is a cemetery – the only place they have to visit to commemorate the loss of their loved ones. I didn’t realize this until I saw flowers stuck into the craved names of the frames that surround the giant running pools of water. These pools take their shape and position from the bases of the towers. Every visitor is hit by the enormity of those buildings and the force it took to bring them down.

The idea that I could not shake, and continue to think about every day I go to my office, is all of the lost potential that still lies in the wake of that awful day, that will continue to lie there perhaps forever. 10 years on in Afghanistan, many more lives lost, and we are no closer to a free and safe world. I wonder if that collective societal sting will always be there. On the site of this memorial, I got a very tiny glimpse of what it must feel like for all these families and and friends who are not able to move on. It’s a lovely tribute to all of those people but sadly it doesn’t seem to offer us any hope of closure or healing. The overwhelming sadness and injustice of it all is still raw and palpable.

But maybe that’s the trick. Maybe we need to confront that sadness head on. Perhaps we need to sit with it and ask it what it needs to heal. The memorial does give us a physical place to go and grieve, and to be with others who are on the same journey. It does give us a place to go to say goodbye, and in that goodbye there may very well live the opportunity to let go in some small and necessary way.

art, creativity, Muppet

Beginning: Museum of the Moving Image Celebrates Jim Henson

Christa Avampato
Jim and his colorful, famous friends

“Jim was like a sailor who had studied the compass and found that there was a fifth dimension in which someone could sail.” ~ Jerry Juhl, head writer of The Muppet Show

My pal, Dan, and I recently went to the Jim Henson exhibit at the Museum of the Moving Image commemorating his 75th birthday. Being enormous fans of the Muppets, we have had this date on the calendar for many months. I was skeptical that any exhibit could do his depth of work justice. I had no reason to be. the Museum of the Moving Image does a superb job of capturing a glimpse inside his genius mind.

Like Steve Jobs, Jim Henson inspired us to be the very best versions of ourselves. His vision was uncompromising. He was unreasonable in his expectations and it never crossed his mind that he couldn’t do something he really wanted to do. He had a different way of seeing. And even if the world around him appeared bleak, he never seemed to be discouraged. If anything the darkness around Jim just seemed to make his light shine brighter.

He is such an inspiration for those of us at the start of a new beginning, for those of us trying to do something that has never been done before. “It’s such a wonderful challenge to try to design and entire world…I love to feel I’m doing something for the first time…There are many ways of doing something. Look for what no one has tried before.” Beginnings held such a sense of excitement for him. He never sought to follow any lead but his own. Jim emphatically wanted to do things differently and personified the idea of the Apple commercial that the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are the ones who do.

I left the museum grateful and nostalgic for the world that Jim opened up for all of us to share. He sought to huddle everyone together. In his imagined worlds, there is a seat at the table for everyone interested in playing a part. With its collection of ragtag unique characters, we are all welcome – and please bring your quirks and eccentricities. Afterall, they are what makes each of us special and Jim Henson wants us to come out and play, just as we are.

He showed us that it pays, quite handsomely, to be fearless.

Jim Henson’s Fantastic World is on display at the Museum of the Moving Image until January 16, 2012.

adventure, change, choices

Beginning: The Kind of Woman I Want to Be

Christa Avampato

My friend, Susan, posted this up on Facebook last week and I love it so much I’m having it framed to hang in my apartment. This is exactly the kind of woman I aim to be. There are a lot of things in the world that I’d like to change, fix, and influence. It’s easy to get bogged down by the enormity of tackling even just one of them; quotes like this keep me going.

The only thing crazier than putting all of our efforts toward crafting a better world is leaving things just as they are.

healthcare, hospital, war, yoga

Beginning: Compass Yoga Begins Classes at the Manhattan VA Hospital

Christa Avampato

Yesterday I taught the first Compass Yoga class at the Manhattan VA Hospital. At the New York State Health Foundation Conference on Community Readiness to Assist Returning in June I met someone from the VA who referred me to one of the doctors at the VA who has been working on a staff resiliency program. We met and then worked through how a class would be structured for the mental health staff, and then we went through the paperwork process, scheduling, and promotion. Yesterday’s class was the culmination of all of that work. The doctor I am working with has practiced yoga and Tai Chi for a number of years and is a strong believer in the power of mindfulness practices. Her passion makes this class possible.

The class is a result of a great many influences conspiring together. I tapped into a calling to help returning veterans just as the NYS Health Foundation was having their conference in New York, as this enlightened doctor had been pushing for yoga at the VA, and the VA happened to be ready to give this idea a try. Had I called the VA last year, it may have fallen on deaf ears. Timing is everything.

I was up before the crack of dawn to walk Phin, get ready, and hop the train across town. As usual, I was a bit nervous to teach in a new place. I always get this twinge of stagefright before I start a class, particularly in a new environment with new students. I’ve been waiting to teach this class for a long time and I couldn’t let the jitters get in the way.

One class in and the students are talking about how to get more yoga into the VA. They started talking about how to get this practice to patients and families for mental and physical health benefits. One is even looking into how we can get grant money to build up the program. By showing up and giving my best, the way seems to be opening slowly but surely. A little focus goes a long way.

Classes will continue every Friday. I’ll let you know about more learnings as they happen…

creativity, imagination, innovation, media, Muppet, Steve Jobs

Beginning: Steve Jobs, Tim Russert, Jim Henson, and How to Honor an Icon

Christa Avampato

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.” ~ Steve Jobs from his 2005 commencement speech at Stanford

I audibly gasped when I got the nytimes.com breaking alert that Steve Jobs had passed away. I turned to Twitter and saw that in the past few minutes the outpouring of gratitude and empathy had begun to build and would reach dizzying heights within the next 10 minutes. My favorite tributes were from Wired Magazine and on the Apple site itself. His was a passing heard and felt round the world, mostly by people who never had the honor to interact personally with him. Yet, he is with us all the time, in our homes, cars, and offices. We take Steve with us everywhere through his ingenious inventions and as the spark that so often lights our own imaginations. The legendary Apple ad “The Crazy Ones” continues to be an anthem for innovators all over the globe. Steve gave us something to aspire to – our highest selves.

