I like to surround myself with positive, fun, challenging, energetic people. And I want to be that way too. Conversely, I make an effort not to surround myself with negative people, with people that drain my energy.

I like to spend time everyday on self-awareness. I meditate, I write. It is as important as anything else in my life. It keeps me grounded.

I want to be present. Interactions are so much better, experiences so much more meaningful, when we are fully present for that person, for that experience. Meditation helps with that. The mind wants to do a thousand things at once. But being there for that one thing is a pleasure, a reward.

Empathy is powerful. I want to be with people, surround myself with activities where empathy is plentiful.

I practice Gratefulness. For all those little things. For the big things. Every day.

I don’t want to make time for the things I love. I want them to be front and center. They aren’t the things we do when we have time. They are the things we do.

I am open to new things; to meeting new people – to hearing their stories. I know what I like but I want to learn new things that I didn’t know I loved. I don’t just want to chase and create opportunities. I want opportunities to come and smack me. When I wrote my book, Our Stories Matter, I came out of that experience with an awareness that when we open ourselves up to others, we open doors to ourselves.

I like to to read. From Patterson to Gandhi. From Churchill to Thich Nhat Hanh . From Larson to Yogananda.

I want to make a difference. I want to be a changemaker. I want to make a difference in the life of one person at a time, every day. I want to participate in activities that contribute to systemically making the world a better place.

For me these aren’t idealistic things. They are guideposts by which I live my life, how I want to live my life – because these are the things that excite me, motivate me, make me tick.

What makes you tick?