Who talks more, women or men?

When Uber board member David Bonderman quipped more women on the board would mean more talking, the result was his swift departure.

It has been claimed women speak about 20,000 words a day - 13,000 more than the average man. The suggestion has been that men are more economical with words using them in a more focused and superior way. The thing is, it appears that none of these statistical claims was backed by data.  

Emerging research shows, there may be minor differences between the way men and women speak, some hormonal, mostly cultural, situation-specific and not universal.

The University of Maryland conducted a study with 10 3-5-year-old boys and girls. The girls used about 13,000 words more than the boys. The finding was girls brains have a 30% higher Foxp2 protein also referred to as ‘language protein’ in a brain area key to language in humans.  Girls do tend to speak earlier with more complex sentences than boys in childhood. However, that result was only in females under the age of five.  What about adults?  

Estrogen heightens the production of oxytocin levels, so women get a sort of high from a friendly interaction.   Testosterone seems to play it's part as well.  In one study, 18 female-to-male transgender participants underwent MRI brain scans before and after significant doses of testosterone.  Grey matter in communication areas decreased while white matter in listening areas increased.  Interesting.  How does this play out in real life though?

Wearing a device for capturing and measuring conversations, Northeastern University studied 133 adults.  Women talked more in casual discussions, situations where they’re sustaining relationships, either with their families, friends, or other circles they wish to maintain.  Men will speak more in more extended discussions, or if they are given a task where they have to reach a consensus. With six or more people, men were more likely to dominate the conversation.  Situations where power and influence are at stake.  So do women talk more than men.  Well, it depends.

The scientific journal Science published a study where 396 participants (evenly split) had a recorder automatically recording 30 seconds every 12.5 minutes capturing 5% of their day. The result of that study was women speak 16,215 words a day and men speak 15,669 words a day. So, no real difference.

So, do women talk more than men? The only research that suggested this had a sample of 10  3-5 year olds. So the concept is mostly stereotypical. Factually, it seems to be situationally dependent.

From personal experience, as the only man living in a female-dominated household, all of the above rings true.  I am the most extroverted person in our family, and the most talkative.  If the females are not telling stories or sharing ideas over dinner, they all have their heads down getting things done.  Uber board member David Bonderman should have known better.

5 Ways to be Happier at Work

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Try these 5 proven tactics to be happier at the workplace.

Tip1. Cultivate Work Friendships

If you’re struggling to relate to your colleagues, get to know them, and accept them for themselves.  Organize some group activities like a barbecue or footie depending on the lifestyle of your coworkers.  Connectedness creates a support system, comradery, a sense of loyalty, and helps make a job more fun.  Helping a moderately engaged worker become a highly engaged worker who contributes more to the bottom line. 

Tip 2. Be a Force for Good

Smiling tells your brain to be happier--thanks to the release of neuropeptides. Smiling is also contagious and will make your co-workers smile as well.  Help others.  When you get your coffee, return with another for your colleague.  Offer to help on a project. Say thank you.  Extending expressions of gratitude help co-workers feel a heightened sense of self-worth.  That is a genuine gift.  Science has shown that being appreciated encourages people to extend support and encouragement to others.  Being positive towards your co-workers seems to create a virtuous cycle.  Make it a habit and don't give up if it doesn't change the environment right away.  Stay proactive.

Tip 3. Take care of Yourself

Work smart. Headaches and fatigue interfere with work performance.  Eating protein, and slow release carbs, keep your blood sugar within a normal range your energy level steady and help you concentrate. Staying properly hydrated makes a big difference. Standing up and moving around regularly keeps your circulation moving and help your mood.  Get some fresh air. Evaluate realistically about what you can manage, and make that work awesome.  Journal positive events.  Think of something you appreciate about each day and write it down. Reward yourself after you've completed a project or had a fruitful day with life-enhancing treats that don't break the bank.  Giving yourself a pat on the back, buy writing about your success in your journal, or share the moment by going out to dinner with your significant other, either way, find the time to reward yourself.  Lastly, take an occasional well-deserved break, a weekend away.  This relieves stress, recharges and improves overall health and productivity.  

Tip 4. Get Organized

Having an organized workplace makes the work environment seem less hectic and stressful and can also improve your happiness and help you be better prepared and work more efficiently. Avoid the additional stress that clutter and scrambling for lost items will cause.   Avoid multitasking since it overwhelms as well as decreases concentration and creativity.  Write down three small things you will get done at the start of each workday. Focus on one task at a time. A simple checklist is a wonderful thing.  

