Check out our first interview with Yvonne Andresen, owner of The Blend in Washington, IL. as she offers insight into her philosophy behind atmosphere and customer service. Besides great customer service, The Blend offers a nice selection of yummy coffee drinks, smoothies, teas, etc…  as well as an assortment of baked goods.  Their atmosphere suggests that customers unwind, enjoy the background music, chat with a few friends over coffee or just hang out solo with a book. Their slogan, “where coffee and community come together” is obvious as you walk through their door. The Blend, a ZING card recipient, is thumbs up all around!

☺Robin

I don’t know about you, but lately I’ve watched my life reel from the depths of darkness to the peaks of the utmost.  As a coach, I know that in experiencing these two polarities, one of the gifts that shows up is – I truly feel alive, I have a life and I am not just existing- mundanely.  On the other hand, experiencing such extremes presents the challenge of maintaining a level of peace and lately I’ve missed that gentle calming hand of peace.

To give you a glimpse of the places (in my head) I’ve visited, bear with me…

I’ve visited the land of confusion and passed several signs that read, “WHO ARE YOU?  WHERE ARE YOU GOING?  WHAT IS NEXT?,”  etc…   Next I popped my head into the tunnel of gloom & doom and here I heard several voices such as – a voice from the LADY OF LACK – assuring me that I AM lacking and don’t deserve any more than what is showing up.  I heard the voice of the IN-SECURITY COP, harping on the latest depressing news that’s been splashed in front of our every day existence (our leader’s suck and our country is doomed, etc… ).  I heard the BLOG POLICE yelling at me concerning the lack of consistency with this blog! UGH! I moved on and found myself stumbling into THE COMMUNITY OF ONE. Here I found a strong defense for existing ALONE (me, myself and I) and a strong assurance that I needed no one else.  Hah!

I recognized that I had fallen into a hole of desperation.

What has saved me from this self-defeating trip, from the hole that wanted to swallow me up?   One word and one word alone… the word QUIRKY.  Someone suggested that I operate from the place of quirky and at first, it took me back a few steps until I found the nerve to visit my new unorthodox status.

I peeked inside the word quirky and found myself!

Here I realized that different is something that we often fight.  Different, especially in the Midwest, can have a connotation of “what’s wrong with you”.  You don’t look like me or you don’t sound like me or you think differently than I do and just what is wrong with you?

As I look back I realize that every creative soul fights this conundrum.  The courage to move forward is the same courage that showed up with Abe Lincoln as he stepped towards abolishing slavery or the same courage that kept Edison on his beaten path to create a light bulb.  I wonder how often he heard the words different or strange or quirky.

My point is that we may not be discovering the light bulb or speaking on congressional issues, but we are making a stand by showing up as who we truly are.  Without apologies, without explanations, we are given our one life to live fully and without reservations.  Our mission is to be all that we are designed to be and in that-we find the gifts that give us the courage to move forward.

So from this place of quirkiness, how can I move forward and hold on to who I am?  How can I stand boldly in all that I stand for?

Maybe this is next for me: offering FUN workshops with quirky titles… hmmmmmmmm

QUIRKY LADY WORKSHOP SERIES:

*ZINGER ZANGER’S NOW & ZEN (This workshop is designed to help participants discover the value of the present moment.  It offers exercises that will help them understand how to shift from worrying about the past or fearing the future into the gift of now)

*DISCOVER YOUR MOXIE MO (modus operandi) – (This interactive workshop is all about YOU, conquering your fear and stepping into your genius… that place inside of you that is naturally creative, resourceful and whole)

*PROUD TO BE QUIRKY (This fun & interactive workshop is about claiming your uniqueness, about stepping outside that box, about boldly accepting your creative-quirky self and about celebrating the fact that we are all different)

Let’s face it.  It’s tough to be original and unique in a land where we coexist.  In our effort to get along, we find ourselves focusing on what we have in common, giving us familiar ground to communicate on (at least that’s what we tell ourselves).  While we all struggle to be who we are we forget to acknowledge and celebrate our differences, helping each other feel the genius within.  We forget to love one another into our own greatness.  Isn’t that where true collaboration happens?  Isn’t that what we all really want?

