The Real Disruptors

“Sometimes people deserve more than the truth, they deserve to have their faith rewarded”. As you let this quote resonate with you, think of how dull the world would be without the admirable heroes, the die-hard lovers and the beautifully bold rebels that cross the paths of mere mortals.  Contrary to the rest of us, they forever live in the minds and dreams of generations to come. They are confined neither in space nor in time. They might have never done it for the fame, nor thought of themselves as extraordinary, but it’s that selfless tenaciousness and undying love that give them an edge like no other.

In a life losing its magic and glitter, we now and then hear of stories that reignite our faith in true love, humanity and boldness. In a colorless world where everything blends and only the peculiar stands out, come the stories of the exemplary few to add a touch of hope in our dreary lives.

What we can learn from the lover who made the impossible possible, the bold who succeeded against all odds, the exemplary who defiantly smiled in the face of temptation, that it takes a particular breed of men to rise above all others. They might be different people yet they all share one particularity: their selfless drive. Whether it was a love affair that they are willing to sacrifice heaven and earth for, whether it’s protecting others that they are willing to lay-down their life for, it all comes down to a bold strategically well thought of motivation. The motives might vary but the m.o. is always the same.

These people before their actions where known, where perhaps considered ordinary. However, truth be told, they never were. It takes a lot of effort and boldness to reach such a level. They are the few who relentlessly knock down obstacles, who rise when all others fall, who observe when others are too self-absorbed to do so, who listen beyond words, they are the insightful, the intuitive, the smart, the bold, the real version of guardian angels. They might be rebellious, not even pure at heart, yet they are disciplined in action, grandiose in their willingness to succeed in attaining the lover they desire, the cause they honor, the humanity they cherish. Nothing is mundane about a hero, a true lover, a righteous person.

They may walk among us shielded from our sight, yet if we are lucky, we catch a glimpse of their shadow as their boldness comes to light.

They are the shooting stars in a lifeless sky. They inspire and charm us, as we whisper their stories like silent prayers, hoping that one day we’ll be lucky enough to be their love interest or their quest. They are the real disruptors of the world not the greedy machiavelists who roam the world of business. Unlike those, they don’t measure success with greed, notoriety and fame. They don’t seek the applause of many, but one, and that makes all the difference in the world.

Fight the New Year’s Blues

On the brinks of the New Year comes the time to review one’s “life” statement: How was this year spent and what is there to show for it? Does your current self and situation coincides with how you envision it to be?

The world comes crashing down when one’s only accomplishment was growing a year older. More so, everything comes tumbling on our head, the minute we realize that we didn’t only waste a year but a lifetime. Adding fuel to fire, nothing is more depressing than crossing the path of those who fulfilled their destiny: The ones, who undeservingly won the heart of an exceptional person thus ended experiencing remarkable true love; The ones, who reached the top of their careers without real talent; The ones, who were so unwittingly lucky yet realized all their dreams without real efforts. Life seems to favor some over others.

It would have been a true blessing if guardian angels truly existed, but as Charles Bukowski  once said, “nobody can save you but yourself and you’re worth saving. It’s a war not easily won but if anything is worth winning then this is it. Think about saving yourself.”

The truth of the matter is, even if the human version of guardian angels roamed the earth, you have to acknowledge that even they have the right to be vulnerable thus will come the time when they will need saving as well.

 It is not easy being someone’s rescuer, it can be draining and very few have the will to do it. Some do it because there is no one else up to the task; they do what they have to do because they do not have any other choice. People nowadays are just too busy with their own selves and are too self-involved, detached and unwitty, to notice others. Some might even mean well but they lack the savoir-faire, they don’t know how to lead, they are not observant enough nor knowledgeable enough to come up with solutions.

 Hereby are some tips to help you fight the blues:

Get your endorphins pumping: The boost will fix your mood and make you physically better. Hereby are some of the things known to induce the body’s natural “feel-good” chemicals: Sports, sex, massage, meditation, laughter, chocolate, and wine.

Work on your looks and allure: Beauty and youth are the best mood enhancers. If you like your reflection in the mirror chances are you are half way there.  Work on looking good and dressing sharp, to feel better.

Go out: sunshine radiates positive vibes, try to get your fair share of it. Increase the number of your outings but be careful, you need to pick your circle well. The company of boring people, drama kings/queens, and those who tend to let silence fall, are extremely ill advised.

Surround yourself with people who can help you reach new heights: Surround yourself with winners who help you, empower you and push you to be better, those who make you raise your standards and believe in yourself. Be around people who help you experience new things, who think of ways to add excitement to your life.

Get busy but not overwhelmed: Keep your schedule full in order to not let your mind wander to the depth of depression.

It might be easier enumerating steps rather than implementing them. You need to know that you have to do whatever it takes to snap-out of it; help is not on the way, you are all you’ve got, so shape-up you have no other choice.

Facebook Crypto-currency

Facebook, the American online social media platform, headed by founder Mark Zuckerberg, is planning to launch into the world of digital currency, a type of  currency available in electronic form, with Libra.

Libra, the newly founded entity powered by Facebook will launch in 2020. To date, 28 organizations from around the world announced plans to join the association.

