YOU’RE NOT BOUND. Don’t hold back.
Two years ago when we took a walk around the ol’ block and I told Josh my idea, I said, almost jokingly, that this ongoing gathering, community or party I was thinking about would be a sort of “support group”.
We laughed about how serious that felt (it was post election), it was true and there was more…
Twelve Greater Good parties later and having loved up on LA, Austin, NYC and SF with spoken word, song and meaningful speakers who have brought stories of optimism, purpose and passion to life, what was truly sparked from that simple walk and my deep desire is a community that has:
• Taken a fresh look at how we “party” and created a new way to do it that leaves you high for the entire weekend (what a couple people shared after this past Sunday’s party, photos are from the night).
• Taken us off our phones to actually seeeee and hearrrr one another. We have such important things to talk about!
• Changed the way we drop in with strangers (and friends). The only surface you’ll find at GGP HQ or any GGP anywhere are likely things like marble, carpet or wood in the loving rooms and kitchens.
• Moved many throughout the two plus years to get after their passion-turned-high calling (ie, one of the speakers Sunday, prolific reality producer and talent manager (and much more), Kristin Giese, wrote and published her book after feeling the pull here at GGP two years ago (see video). Others shared, too, that the GGP supported them in finally moving on their passion or purpose project, higher call and/or business.
• Motivated people to use their creativity, their romance/marriage, their time, their loving energy etc for great good.
• Supported the proverbial light ~ that which can only be brought to the world by art and artists bringing their voices, sung or spoken etc (!) to more people. (We start each connection with spoken word/poetry and song to help people more deeply land inside the space).
• Helped people quiet or transform the doubt to more readily connect to the part of themselves who dare…dare to live bigger or louder, dare to care, dare to more fully use their creativity.
• Been co-created by now hundreds of different people who have walked through the doors (we make sure that each party has approx. 30-40% new people/friends…we were clear from day one that this was not a party just for our friends, but for your friends and their friends and their spouses and their neighbors and their neighbor’s neighbor ~ inclusive not exclusive which, to us, is true community and it was intentionally created that way to have each participant breathe life to their own optimistic endeavor).
• Been inspired to create their own positively and creatively charged (and beautifully poetic and warm) salon nights and community experiences.
• [Connected to it all] brought people much insight, ahas, lightness, comfort, humor, camaraderie, understanding and support (group). 🙂
A huge thanks to everyone who has attended over the last 2+ years. You’ve helped us co-create since the beginning and we are so grateful.
And thank you again to the talented Kristin Giese, Vish Chatterji, Josh Mandel and Rachel Kann who blew the house/hearts wide open on 10/20.
Kristin, Vish & Rachel’s magnificent books:
Kristin‘s book, (un)verified: Two Strangers. One Crazy Lie.: https://amzn.to/2N0jcMG
Vish’s book, The Business Casual Yogi: Take Charge of Your Body, Mind and Career: https://amzn.to/31AclyD
Rachel’s book of poetry, How to Bless the New Moon: https://amzn.to/2N0f4fv
And Rachel‘s book release party: https://bit.ly/32CEhmR
If you have a passion or purpose project or high call you know you must return soon ☎️, take the first bigger-sized move in that direction (micro likely won’t cut it right now) and once you start, know that one of the most important things you can do is keep following the feeling.
That directed or enlivened feeling you feel each time you work on it and get it out there? That’s your fuel. The way others are also feeling as a result of you finally putting sustained gusto into it? Follow that, too.
Keep following the feeling until it’s SOME thing.
Right now, that project or calling need not pay the bills. It’s not the point right now (and may never be?) and the you whose plugged in already knows it.
Stop putting the old rules of an industry, of your title or what you’ve been known for or what your business has been on something that is not to be boxed or labeled…
This thing, your thing? It’s a breathing, living one, not bound by the same rules, identity or paths taken a decade or two ago or even one yesterday ago.
The point is this: keep doing your “main” thing *and/but* do this, too. For something as important as this, you will flex time to be able. You will.
Whatever you do, don’t hold back on you, that connected and feeling part of you, *as well as* the other humans who need to feel themselves more during this time in the world’s/ society’s existence, too.
There are more parties coming by those wanting to host in the South Bay here in the LA area and more on the west side, too (one in December and one in January).
Also, if you have ideas for new cities in 2020, we’d love to hear them. We will help you get the talent secured, plan the entire evening with you and show up to help you present that connected experience to your friends and your friends’ friends and on.
Life is good and there’s much good to do. What will you choose?
To watch clips of the brilliant speakers, please enjoy them HERE.