People say that as a coach, you draw in individuals that are “like you” to some degree and in this new-found revelation I do recognize an amazing level of quirkiness in each of my clients.  While it’s easy to say to them, “stand in who you are, be fierce and know that the world needs your unique self,” I find that’s it’s toughest to say this to myself.

My new silent prayer is that while it’s nice to know this side of myself and my peeps – those creative and unique individuals that offer to proudly stand out from the rest – I don’t want to forget that the non-quirky people are amazing as well.  I hope to stand with open arms and an open heart to whatever may show up.

So my question to you is, who are you?  What sets you apart and how can you celebrate that?  Are you quirky?  Are you not?  What do you contribute?  What can the universe expect from you? Play around with these thoughts and… uh… to you… who called me quirky… THANK YOU for pointing out the obvious. You know who you are.

☺Robin

We’ve just sent out our latest issue of The Zing Newsletter, chock-full of our latest news and positive ideas for everyday living. To get a better understanding of what you’ll be getting every month, once you sign up, click on the following link. And if you’re not signed up already, add your email address to the form located at the top of this blog to get The Zing Newsletter delivered to your email inbox, once a month.

Wouldn’t it make sense to feel a bit of writer’s block as you decide to write about Zinger Zanger’s Mister Pissy? Of course it would. Because what else would I hear other than… “You can’t do this! The name is BAD… you aren’t good enough… are you crazy? … blah blah blah.”
Well… I’ve pushed through to the other side! Mister Pissy … you have no grounds and I AM capable of exposing your ploy to wreak havoc with our human spirit. Take that!

Who is Mister Pissy? He is the epitome of our worst thoughts. He is the creator of a pissy attitude, a pissy day, a pissy year, etc. He is harshness, vulgarity, negativity and assumption. Unaware, we give him the power to take down our dreams and goals in a flash. He creeps into our thoughts with a foothold, only to gain access into our present life and ultimately our future.

The good news – once we recognize his voice and the debilitating comments that he throws our way – a gleaming ray of sunlight appears, filled with options & CHOICE. We have the ability to choose the thought we focus on and in doing so the capacity to change the energy of the day and the design of our future.

Find your Mister Pissy, whether it’s a Mister Pissy doll from Zinger Zanger, stress ball or a paperclip. When you hear a Mister Pissy remark… grab your negative self talk and throw him… kick him… stick him in the freezer… tape him to the wall…whatever it takes to put him in his place and take back control!

What does your Mister Pissy say to you on a continuous basis?  What is the sentence you hear most often?  When do you hear him?  Is it as you look in the mirror?  Is it as you walk into a room full of people or when you’re sitting quietly alone in a room that yours speaks loudest?

To further understand the Mister Pissy effect, check out the Mister Pissy website, MyMisterPissy.com.
Follow Mister Pissy and add your Pissy remarks on the MP Facebook fan-page.

☺Robin

Introducing the new Zinger Zanger Approved GOOD.IS post. We’ll be helping GOOD.IS ‘push the world forward’ by posting our favorite videos, which are well designed, both visually and conceptually.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reyxkSWUjLI

Introducing the new Zinger Zanger Approved TED Talks post. We’ll be helping TED Talks spread their ‘Ideas Worth Spreading’ by posting our favorites.

Each of us has something called mirror neurons, inside these brains of ours, that fire when we act. But these neurons also fire when we see another person act, hence the name mirror neuron. These mirror neurons operate as though watching is also, in a way, acting. Therefore, mirror neurons might be responsible for phenomena such as empathy, our ability to infer the state of mind of another individual.

Mirror neurons become wonderfully simple when we think of how easily we smile when someone else is smiling at us, or how quickly we yawn at the sight of another yawn. It’s even more accessible when we think of raising our children and leading by example. As a matter of fact, if you want them to, the various examples of mirror neuron activity will now multiply exponentially, and this is how they might give us clues on the inner-workings of creativity.