Libra’s main goal is to reinvent money, transform the global economy, thus allowing people everywhere better lives. Libra will be accessible to anyone with an entry-level smartphone and data.

Facebook is also launching a subsidiary company, Calibra, which will be building financial services for Libra. Calibra’s first product will be a digital wallet for Libra, which will be available as: a standalone app and can be found in: Messenger and WhatsApp.

Libra presents several advantages:

• It’s quick and easy, no matter where you are sending, or spending, your money.
• It’s available around the world.
• It’s secure as it is built on a blockchain designed with security in mind.

With Libra, Facebook is planning to reshape the transform the global economy.

Earning a Lost Trust

Trust is the foundation of any relationship, whether friendship, love or even business. Earning someone’s trust is difficult and it becomes even more so after a failure or a betrayal. The process of mending a broken tie, doesn’t happen quickly, remember it takes forever to win someone’s trust and a second to lose it.

Here are few things to help you restore someone’s lost trust in you.

1. Assume responsibility and acknowledge your wrongful ways, understand that you have only yourself to blame.
2. Apologize for your mistake with utmost sincerity and regret, with the assurance that you will never do it again.
3. Don’t justify your actions or make excuses for yourself. It will only show the person how insincere you are and it is indicative of false-remorse.
4. Fix and remedy the situation, no matter how impossible it might seem.
5. Have an acute sense of observation in order to identify change of behavior in the person and be able to fix the situation as well as evaluate progress in your mission.
6. Show extreme effort, let over-compensating be your default mode.
7. Sacrifice your  time and resources, to convince the person to trust you once more.
8. Self-assess yourself and show change in the behavior that caused distrust.
9. Be patient and understanding, it might take a lot of time and sacrifices for you to regain what you destroyed.
10. Be cautious, do not repeat your mistake.
11. Never break your promises, no matter what.
12. Be persistent, you might be discouraged, snubbed, faced with utmost skepticism but persistence usually rhymes with triumph.
13. Do not demand or pressure the person to forgive you; remember whatever you gain quickly you lose quicker.
14. Learn from the error of your ways.
15. Be serious, never take the situation lightly.

It might sound like a lot of effort and sacrifices for no guarantee of success in return, but remember that you chose to fail someone who valued you enough to trust you.

If someone held you in high regards and you chose to break the image they had of you, it was a conscious choice on your part, whether you ended-up regretting it or not it is beside the point. Understand that, the disappointment you’ve caused might change the other’s view of the world, whether in matters of love, friendship or business, you might be the reason why someone no longer believes in people.

So the question that you should be asking yourself isn’t will you succeed or fail. It’s how deep is your regret, what are you willing to do and how far are you willing to go to be forgiven for failing someone who never failed you?!

Trust is a gentle flower, any mishandling, can result in its death.

A Kitchen with a Soul

You might be familiar with the movie Pay It Forward, which relays the story of a social studies teacher who gives an assignment to his junior high school class to think of an idea to change the world for the better, and then put it into action. When one young student creates a plan for “paying forward” favors, he not only affects the life of his struggling single mother, but he sets in motion an unprecedented wave of human kindness which, unbeknownst to him, has blossomed into a profound national phenomenon. Inspired by the movie and triggered by circumstances like: Seeing a man sleeping in the cold on a sidewalk grate and hearing of a regular restaurant giving away food, in 2008, following the economic downturn; in October 2011, Jon Bon Jovi,  American singer-songwriter, record producer, philanthropist, and actor, launched JBJ Soul Kitchen in Red Bank, in an attempt to address issues of food insecurity.  The community kitchen serves nutritious, farm to table dishes in a restaurant atmosphere, diners contribute either volunteer hours or a monetary donation for their meals.  JBJ Soul Kitchen has provided thousands of hot, delicious meals and has consistently reached their goal of 50% of their diners being in-need.

The JBJ Soul Kitchen  operates under the “Pay it Forward” concept which means that the restaurant serves both in-need and paying customers. Those in-need can earn a dining certificate by volunteering at the restaurant whilst paying diners can pay a $20 fee or volunteer to pay it forward thus covering a needy person’s meal. There are also volunteering opportunities for those who want to “earn their meal”.

The JBJ Soul Kitchen also runs the Employment and Empowerment Team (EET) Program which connects a team of volunteer coaches with qualified Kitchen volunteers.  The volunteer coaches utilize their professional expertise to aid with resume writing, interview skills, job coaching, financial counseling, legal advice and job placement.  The EET Program has assisted Kitchen volunteers with over 100 job offers with a 97% successful placement rate.

The JBJ Soul Kitchen opened its second branch in Toms River in New Jersey, offering a chic-artsy dining for families and individuals in need a place for food, job training, and resources to get back on their feet.

Bon Jovi first relied on the help of Sister Mary Scullion, an area nun dedicated to fight against homelessness. It began with one project of renovating a building then it ended up with Bon Jovi building 500 units of affordable housing nationwide.

It is easy to help feed the poor and donate to charity, but it is even harder feeding one’s soul and making it feel that it belongs rather than it is alone and on its own. Maybe that’s Bon Jovi’s biggest philanthropist achievement; he gave people their dignity and most importantly faith in each others and the future.