Poverty in a New Light

In Jessica Jackly's TED talk, she casts a new light on the 'poor' members of society and what it means to give back to them. She explains that as a child she was always told that the poor people needed money and material items and that she was expected to give to them. However, Jessica was also told that no matter how many things we could provide them, we would always live among the poor. At a young age, I could relate to the way she explains this and understand the burden that she felt to be a contributing member even though she didn't understand WHY she needed to give back. The things she heard as a kid made her picture a never-ending line of needy people with open hands begging for food. No wonder she felt overwhelmed. Through her young life, even though she continued to give openly on the outside, she never felt the hope of giving or did it out of the true generosity of her heart. Like many of us feel, we give back because we feel obligated or we pay some money so we won't be bothered. As if we are buying our right to carry on with our day. Luckily, through stories, Jackly made it her goal to change people's perspectives on giving back and the poor themselves. This ties in perfectly with the message that Dan Pink is trying to send us. Story is essential in life and has the ability to persuade and connect with people emotionally. I agree with the point that Pink and Jackly are making. Story, if used strategically, can be so powerful and can change people's perceptions. It has the ability to captivate a person's soul and give them the motivation to act a certain way. Stories appeal emotionally and logically in the way that a crafted set of events can bring an audience to their feet or make people weep. In Jackly's case, she believes that stories and the way people participate in them are very important. She was motivated by a speech that Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, gave about the smart, capable, hardworking poor that were doing great things. He said that with even a little more money support, they could conquer even greater goals. Jackly was so taken aback that she quit her job and moved to East Africa out of curiosity and ready to explore. She spent three months interviewing poor entrepreneurs that were given only $100 to grow businesses and heard life changing stories. The humbling experience taught her showed her the beautiful details of life. She noticed that as she spent time with these impoverished individuals, she had never been asked for a donation and that the very little money they made went to good causes like buying sugar so they could serve her tea properly. Through such a gratifying experience, she felt that it was her mission to share stories of the people she met and the hope they gave her. She launched a website called Kiva that featured 7 of the starving entrepreneurs with pictures, stories about them, and ways to give to them. Kiva is based on writing loans to the entrepreneurs and having them pay back the supporters by the success of their businesses. With the support of Jackly's family and friends, money came in and their businesses grew. However year after year, Kiva became more and more successful. The site has now raised 150 million dollars for the entrepreneurs. The reason for its success? Stories. Jessica Jackly's goal is to retell stories of the poor and change the way people view giving back. I love that she had the guts to quit her job and go searching for an answer. The only way to fully understand something is to experience it firsthand. This summer, I am going on a mission trip to Nicaragua to help out in an orphanage. But honestly, the main reason that I signed up is not to help the people of the community, but to develop a new outlook. I want to get outside my own wealthy suburban community and recognize the needs and lifestyles of other people. I think that as soon as I am immersed in another place, I am going to be that much more motivated to give back on a personal level. I want to connect with the kids, play with them, pray with them, and be a part of their community. To me, it will mean so much more than sending money or throwing my change in a donation jar. I believe that it is important for individuals to have a personal journey to understand the lives of the poor. However, no one can tell anyone else to do this. One must be intrinsically motivated to make a change. A quote by William Blake states that, “The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, and breeds reptiles of the mind,” ("Change"). To believe passionately in giving back one must experience the suffering and need of others. I love Kiva's goal because it validates the dignity of the poor and promotes hope and optimism through storytelling. They aim to blur the lines between 'us' and 'them' and the 'haves' and 'have nots'. Just as Dan Pink says in A Whole New Mind, story has that power.

Works Cited

"Change Quotes, Sayings about Changes and Changing." The Quote Garden - Quotes, Sayings, Quotations, Verses. Web. 05 May 2011. <http://www.quotegarden.com/change.html>.