Beyond being a tool for survival, creativity offers us the ability to think our way through, out of, or into situations that inform and form our lives. And like many other human behaviors and mediums, creativity also flourishes when in an environment with other creative actors. In many ways, creativity is a kind of network accessed by individuals ready to put its resources to use for them and those around them. Creativity also has the exceptional characteristic of transformation among its various traits, allowing its user to augment and shift a situation to fit a particular need or sensibility. This transform-ability is why creativity and positivity make such a handsome pair when used together. Creativity needs positivity, mostly in the form of encouragement and support, and positivity needs creativity in order to make those shifts that are vital when wanting to actively feel and think positively.

So, now take a moment and repeat after me:

“I love creativity and positivity & positivity and creativity love me!”

☺Tobey

We, at Zinger Zanger Inc. would like to offer you a few gifts of innovation, imagination and pure genius as you begin your stroll into the year, 2010.  We’ve stumbled upon a few websites that may catapult your thoughts beyond your normal everyday thinking.  Since Zinger Zanger is all about stepping into places that open up possibilities, who knows this could just stir up your creative juices, trigger your unprecedented thought-patterns and you could have one of the innovative sites that we talk about next year!  Enjoy the ride and catch the wave of creativity!
[Note: Some of them don't work like normal sites & require you to 'play' with them.]

So, as you step into this new year, embrace that which is beyond the norm, BE all encompassing, and…

Be Funny with Your Fingers | Be Reasonable & Open | Be Efficient | Be Precise | Be Community-Minded | Be In Accord | Be Innovative | Be In-Shape | Be Reflective | Be a Nurturer | Be Energy-Conscious | Be Understanding |  Be a Believer | Be a People-Person | Be Unconventional | Be a Brander | Be Cobweb-Less | Be an Early-Adapter | Be Smarter Than A… | Be an Artist | Be-hold the Beauty of Nature

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year.

Cheers!!
The staff at Zinger Zanger, Inc.

A ZZ moment of inspiration:

Follow Harold as he creates the life he desires… all with a purple crayon – Amazing!

Robin Albright here, reporting from Zoe Mountain in northern Arkansas, having just arrived and a bit out of sink. With no television, no internet and aside from a few crickets and the hum of my laptop, I find the quiet a little un-nerving. I can almost hear a whisper of concurrence from my Apple. Rarely does it find itself unplugged from the lightening speed of the virtual world. It seems cruel to detach like this, as if I’ve allowed someone to unplug it’s very life.

Unplugged it may be, but – still connected to it’s power of source. It’s able to perform – without the help of the super highway of information. While it’s usually performing with whistles & bells – notifying me when emails arrive, constantly receiving and sending information, now it’s quiet – only to shuffle the information found right here and right now-the information that I provide.

Again, to compare… my life is retreating a bit from the same busy-ness… the fast track that keeps me hopping and doing. I’m still connected to my power source, but here I can be still and listen. I can hear myself think and it’s easier to sort through the thoughts, since they aren’t competing for space amongst a bazillion other thoughts coming in at lightening speed. It’s easier to be present in the moment. Once finished here, the highway will be waiting and I will be equipped to handle it better. I’m fueling up and checking in with my core values, the exits that I’m wanting to take… routing out my next move and envisioning the stops along the way. This is some sort of a pit stop, I suppose and much needed. Pistons weren’t firing as they should. Ignition has been a little slow.  My paths weren’t always intentional and my mapping has been a bit sloppy.  My trip-meter indicated that I’ve been spinning my wheels in a few areas – causing my mileage to be over extended and resulting in my exhaustion. Yep, this Arkansas trip is all about refocusing, retuning and refueling… assuring that once this motor needs to rev up and move forward… there will be no hesitation. I welcome the unfamiliar quiet and rest.
I’m taking this time to escape the highway and unplug from the fast pace. I am here, along with my computer… both connected to our source of power and in awe of the incredible brilliance that is possible.

Wow, what’s kept me from doing this a thousand times before? What keeps us all from unplugging on a regular basis? Aside from the time that your head hits the pillow, when do you unplug? When do you allow yourself to enjoy the quiet so that your own thoughts are clear?