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Thank you so much for your words Alan, Brett, Sheila & Vivianne👬👭:
Michelle and Josh,
Attending your Greater Good Party was a deeply profound and inspiring experience.
The openness of the people and the amazing transformations they have experienced by you asking one simple question blew my mind, my wife and I have not stopped speaking about it since we left the event.
The power of being with like-minded people in person and those individuals having a place to speak their deepest truth about what they really want in life created a container that perpetuated others to just claim their dreams.
It was perfect timing for Jolette and I as we are just starting new endeavors that have been “back burner” things for many years.
The simplicity of the process is so powerful that Jolette and I are inspired to share this.
Thank you Michelle and Josh for creating this magnificent environment of possibility. You truly are serving the Greater Good!
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Hey guys,
I’m still buzzing from last night. I came home and stayed up till 3am writing cause there was no way I could sleep.
To try to describe a Greater Good Party to someone is like trying to describe the concept of light to someone who has lived in complete darkness their entire life. Words and comparisons simply fail to explain something that needs to be witnessed to be understood. However, you could make the same argument for love, and that hasn’t stopped anyone from trying to put it into words for as long as we’ve had language, so I’m just gonna go for it.
Walking into a GGP event is like entering into a room of strangers who have been routing for you your entire life. Unlike the world we’ve come to know, you are happily welcomed by every person you come in contact with. You’ll find yourself in conversation with someone and come to realize that neither of you even know the person whose living room you are standing in. This awkward shared revelation that neither of you know what the fuck this thing is even about becomes the first of many bonds that will be formed that night. All you know is that your friend, or co-worker, or parent, or child said you NEEDED to go and now you’re there.
And just as the panic starts to set in, they introduce the first speaker of the night….who does spoken word poetry. Now you’re really confused. No one in the history of pyramid selling has gone “I know how we’ll hook ‘em in! Spoken word poetry!”. Your hands unclench and you lower your defense wall a little.
Over the next couple hours, as speaker after speaker take their turn, it becomes clear. It’s not a sale pitch. It’s not a cult. It’s a collective. A collective of creatives who still believe that good exists in this world. Who want to inspire and be inspired by others. Who know they have a gift, but are unsure if they are ready to share it. Who, despite all the negative, divisive, awful things the news pounds into our heads everyday, still have hope in people. The only thing they are trying to sell is the idea that we all have the power to help each other.
By the end of the night, the room is literally vibrating. If you could bottle the energy that is created in those few hours, you could power every Tesla in Los Angeles for a week.
When it finally ends, people don’t so much leave as they do float out the door.
These simple little parties, these gatherings of strangers and new friends, they’ve changed my entire life. The way I view the world. The way I view myself and what I am capable of. They’ve confirmed I was right not to lose my faith in humanity. That there are other people out there, lots of people, who take joy in the lifting up of others. And that as much as the world would like us to believe we are all in competition with each other up this mountain of life, the fastest way to the top is actually to climb as a group. To catch each other as we fall. To tell the person behind you how to navigate the tricky bits and push each other to do things you didn’t think you were capable of.
We call the Greater Good a party, but only because there is no word that exists that really captures its true essence. And as outrageous and hyperbolic as any attempt I’ve made sounds, it’s still not even close to the explaining the magic that happens in that space.
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Having thousands of friends on social media cannot and will not ever replace having in-person connections. The Greater Good party provides a loving space to foster relationships. It’s a place to spread the light and positivity that is frequently lacking in our day to day lives. It’s so rare for me to be able to spend time in a room full of like-minded and like-hearted people, and to go home knowing that I have new friends. Regardless of age, ethnicity, or social status, everyone at the GGP is equal because our hearts are all the same. I’m genuinely grateful for each and every person I meet at your gatherings. I often get teary-eyed as I drive home from your house as I’m reminded of the good in the world, and that I’m able to contribute to it with all of you. Together, we shine so bright. Thank you for being such a wonderful host and bringing us all together.
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Yesterday I was one of the lucky people who got to attend the GREATER GOOD PARTY! Imagine yourself in a room full of conscious caring people that just want the best for each other and the world. Not only that, but truly are taking action for that to happen and help each other. It was a night filled with learning! Great insightful speakers with books I can’t wait to read, inspiring and deep poetry and spoken words by Josh Mandel and Rachel Kann and all the while MCd by the hosts and visionaries of this wonderful event Michelle and Josh. A night I will never forget.
Make happiness your business by creating your authentic brand…enjoy your business, enjoy your life!
Life is good,
Michelle Ghilotti
Success Designer, Brand Activator & Social Entrepreneur