Living an AWESOME! Life

After going through a divorce and dealing with the loss of a close friend, Neil Pashricha explains how he pulled through his distress by focusing on the awesome little moments in his life. He started a blog and would record the special moments he was grateful for during the day. For example, he realized the value of waitresses and waiters that brought him drinks and food while he just sat and relaxed. He cherished the moment of putting on warm underwear from the dryer and being the first one in a newly opened check-out line at the grocery store. His blog eventually received thousands of views and was increasing in popularity rapidly. I think that it became so popular because everyone could relate to the awesome nuances in their own lives. It is refreshing to hear about a person that took the sorrow in his own life and taught himself to take a new outlook. Realizing the small positive parts of his day, Neil began to change his perspective for the better. I love this idea because even in the worst life situations, you can always find a tiny bit of a good thing. For me, this also ties into my faith and how I believe that everything in my life happens for a reason. Even in times of sorrow, I know that God has a greater plan in mind. I tell myself that this one event must occur to teach me a lesson or show me a different side of myself. I love the message Neil is sending to the world. If everyone learned to take a different outlook when life is rough, then our world would be a much more peaceful place. He explains the three A's vital to living a happy, content lifestyle: attitude, awareness, and authenticity. One must possess a positive attitude about the future. Although, it is easier to wallow in our own hurt and pain, we must take a proactive approach to change the way we view the situation and mentally get through it. Neil's tip about focusing on the happy moments is a good method because it causes you to gradually replace the issue with happier thoughts. I think that if people kept a journal of the happy moments and referred back to it when in a bad moment, then the bad moment would be shortened and people would develop a different mindset. Awareness for me refers to searching for the great moments. In my life, I don't want to float through time just waiting for the good times to come, but instead go out and seek them. Therefore, I can live a rewarding, interesting life. Not that the bad times won't occur, but my mind will be mentally ready for them to come. In my opinion, another benefit to Neil's message is that if people use it effectively, they will be less likely to blow their sorrow out of proportion. Many times, I think we tell ourselves that our hard times are much harder than they actually are. We feel bad for ourselves many times. But by looking out for the goodness in our lives, we won't place as much self-pity on ourselves and therefore can be more positive. Authenticity is important because those who follow their hearts and make beneficial choices will live with passion. One must grab life by the horns by seeking fun, exciting adventures. Neil points out that life is full of things to be happy about and humans only have 100 years to enjoy it. I completely agree! Let's live life in the moment and when the moment turns bad, find other moments to be happy about. See the tiny joys in life and be joyful to live life.

Once Upon A School

David Eggers TED talk was inspiring because he told a true story in which he and a few other writers helped children with their own writing projects for school. I loved how instead of preaching about an issue or idea, he showed a real life example of how to assist others. I hope to make my TED talk relatable to my classmates by showing them ways in which they can feasibly solve the problem. David Eggers noticed that kids in his society were struggling to keep their grades up in reading and writing and the schools couldn't provide one on one attention to each student. At the time, David was buying a building for himself and some other writers to have a place to work. He decided that they should provide their space for the students to come in and seek extra help from the writers working there. At first hardly any students came in, but eventually it became a really crowded place everyday after school. The skilled writers were able to provide each student one on one attention. The students loved going because they could get all their homework done before going home. Therefore the students could spend quality time with their families. David said, "Happy families mean a happy community!" I find this to be so true. Each summer I find that I am so much closer to my parents and the families in my community than I am during the school year. When school is going on, I have sports in the afternoon and never get home until after 5. It’s all I can manage to finish all of my homework and eat dinner. But even around the dinner table, I am tired and overwhelmed with my schoolwork. If I had the opportunity to finish all my homework by 5, I would have much more time to spend with my family. David Eggers program seems to be something I would have been involved in. His shop even became so popular, that they begin inviting entire classes in during the day and the writers even began traveling to the student’s schools. I think one of the fascinating things about the shop was that the students were intrinsically motivated to come and pursue extra help for school projects. I think this is because it wasn't in an environment like a typical school. It wasn't formal with teachers or schedules, but instead the kids could come on their own schedule. It brings up a question that we have discussed in previous fishbowls in class: Would kids accomplish and learn more if they weren't forced to succeed? In my personal opinion, I believe that in certain situations at school students should be granted more freedom, but that some sort of structure needs to be in place for kids to even show up in the first place. For example, I think that Arapahoe strikes a nice balance because they give their students the opportunity to design a schedule that fits their individual needs. Also, our school offers off periods for kids to devote to anything they choose. If they feel like they need to go talk to a teacher to get help in a certain subject or get ahead on their homework they have the opportunity. Our school provides kids with the time to devote to whatever they desire, but sets precedents and rules for the student’s benefit. I know that I have a future goal to go on to college and succeed in a career of my choice; therefore I am diligent about working hard now. Without any system in place, I believe that the society would become lazy and have no vision or goals for the future. David Eggers and the other writers have inspired kids creativity and involvement in school by providing their services. For example, he talked about a kid that would come in for homework help, but then eventually was inspired to write and publish three books. If the boy had never been encouraged to complete schoolwork in the first place, he may have never discovered his love for writing. I believe that education should be structured, but then within the rigid form, be open to interpretation and leave kids with the freedom to grow. Their store became a gateway to the community and eventually was in such high demand, that they created another location so they could assist more kids and continue to provide one on one attention.