Where we start your week off on the Sunny Side, no matter what the weather, outlook, or even sales stats! I will be taking tidbits, from books, articles, webinars, whitepapers, and public talks that focus on growth and success and sharing them with you. Always trying to relate them back to you and your CPG Journey. We know that one of the critical factors of success is your Mindset! While it isn’t the only part of the formula, it is a crucial one, as it affects all the others. Last Wednesday, as one of our morning rituals, Steve was reading the Morning Brew (a great free business newsletter…) to me. He recited the story of Joshua Miele, one of this year’s MacArthur Fellows. His story was just a WOW and the realization of what a difference our mindsets can make in how we lead our lives. Joshua is not in the CPG world; he is an adaptive technology designer. He has led some amazing projects including the following that were listed in The Morning Brew
· Fire tablets that are Braille-compatible, and a “Show and Tell” feature on Echo devices that can identify different foods and pantry items
· “Tactile maps” for the Bay Area’s BART train—known for ferrying tech workers to and from San Francisco and the suburbs—that users can explore with their fingers and an audio smart pen
· “YouDescribe,” a platform that crowdsources audio descriptions for popular videos
He has a Ph.D. from UC Berkley, is married, and a father of three. He is also blind. He was blinded and disfigured when his neighbor, who was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, threw acid on his face when he was 4 years old.
His attitude and this quote just stood out to me.
What an amazing attitude, what a courageous mindset and what extraordinary accomplishments. We all have our challenges and some of them are more obvious and just really harder than others. What makes the difference is how we face them. Do we use them as excuses or do we see them as a catalyst, for us to make the world a better place?
One thing that I have noticed, over the years that we have been doing this work, is that many of you started on this path because of challenges that you have had in your life or those that you have seen in others. For many, they tell the story of how food was affecting theirs or their family’s health, due to allergies, diabetes, intolerance, or just how they felt.
Remember your WHY. That is the reason for what you are doing.
For many of you, this is not about just making a profit, but helping others enjoy the foods and beverages that they love, to have that indulgence in a way that will help them stay healthy.
What are some of the challenges that you have overcome? Take some time and write them down. Take a little time to pat yourself on the back. Send me a note I would love to hear what challenges that you have overcome.