I recently attended a talk by the owner of the “Life is good” company.  Bert Jacobs was very entertaining and made thoughtful comments, along with tossing Frisbees to the audience when we laughed (multiple times).  He and his brother began the company hawking t-shirts on the streets of Boston.  They now have a multi-million dollar company built by two guys with no business experience.  Look it up on Wikipedia – their story is one of classic American entrepreneurialism….with a couple of twists.

One of his biggest messages had to do with giving back to the community.  It is his opinion that the two entities people expect to “take care” of folks in need are not suited to do so.  The first entity would be government.  While a lot of governmental agencies have the best intentions in mind, example after example point to failure.  Too big, too complicated, too much bureaucracy, poorly aligned incentives – all lead to suboptimal performance.  Need I mention the sub-prime debacle that occurred during “governmental oversight….”  The second entity expected to help out folks in need are the organizations you might think about – American Red Cross, Make a Wish foundation, Trauma Intervention Program, Poverello House, Marjorie Mason Center, etc.  The rub here is that these organizations are great at what they do – but not so great at raising money.  It is in this arena where the private side can help.  With their organizational and entrepreneurial spirit – they can raise money.  Not only can they raise money – the employees enjoy and are motivated to participate in these endeavors.  The older I become the more I understand, the benefits to giving.  Maybe we can pair this with a C-fit activity….

Another message Bert delivered was the concept of tearing down vs. building.   It is easy to “tear down” or to point out the negatives about a person or an organization.  While this might feel good for a moment, the overall negativism generated overshadows this initial feeling.  And who knows, the shoe might be on the other foot in the future.  So….it is much better to refrain from taking shots at others but rather turn our attention to things we can improve.  I’m thinking this is likely to work both on the job and at home.  Granted, this is not easy – try to go a day without saying or writing anything negative about another….

Finally, the concept of Life is good - is to make this statement is a decision.  A decision on how we wish to lead our lives and view the world.  As Bert mentioned, "Jake has it figured out."  He doesn't have the biggest boat, newest bike, coolest dog - but..."He's happy!"

For more information about “Life is good” – go to the internet – or ask Jodi Nilli – she has an autographed book from Bert!