Tip 5. Have a Sense of Meaning

Why are you working so hard? Having a point of focus helps you continuously make decisions that fit into your long-term goals.  Meaningful work contributes to happiness. It's been said the happiest careers are those with a creative angle and a degree of autonomy, with lots of freedom for artistic expression. Still, the meaning behind why you do what you do can matter more than the work itself.  Family matters most to me and is the yardstick by which I measure every opportunity I receive.  Before I was married, my goal was first to support the families of my clients, later, that included my own family, and since my office and team, work beneath our home, the well being and growth of the business has an inextricable outcome to my family.  For me, my meaning is the happiness and success of my family and the families for whom I work.

What gives your work meaning and happiness?

AYAME VAN BEUSEKOM

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Ayame van Beusekom competed in gymnastics at the international Olympic level before retiring from the sport at age 18.  Here she talks about what inspired her to keep going until injuries ended her athletic career, and the next step in building her future through education and setting life goals.  Live the adventure.

Marlana:  Here we are at North Head, and we are interviewing Ayame. So, where are you originally from?

Ayame: I am from New Zealand, but my parents are from Japan and Holand.

Sienna:  What do you think is cool about living in New Zealand?

Ayame: New Zealand is just like petty and chilled.

Marlana:  How did you start off in gymnastics?

Ayame:  We went to Japan for a holiday, and there were some bars, little metal bars, and I was doing cyclops with my cousins.  They couldn't do it.  But I was the only one that could do it.  And my mom was like, "Oh, when we get back lets put you in a gymnastics class."  Yeah, I just really enjoyed it, and then we had a general gym competition, so I was with all these other little five-year-olds, and we all didn't know what we were doing just having a good time, and I won my first gold medal.

Sienna:  How long have you been doing gymnastics?

Ayame:  For twelve years now. 

Sienna: What do you do when you get nervous about performing?

Ayame:  Tell yourself that you can do it, like, you have to have positive talk to yourself, especially before you compete.

Sienna:  What's your most memorable performance?

Ayame:  I really like Australia Nationals.  On the first day of competition, I did a double pike.  You Tumble across the diagonal, and you go twice in the air in a pike position, and I fully opened out and face planted on the floor, and it was, really embarrassing, and sad.  The next day all I wanted to do was land the skill.  Like I could land it in training, but the pressure sometimes gets to you.  Then the second day I landed it, and that was probably one of the best moments ever because I could finally like, redeem myself from that moment.  The videos were pretty good though, just that replay of me falling on my face.

Marlana:  So what was the real highlight moment for you?

Ayame:  One of my favorite moments is a release move called a Yeager.  It's like one of these big moves that I never thought I would be able to do and I only saw it like on TV and Olympians do it, and I was like, "I'll never be able to do that."  But I tried it, and within the first few days I was like almost close to missing it and close to catching it, and I was like, this far away from the bar and that moment where I finally went around the bar on the bar and I caught it and it was just like, awesome.

Sienna:  So if you could go back in time what would you say to your younger self?

Ayame: Oh, that's pretty tricky.

Sienna:  I got a few.

Ayame:  Yeah.  Just to like not be scared of stuff.  Compared to all the other girls at gym I think I'm a sort of a scaredy-cat.  Everyone else goes for skills, and they're not scared of stuff, but I'm more cautious like, what if I get hurt what if it goes wrong like "I don't want to do it!"  The thing is you just have to go for it, and you have to one hundred percent go for it, or you are going to hurt yourself.  And I want to tell my younger self that it's okay to be scared, but you should still go for things anyway.  You might have a really good outcome and don't believe you can't do something because you've seen it on TV, and you think you can't do it when you're younger but really if you try it you never know how it's going to turn out, and you might be good at it.  Always give it a go.   

Marlana:  So what is your greatest source of support?  

Ayame:  Definitely my family because they have to pay for it and they have to always put up with me and like being grumpy and tired from gymnastics, they have to feed me and come to pick me up.  Especially the transport.  They've had to give up a lot for it.  And then, my first set of teammates that I had from when I was little.  

Marlana:  What advice would you actually give?

Ayame:  Give it a go, it's not going to be easy, but it will be worth it.  So if you keep going, keep pushing at it, even when you think you're not very good and you're not going to get anywhere if you keep working hard the results will come.  I never thought I would get to international or keep competing with other internationals at an Olympic level, but I made it as well so, they can do it if I can do it.

Marlana:  So what are you going to do with your future?  Like job?

Sienna:  The question all teenagers hate.

Ayame:  So gymnastics you can only do for a certain amount of time before you retire.  And I've got other dreams that are not gymnastics related as well.  So I am hoping to open up my own cafe or business promoting healthy eating and exercise, all that in this one big complex.  I've already started my own baking business, so before I was into healthy eating and stuff, I was into baking.  I started with an Instagram page, posted pictures of baking, and then, people started ordering and stuff.  Then I turned it into a website, so people can order off there.  I hope to expand on that and help with my business skills, so in the future that can be a starting point.  I'm going to AUT, studying International hospitality management.  

