What I Learned from No Impact Man



Thank you Robert Hruzek ( hopefully I spelled it right this time )  from Middle Zone Musings for an opportunity to participate in another writing assignment project with you : What I Learned from People

I found the prompt wonderful,  yet I was not inspired by whom to write about until I read this post today from Colin Beavan aka No Impact Man

I met Colin through the blogosphere thanks to Margeurite, a loyal bloggy green friend

He recently completed a year long project of living with no impact to the environment. His hero of a wife
(heroic in that she went along) and darling daughter all participated too. He endeared all of us to his project and his family.

I met him in the later part of his endeavor and was really floored. Being green was much more than I thought. He was doing something he believed in,  humbly I might add,  and sortof making up the rules as he went along.

What consistantly pulls me to Colin is his grace. His project is unique, zealous and very ambitious and yet he’s so not in your face about it – he’s doing what he’s doing. Watch him shine. Along the way he as had opportunity to hear opposing thoughts, voice political views or banter other methodology. I experience over and over his graciousness, his steady consistant stream of thought and how unaccusing he can be. He has written his way out of many conversations in a way ( the higher road way ) that I find remarkably inspiring 

For him, his project is about what he believes in and being heard. Now it’s a mission that defines him – hear him roar. ( nicely )

For me I found the exact same definition when I discovered supplementation. I also found that my belief and conviction about natural alternatives to health and well being, gave me voice. ( hear me roar!)   The best part was that when people saw my health recover it gave me credibility and people listened to me.  How cool is that.

In his post he spoke to a few things that I feel describe my approach to my work and my world.  What I learn most from him is how he models all that he believes in, that he had a great way of saying it
(and that he doesn’t mind that I use what he says) and that I humbly can continue to learn from his grace.

Wisdom ala Colin Beavan:

Do what you can. 

Work towards what has value for you.

Be an example. (everyone is watching you!)

Your credibility increases when you lead the way.

Believe that all that you do really does make a difference.

We need each other.

Thank you No Impact Man! 

and Robert —- thank you for giving us a broader platform to share from.


got the world in the palm of our hand flickr image credit

Karen Hanrahan ~ Wellness Educator/Nutritional Consultant/Blog Author
708.482.0678 ~ Websites: Nutrition, Weight Loss, and Green Clean as seen on Oprah

Member of BNI – West Suburban BNI: “Chapter Mentor”
Member, Board Member and Programming Chair of West Suburban Women Entrepreneurs   

 

This entry was written by Karen Hanrahan, posted on February 8, 2008 at 2:28 pm, filed under Creativity, Green, Random and tagged , , . Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. Trackbacks are closed, but you can post a comment.

10 Comments

  1. marguerite manteau-rao
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 4:35 pm | Permalink

    Karen, as usual, I appreciate how everything you write is so heartfelt and genuine. As you may know, I do not share your feelings about No Impact Man. His project would mean a lot more to me if it was not part of a whole media circus. I do not dispute the value of trying to share one’s learning with as many people as possible, but it’s the way he is going about it that bothers me. http://lamarguerite.wordpress.com

  2. Karen Hanrahan
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 5:29 pm | Permalink

    I completely understand your point of view.
    I have had several of my friends become famous and in the eye of the media and feel pretty strongly that some of that circus is really the “media” or their hoops so to speak, vs the person caught in that churn. 
    Perhaps you can see past the method and hold onto the message – after all it  is filled with greenness
    I think there is room on this planet for all of us!!

  3. Patricia
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 6:09 pm | Permalink

    I have been blogging since 2004, but not on a true blogging platform until 07. Thanks to Karen, who has been my blogging buddy, I’ve learned a lot this year about Web life 2.0 and the power of blogs to grow audiences. I come from the marketing and communications world, and some of our clients are big national causes. They deeply believe in their missions, as do we. To work as hard as they do and have that much fervor and not have the world know it is to toil in oblivion. Part of getting things done is rallying people and that requires visibility. So while I appreciate Marguerite’s sensibilities, it makes me wonder about something else I’ve noticed. I have observed a certain reluctance on the part of bloggers when it comes to currying the attention of traditional media. It’s looked down upon. Is that just me?

  4. Karen Hanrahan
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 6:59 pm | Permalink

    i think it depends on the blogger, many hype oodles of advertising on their blogs as an income stream – for me I don’t know how to do that
    and I am turned off by it too
    however when I do get to that level  I really  want it to be very organic  selective and meaningful
    i am actually not a fan of in your face traditional marketing
    and personally with no access to TV, newspapers except online and little magazines I still find I am in the know —
    i find what I need to be a part of finds me
    does that make sense??
    http://www.bestwellnessconsultant.com

  5. Robert Hruzek
    Posted February 9, 2008 at 1:53 am | Permalink

    Karen, thanks for joining us for this month’s project! Great job, and great lessons!Cheers!

  6. Karen Hanrahan
    Posted February 9, 2008 at 5:09 am | Permalink

    you’re very welcome Robert 

  7. Brad Shorr
    Posted February 11, 2008 at 6:57 pm | Permalink

    Wow, it sounds like the No Impact Man has had quite an impact! I must admit I am sometimes discouraged by the feeling one person can’t do anything to change the environment. Reading posts like yours help.

  8. Karen Hanrahan
    Posted February 11, 2008 at 7:20 pm | Permalink

    ( smile ) I am delighted that after reading my post that you feel hopeful,. It’s so true how daunting it’s become to feel like your recycling or anything you might do for the environment really has impact at all on the bigger picture. Each of us has some part that we can all play and I am championed by those walking the talk

  9. nadine sellers
    Posted February 12, 2008 at 12:02 am | Permalink

    hello, sunsmile. may i add a penny’s worth? i also abhor hype, but thoroughly believe in the power of one. that’s my math teacher’s fault.when i could not grasp numbers, she told me to think of them as the Egyptians did. one grain of wheat at a time. you know the rest…one multiplied by two, that multiplied by two and soon millions.and look at the planet, we sure have gone forth and used it all up. so reverse the system one less by two less and our impact soon will allow nature to heal—thereby, Sustopia.thank you Karen for dragging this slow but green blogger along a wonderful adventure in eco-discovery. greenadine.

  10. Karen Hanrahan
    Posted February 12, 2008 at 12:18 am | Permalink

    and hello to you nadine,
    of course your penny’s worth is welcome here
    like you I too believe strongly in the power of one
    sustopia – if that’s not a dictionary word – it should be – love it
    AND your are very very welcome –
    this slow but methodical green journey – where ever it takes us it’s definitely not going to happen alone

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