Chip Conley talks about interesting topics that I feel reflects on what I sometimes talk about on this blog. I try to share ideas on how people can survive well on less, save more, and spend their free time improving their life, finding the happiness in their life.

As you watch the video, check for that pyramid that he redesigned. It had basic needs, survival, at the bottom. That’s sort of like that struggle when you just don’t have enough money for your basic needs in order to feel comfortable. I think most people feel on edge about bills, when many pay more than they need to. When your basic needs are whitled down into a solid statement: I just need shelter, food, and love — it becomes less important that you keep the boat and fancy car. When you have time to explore, learn, and grow because your basic needs are taken care off (success) you then transcend into the self awareness that allows you to do the above. To find happiness.

I think if Chip Conley talked to Vivian about her finances, he may find that she feels safe, she feels her basic needs are met, and that with that security of the survival part and further success, it allows her to focus on her job more and make it worth her while.

Not all of us can be Chip Conley, owning hotels, or kings of countries. We still need people to clean bathrooms, and to be a nurse, or to run sewer lines. However, remember the hard working people on the show, Dirty Jobs? Many seem happy. They enjoyed sharing their work. It may not be fun, but when people are not stressed about basic needs, I feel they relax, and are able to take another look at life and what they do.

So when I mention that someone can live a happy life on less than $1000 a month in America, it’s the coverage of basic financial needs in order to go beyond survival, beyond success, right up to self-awareness and ultimate happiness in exploration, learning, and growth.

I love it when Sir Ken Robinson talks. He is one of my favorites at TED and someone I love to follow. If you haven’t seen it yet, check out his latest book: The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything. I haven’t read it yet, I plan on purchasing it soon.

His speech holds a lot of meaning for me, simply because I am someone who never went to college, until now, at 29. I was nervous about going to college, because I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I felt like I had one shot at going to college. The government would pay for it, and I would have to choose what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Because I didn’t know what I wanted, I never went.

Instead, I looked for what I really wanted to do. I experimented with different types of businesses, some were massive failures. It is through this ‘testing’ phase that I found writing. I found I loved to write fiction. I discovered that while I could write nonfiction, it wasn’t my favorite. However, I learned certain aspects of it that were enjoyable. I learned to focused on what I loved about it. Over 10 years of working in nonfiction, and having perfected it, I did it because it allowed me access to do what I really want to do while working part time at it. Maybe I’m a ‘late bloomer’ but I absolutely love working from home and having the free time that I have to seek out other opportunities.

So this year, as I enter college, I do so with the idea that I’ll be diving into lessons and learning and passions that I can discover all over again. I’m not taking English. Why would I want to learn how to do something that I already do for a living? Instead, I chose physics, a science field, and with full intention of exploring other sciences along the way as well. Chemistry and biology are also of interest to me. I wouldn’t have this opportunity to learn about things that could be very important to me. I wish to find the solutions to problems I’m passionate about. I feel I can only do that through knowing the science behind it, so I can create what I want. I’m a problem solver. I like knowing how to make it, not going over problems.

Imagine if Christopher Columbus had believed in his formal education where everyone around him believed the earth was flat. Pigeonholed into what was tradition, rather than willing to push the boundaries but following his passion, he revolutionized beliefs in his time. In the picture above, he is seen with people weeping at his parting, because they feared he would not return. He must surely fall off the end of the world if he were to go off in his ships.

If you haven’t yet, go listen to Sir Ken Robinson, and then maybe share with me your interpretations.

Elementary school teachers and high school teachers that I had were great, but I really did lack in the math department. It may not be the fault of math teachers. As someone at the TED website posted in the comments, some teachers end up being math teachers and they hated math. They even said so to children.

So when we’ve got math teachers who hate math teaching these skills to kids who also have learned to hate math, you can easily see why science and engineering careers seem like the impossible reach to kids. Many may have the aspiration, but when we make math ‘harder’ on ourselves by trying to memorize formulas instead of building formulas ourselves, it’s a limitation. We get told it may be too hard and to try something else.

What’s your thoughts on math?

I don’t care what age you are, or where you are in life, but I firmly believe that learning how to cook and learning what to eat is important for everyone. Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution may just help a lot of Americans face the reality that is killing us every day. Food is important. Food needs to nourish and energize and most of the food that Americans eat doesn’t do that.

In the past, we would eat food to fuel our bodies and help us be strong. We would eat more when we needed more energy. Now, we eat much more and we get less nutrition and even less energy. It’s no wonder why Jamie is so passionate about this. It’s no wonder why TED and Chris Anderson is behind this. It’s no wonder why many Americans and people around the world are moved by this. I support it 110%.

Support Jamie by watching his Food Revolution. It’s on tonight at 9/8 central on ABC. Check your local listings for more information.

Do more to support Jamie Oliver by signing the petition. TED and others are supporting his efforts further by signing petitions, donating money, and volunteering their time. Sign Jamie Oliver’s Food revolution petition, support the efforts to save lives.

But don’t stop there. Join the discussion. Learn how to cook. Share what you know with other people. Grow a garden. Whatever it takes, small efforts make a huge difference.

I plan on offering more links and information about healthy cooking and gardening, tech that supports these efforts and much more in the future. Thanks for reading and I hope you’ll join me in the fight to save lives and to help America eat better.

This is a fantastic talk. Growing fish in natural resources.

I think an important part of that conversation he hit at the end. Teaching people to feed themselves through natural ways and teaching farmers relationships.

It’s a topic I’ve thought about for years. There are many countries who have starving people. Non-profit companies then ask people for money to send them clean water and food. Another Tedster discussed the creation of a water filter that would clean dirty water. I like this idea, too, about feeding hungry countries but not only sending food, but sending seeds, cattle, and more. Let them learn how to feed themselves.

Teach a man to fish…

Chris from TED mentioned this place. It is oddly beautiful, and oddly humbling in a way, to look at these places. Nearly perfectly haunting.

The main page.

Favorite 1
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Favorite 3

I was going to put all my geeky experiments and science stuff in another blog, but who cares. I’ll put them all in the same one. I like them.

Don’t watch if you’re offended by cursing.

Kary Mullis is a born scientist, surfer, and very entertaining. Here’s the talk he gave at TED about experiments.

[ted id="426"]