Winn is busily preparing for the Paul Mitchell Schools’ annual Magic of Memories celebration. Despite the gloomy economy, Future Professionals across the country bucked conventional wisdom and decided to raise more money than ever before, with a goal of $1.2 million! Visit www.paulmitchelltheschool.com after April 26 to see the final results.

And yes, Winn’s on Facebook, too! Just search for Winn Claybaugh and add him to your Friends list.



New Film Explores Alternative Energies

America is addicted to oil, and it’s time for an intervention. Issues like record high oil prices, global warming, and an insatiable demand for energy are fueling heated debates throughout the nation.

That’s the premise of Fuel, an insightful new film making its way across the country. Fuel exposes shocking connections between the auto industry, the oil industry, and the government while exploring alternative energies such as solar, wind, electricity, and non–food-based biofuels. Environmentalist Josh Tickell takes to the road in his Veggie Van to explore the pros and cons of biofuels, America’s addiction to oil and its effect on the U.S. economy, and the solutions offered by green energy.

The film, which won the Audience Award for Best Documentary at Sundance and was nominated for the 2009 Writers Guild Award for Best Documentary Screenplay, opened last November in Seattle and Austin to sold-out crowds. Since then, it has premiered in California, Washington, Colorado, and New Mexico, making its way across the country to rave reviews.

Fuel is coming to a theater near you. Visit www.thefuelfilm.com/theaters for information about screenings in your area.



Celebrate Daymaker Day, April 29

David Wagner, author of My Life as a Daymaker, believes you can change the world by making someone’s day and he’s asking everyone to try it on April 29 for Daymaker Day.

At the end of David’s term as president, The Salon Association (TSA) designated his birthday, April 29, as Daymaker Day. Businesses all over the United States and Canada have honored this day by engaging in gestures that make someone’s day. Some salons visit homeless shelters, children’s hospitals, and firehouses to donate services such as haircuts and chair massages. Others engage in simple acts of kindness such as sending thank-you notes to favorite clients.

Want to increase your “nice” factor? Then celebrate Daymaker Day on Wednesday, April 29, 2009, and go make someone’s day!

Our January/February People Profile featured Kathy Buckley, known around the world as America’s first hearing-impaired comedian. This month, we’re proud to bring you her brand-new MASTERS Audio Club interview with Winn Claybaugh.

Kathy has inspired hundreds of thousands of people with her story of overcoming some of the most difficult obstacles imaginable—a hearing loss that impeded her speech and language development, sexual molestation, a horrendous accident in which she was run over by a jeep and literally died in the ambulance, and two bouts with cancer. Through it all, Kathy demonstrated determination, grace, and especially humor.

Her popular appeal and refreshing wit have landed her on countless TV shows and in numerous national magazines. People named her one of their most touching stories of 1997. Her critically acclaimed one-woman off-Broadway show, Now Hear This, won the Los Angeles Theater Ovation Award and the LA entertainment industry’s Media Access Award as Best Play of the Year.

Kathy is far more than just a popular comic. She tirelessly performs on behalf of nonprofit and educational organizations and serves as the national spokesperson for No Limits, a nonprofit organization and school that provides educational programs and accessibility for deaf and hard-of-hearing children. As a motivational speaker, she eagerly spreads the message that anything can be achieved when the heart and mind work together.

I was watching The Late Show with David Letterman and heard about a man who went into a store looking for an item. He found no one to help. The clerks were disinterested at best, rude at worst. After much searching, he finally found the item himself. At the checkout counter he found a long line of people and a clerk who definitely worked only at her own speed. Finally he paid for his item, and the clerk threw it into a plastic bag and shoved his change at him. The man had to say something, so he asked the cashier, “Can’t you even say thank you?” And the cashier said, “It’s printed on your receipt.”

A great time to be imaginative is when you’ve landed a new customer and want to show your appreciation. Forget the standard letter from the CEO. Why not try what we sometimes do at MackayMitchell Envelope Company? Within 24 hours of receiving a first time order, we will arrange delivery of a 30-foot-long banner saying “Thank You” in 15 different languages. Believe me, that makes it to the bulletin board, opposed to a boilerplate letter that ends up in the trash.

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Corporate Corner
Gratitude: The Gateway to Abundance
By Genie O’Malley, CEO and Founder of ibreathelife

When Genie O’Malley incorporated giving into the fundamentals of her business, she discovered a simple way to increase her company’s energy and keep her team from becoming overwhelmed.

When I first began working on my company plan, I was shocked to learn that I could not find a single model that incorporated gift giving into a company’s business and strategic plan. So I worked for hours, days, and months on my plan, folding the art of giving into every subtitle. Slowly, from the first paragraph to the last, two worlds came together and a wholeness began to develop. I began to witness the beauty of a company created on a foundation of giving and the beauty of those who will be served and elevated out of their suffering. I did not see the personal fulfillment in creating abundance first and then deciding where the abundance could be distributed to serve others; I wanted those actions to grow hand in hand. I wanted to go to work in my for-profit company and be motivated by a nonprofit heart. In my business plan, I began to see that outcomes could be projected but human spirit could not be measured. I did not know where my company would go, but I realized that gratitude from those who were helped through the success of our company opened a gateway to our own abundance.

Having a business plan is critical to a successful business but defining the nature of giving within that plan from the beginning is critical to our souls. It will keep us steady on the unsure days and grounded on our most successful days. All successful business owners and entrepreneurs are filled with the spirit of courage, trust, and the ability to believe in others. Purpose keeps business owners fresh and ready to win.

If you are a business owner, take a moment to revisit your plan and define what is meaningful to you. How, when, and who do you want to serve through your success? Open the gateway of abundance not simply through wit, hard work, and intelligence but through a relationship of the soul within the universe.

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Do Something!
Go from the Ordinary to the Extraordinary

In his bestselling book, The Fred Factor, motivational speaker Mark Sanborn introduces readers to Fred, a real-life mail carrier who provides exceptional service by putting everything he has into doing his job and treating everyone he meets as his friend. While others might view Fred’s job as monotonous or uninspiring, Fred sees it as an opportunity to make a difference in the world.

In this simple story, Sanborn offers four principles for going from the ordinary to the extraordinary: Everyone makes a difference, success is built on relationships, you must continually create value for others, and you can reinvent yourself regularly. Elaborating on the second principle, Sanborn offers the “seven B’s of relationship building.”

1. Be real. You can’t impress others by being anybody but yourself. Always do your best at being yourself.
   
2. Be interested (not just interesting). Interesting people attract attention, but interested people attract appreciation. Appreciating the people we serve increases the value of our service to them.
   
3. Be a better listener. When you take an interest and listen to people, they provide information that you can use to create value.
   
4. Be empathic. The need to be understood is one of the highest human needs.
   
5. Be honest. Don’t make promises you can’t keep, and don’t create expectations you can’t fulfill.
   
6. Be helpful. Little things make a big difference. Remember your manners, and people will remember you.
   
7. Be prompt. Helping people save time is a gift of great value.
   

To go from the ordinary to the extraordinary, remember that the best way to grow your value is to grow yourself.