I remember having this same wave of thankfulness flow over me when I heard about the passing of Tim Russert several years ago, and I remember the exact moment when I learned Jim Henson had passed away. They all died long before their time – Steve was 56, Tim was 58, and Jim was 53. All taken in the very prime of their careers, and in a short time they grew to be a part of our lives. They all share the magical gift of being able to make the seemingly complicated simple, approachable, and knowable for people from all walks of life – Steve in the field of technology, Tim in politics and government (particularly elections), and Jim in education and the power of television. All of these men were intensely involved in media, the creation and dissemination of information and knowledge. They defined our times.

Though the sting of Steve’s passing is obviously still being felt by so many, we can take comfort in how the legacies of Tim and Jim have thrived. Tim Russert’s CBS Sunday Morning, though not the same as when he anchored it, is still a top-rated show and a source of enjoyment and education for millions of people each week. At election time, we still miss his wipe board where he demystified the numbers for us. Jim Henson’s tributes can still be found in every corner where education is discussed and debated. Sesame Street is still a much beloved show. The Muppets are still iconic figures in our lives and the much-anticipated new Muppet movie will be released next month. The Museum of the Moving Image is currently showing a retrospective of Henson’s brilliant work in honor of his 75th birthday. (My post on that outing will be run this weekend.)

And while tributes to the work of these three icons are touching and thought-provoking, their greatest legacies live in the people whom they inspired, including you and me. They set a fire in our bellies and in our imaginations to do something extraordinary with our time. The best way to honor them and show our gratitude is to make our days as meaningful and creative as possible.

Steve, we miss you now and will continue to turn to the counsel you’ve left in speeches, in writing, and in your creative work as we wrestle through our own creative processes. “What would Steve do?” will be a phrase we turn over in our minds again and again as we try to design a better world. You showed us how to be a beginner and love it. Thanks for being here with us and showing us the way. We’ll do our best to carry on the great adventure into the imagination that you started. 

[I am a firm believer in the power of a well-crafted letter. If you’d like to send your thoughts, memories, and condolences for Steve, click here.]  

writer, writing

Beginning: Lessons From Crafting My First Book Proposal For A Literary Agent

Christa Avampato

Last week I wrote about taking the scary step of starting to contact literary agents through query letters. I have been pleasantly surprised to hear back from a few of them (which I was not at all expecting since I just started to send a handful of emails.) Yesterday, I heard from an agent who requested a formal proposal – the next step in the agent finding process.

While a query letter is very concise (a few paragraphs), a proposal is much more detailed. Again I consulted my guidebook on publishing, and found followed the formal format of a proposal. It contains:

  • Title
  • Synopsis
  • Author’s Background (narrative)
  • Market Potential
  • Competitive Works
  • Detailed Table of Contents
  • Sample Chapter(s)

My query letter is less than a page while my proposal clocks in at 22 pages (double-spaced). Proposals are a much larger undertaking, for the writer and the agent. It’s the next step in the “getting to know you” process and feels as much like a business plan as it does like a piece of narrative.

In addition to understanding the heft of the proposal, I also learned a few lessons through its writing that I thought would be helpful to those of you considering a similar route:

1.) Exercise great care in a proposal’s composition. One of the main tenets of Zen cooking is, “Treat your pots and pans as if they are your own eyes.” This is wonderful advice for all chefs. A book proposal in many ways is the writer’s equivalent to pots and pans. That proposal makes the creation of the book possible. 

2.) Read the agent’s bio again, as well as agency’s website (particularly if it offers submission guidelines.) Initially, the writer reads the agent’s bio on the agency website to find out if he or she is accepting proposals, and if so what genre those proposals should address. A word to the wise – if an agent says either A) he or she is not accepting submissions or B) they list the genres that interest them, abide by their wishes. No matter how great your cookbook is, if the agent isn’t accepting cookbook projects at this time, don’t submit one. All you’re doing is clogging their in-box with spam, even it’s eloquently written spam. You’re wasting your time and theirs. 

3.) Clearly understand your audience and competition. Who are you writing for, what do they need, and how does your book fulfill that need? I use the same construction that I use on a daily basis as a product developer. It might feel great to say, “My book is for everyone.” It’s not. You are writing on a particular topic that has a particular appeal to particular people. Talk to them. And know who else is talking to them so you can differentiate what you have to offer. Your book may certainly be useful to others beyond your target audience, but your target is your main concern. Focus – in trying to serve everyone, you serve no one.

4.) Have the proposal ready to go before you ever hit “send” on a query letter. You never know how fast the turnaround will be on your query and you want to have the proposal ready to go at a moment’s notice. If an agent writes to you and asks for a proposal, you don’t want to keep them waiting for weeks while you put it together. Also, the query letter takes most of its cue from the proposal and the proposal forces you to get clear on why you’re writing the book and what you have to say. My advice is to write the proposal first and then craft the query, even though you send the query to prospective agents and the proposal only to agents who express interest in reading it.

5.) Don’t get discouraged. Just as some agents may never respond to your query, not all agents who request a proposal will be interested in your book. It’s also helpful to know that when reading a query or proposal, an agent considers whether or not they have the connections (or can easily get them) to make the book successful. While your writing is a very personal matter, the agent’s decision-making process has more to it than whether or not they like a potential client’s writing.