From Chapter 10 “Optimism/Enthusiasm” in Ingredients of Outliers. Brother Act It’s one thing to use the power of optimism to dramatically improve one’s health, as Norman Cousins did. It’s quite another to use it as the foundation on which to build a $100 million company. Meet Bert and John Jacobs, CEO and CCO, respectively, of New England-based Life is good, Inc. But don’t let those initials fool you; they’re not what you’d expect. Bert, the older by four years, is the company’s Chief Executive Optimist and John is the Chief Creative Optimist. The story begins in … [Read more...]
Archives for November 2015
A Special Day for Generosity
Spend any amount of time reading our blog or social media and you will see that we love the chance to celebrate important and worthy causes that take our attention off our stressers, and help us enjoy and appreciate our lives. We are not talking about National Cookie Day (Friday December 4, 2015), although, cheers to that! No, we are talking about the proverbial cookies spread throughout the month that will sweeten our days as we take the time to embrace them. Friends, we'd like to inform you of the next cookie on your list, and it's a good one! Mark December 1st, 2015 down on your calendars … [Read more...]
Thanksgiving: A Time to for Family & A Time for Some Great Deals
You may have noticed in the last few years, that Black Friday has gone from a one day extreme retail sale event, starting as early as 6AM the day after Thanksgiving, to a weekend event, capped off by Cyber Monday. You don’t hear anyone complaining about the all-time low prices, making their way strategically onto the calendar just before the winter holidays, but a new trend in store hours has caused some controversy. A couple of years ago, major stores like Target, Dillard’s, Walmart and Macys have started opening Thanksgiving night with 50%, 60% and even 70% off sticker prices, until late … [Read more...]
Small Business Saturday: History and What it Means to You
The “Shop Small” campaign was launched in 2010 as a way to encourage consumers to support local and small businesses within their own hometowns. Embracing Small Business Saturday helps bring awareness to the struggles small businesses face in the global economy. When consumers shop local, most of the money spent will be pumped back into their local community. The reinvestment in the community can help improve the local economy and support local causes. Being an entrepreneur and small business owner is no easy task. In fact, many small businesses fail and struggle to keep their doors open. It … [Read more...]
Look on the Bright Side
From Chapter 10 “Optimism/Enthusiasm” in Ingredients of Outliers. I imagine that, at one time or another, you’ve read or heard various definitions comparing optimism and pessimism. Perhaps the oldest and most familiar one involves a glass of water (or other beverage), which the optimist describes as half-full, and the pessimist as half-empty.Well, I recently heard of a young boy who turned that comparison upside down. After drinking half of his glass of milk, he set it down and announced: “I’m an optimist. My glass is half-empty.” Told that his view was pessimistic, he replied: … [Read more...]
American Education Week
It is time to celebrate education! This week (November 16th-20th, 2015) is American Education Week and Outliers Publishing wants to give a big shout out to all the people who work hard to keep our school systems running smoothly! Whether you are a teacher, an aid, the school nurse, librarian, administrator, cafeteria worker, or maintenance crew, you are working hard so that young minds can grow and we applaud your efforts! About American Education Week People all over the country are taking part in this week’s festivities. According to the National Education Association, the theme for this … [Read more...]