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Je Bent Mooi

The story
In november 2009 I gave a presentation about creativity at the Kansdenkdag event in Maarssen (Holland). At the end of the presentation I gave the audience an assignment in which I asked them to place stickers with (personal) inspiring quotes on objects in the place where they live. Then I asked them to make a picture of the result and mail those pictures to me. I promised I would let these pictures inspire me to make a new creation. Since the quote ‘Je bent mooi’ (which is Dutch for ‘You are beautiful’) turned up in several of the received pictures, I decided to use that line to write a song. After that I asked a friend of mine to help me record it by playing piano as I would sing it and play guitar.

Since I wanted to put ‘embrace your mistakes’ into practice, we only played the song 3 times together and picked recording number 2 to be the final version. And yes, there are mistakes in it. But that’s also what the song is about. Everything and everyone being beautiful in their own way. The video was shot in Amsterdam and Tilburg. Another friend of mine helped me out shooting it. Meeting all the people in the video was a great experience. Should you want to understand the lyrics of the song then you can read the translation at the bottom of this post.

Why this story inspired me
Simply filming random people that you meet as you wander through a town shows that the lyrics are right: You are beautiful. All people are.

What I hope sharing this story will lead to
I hope that more people will start to focus on the beauty that’s everywhere around them instead of comparing themselves or others with the models on TV, billboards and in magazines.

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• 871 clicks |
• Awareness, Music, Personal Development

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Still Bill

The story
Still Bill is an intimate portrait of soul legend Bill Withers, best known for his classics “Ain’t No Sunshine,” “Lean On Me,” “Lovely Day,” “Grandma’s Hands,” and “Just the Two of Us.” With his soulful delivery and warm, heartfelt sincerity, Withers has written the songs that have - and always will - resonate deeply within the fabric of our times.

Why this story inspired me
The trailer shows that Bill Withers’ main strength is to not become distracted by what other people want. He’s not looking for people to like him, he’s not looking for more money, he’s looking for ways to know how it feels for his “desperation to get louder”.

What I hope sharing this story will lead to
I hope that more people will find the strength to do whatever it is that they want to do. This means: being true to yourself.

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• 1067 clicks |
• Movies, Music, Personal Development

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Seth Godin - Stay Curious

The story
Seth Godin shares his view on the importance of staying curious. A lot of people stop being curious because the schoolsystems are not focused on keeping people curious. But if you are able to persist your curiosity will become an easy habit that can help a lot of people.

Why this story inspired me
A lot of insights that I believe are true are shared in this conversation with Seth. It’s hard to stay curious when the world around you seems to keep telling you to go with ‘certainty’ instead of living a ‘risky’ life. But I believe that, in the end, a risky life is what living is about. It’s about exploring. It’s not about knowing what the future will be like. It’s knowing that you don’t know what’s ahead of you and looking forward to what’s going to come. Whatever that may be.

What I hope sharing this story will lead to
I hope that people who have chosen to be curious will get extra strength from this story and continue to focus on what it is that they want to discover. Stay curious.

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• 2426 clicks |
• Awareness, Personal Development

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How To Live To Be 100+

The story
To find the path to long life and health, Dan Buettner and team study the world’s “Blue Zones,” communities whose elders live with vim and vigor to record-setting age. At TEDxTC, he shares the 9 common diet and lifestyle habits that keep them spry past age 100.

Why this story inspired me
The presentation shows that having a purpose in your life and living life in a community (friends, family) are of big influence on your chances of reaching a high age while remaining healthy. It’s also a good idea to create a life in which the activities that you do demand you to move your body.

What I hope sharing this story will lead to
I hope that more people will see the importance of creating opportunities for older people to stay active in a way that let’s them know they’re still part of society after they retire. The documentary Young At Heart is a great example of the effect that such initiatives can have.

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• 1770 clicks |
• Awareness, Personal Development, Speeches

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Running Your Company On Pursuing Happiness

The story
Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos, gives a very inspiring presentation on ‘The Science Of Happiness’. It shows what it takes to turn your company into an inspiring place with inspiring people.

Why this story inspired me
I’m a really big fan of the Zappos story. Doing business based on core values that you commit to and that everyone in the company lives and breathes. A company like this doesn’t need to search for employees, it attracts employees through their way of working. They deliver happiness. Who doesn’t want to be part of that?

What I hope sharing this story will lead to
I hope that more CEO’s will turn around their businesses into a happiness-driven organisation that all people (customers and employees) are passionate about.

• 1 comment |
• 2223 clicks |
• Business, Personal Development, Speeches

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Tell Us Your Secret

The story
You may find the brave voices captured in this short film haunting, shocking and humorous. In some of their faces you’ll see joy, anguish and grace as they trust you with their confession.

Why this story inspired me
It’s always such a great thing to see people share their stories in front of a camera. No matter how small the story. It made me realize that the best movie there is, is the one we all are in. No casting agency can beat this selection of ‘actors’.  ;-)

What I hope sharing this story will lead to
I hope that more people will have the guts to have a meaningful conversation with a stranger. I sometimes fail to try, but when I do try the outcome is sometimes surprising.

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• 2335 clicks |
• Awareness, Personal Development

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I Wish All Teachers Could Be Like This

The story
The only conductor to ever lead the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, Zander is a prophet of human potential and an unrivaled champion of joie de vivre. Watch as he helps unlock the boundless potential of a 15 year old cellist and teaches the entire audience what it means to live in a world of possibility.

Why this story inspired me
It made me realize the impact of thinking in possibilities. It also made me realize how big the influence of music on other people is if it is played from the heart.

What I hope sharing this story will lead to
I hope, just like Benjamin Zander, that all people who watch the clip will start living their lives in possibility.

• 2 comments |
• 3628 clicks |
• Music, Personal Development, Speeches