Sienna:  So what is something that keeps you strong when something is difficult?

Ayame:  Your time will come, and things will get better, so just knowing that keeps me going. You can do it.  It will pass.  I just always believed hard work is the key to everything.  It's the key to success and happiness.

Sienna:  Do you have any mottos or quotes that keep you going, special to you?

Ayame:  Yeah, I love quotes.  I have two favorite ones.  The first one is "Make it happen, "  and "You're never going to change the world trying to be like it."  So those are my two.

Marlana:  Yeah.

Ayame:  Thank you, guys.  You're capable of doing anything.

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Follow Ayame at:
Gymnastics commentary: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCt8OU68KNONveDSTfomfCkw

Instagram baking:  https://www.instagram.com/ayamesbaking/

Baking Website:  https://ayamesbaking.weebly.com/products.html

More of Mahlon's Photography

Creative Visual Branding

Creative visual branding can help in more ways than you think.  Being relevant to trends is vital for your business, in a marketing campaign, it’s results that count. 

The most effective result-oriented marketing tools is a creative and authentic anchored Visual Marketing campaign.  High-quality visual campaigns can achieve as much as an estimated 94 percent more voluntary sharing. 

Some of the key reasons to focus on visual campaigns include:

1. Seeing Is Believing
A professional visual campaign can meet the seeing is believing, goal.  Words might be right and might be wrong, but visual information is closer to fact. A professional video and photo-rich marketing campaign will kill doubts that might be lingering in the mind of your next customer.  Does your campaign visually illustrate the benefit of your product or services?

2. Content Remains King
Creative storytelling pictures capture your audience’s interest. Care is needed with stock images as often they have a posed ‘fake feel to them… giving your audience a subconscious ‘pull back’ response! Unique brand content keeps your target audience entertained and engaged. Smart customers know how to spot a quality content. Align your images with a unique marketing angle that will resonate with your viewer.  Provide unique, and optimized content readers can count on for relevancy, and they won't be able to get enough of what you produce. AirNZ's brilliant in-flight videos are a serious part of their marketing message drawing peoples attention to safety issues with exceptional writing and even better visual producers. Everyone watches them!  The videos are fun, unexpected, ooze a ‘we care’ message, and you genuinely feel like you are in friendly sky’s! Other airlines have tried to duplicate AirNZ's success failing to realize there is no formula.  AirNZ's is a unique visual branding campaign creative and fresh. Check out some epic Air New Zealand InFlight Safety videos here. Learn more about the creative agency responsible for the brilliance.

3. Like And Share
Marketing campaigns that spread like wildfire over the net are best. To achieve spread, you need a diverse range of people to like your content and become your brand’s voluntary campaigners, even if they aren’t your target demographic.   A high-quality video or audio-visual slideshow is another useful tool to achieve virality. AV’s can be artistic in appearance and make people look! People love short clips, especially if they evoke feeling. Anything that resonates is likely to be shared with their friends or followers. 

4.  Bonus Visuals Are A Unique SEO Tool
On the tech side; another essential benefit of professional visual content is it can be your backdoor to premium search engine rankings. Rather than focus on breaking into a very congested written content field, it’s more straightforward for remarkable images discovered on the web. These can place your company’s site and content feed on the global map when used wisely.

You can call Mahlon at +649 528 5580 Email mahlon @ mahlon.com

Have Fun Raising Kids AND Running a Business!

While it’s impossible to be the ‘poster’ person on all levels,  juggling work and family can be hugely rewarding. The answer for some is a lifestyle process.  Having a plan can be incredibly de-stressing and as crucial to your success and mental wellness as physical exercise and eating right.  

In ‘The Richest Man in Town’ by Randell Jones, it is intriguing that the ‘richest men in town’ were often still married to their first wife, talking much about their kids, and doing things as a family.

Being family-centric can fuel clearer more productive business ideas and decisions, and result in lots of hugs and high fives from children and spouse, even when you come in a little later from a successful business meeting! Some of my best memories so far with my daughters have been helping with essential homework assignments, or long beach walks to discuss something troubling them.  I had to swap out after hours work and then later work into the wee hours to meet a deadline. However, the joy of receiving grateful hugs of appreciation from my girls gave the soul such lift productivity improved on all counts. 

The lessons of parenthood, patience, the necessity of varying management techniques, embracing risks, like when your kid learns to drive, can help clarity in business.  Placing priority on the family can lead to more success at both, less stress, and better outcomes beneficial to work performance. 

After discussion with some of my clients successful in family life and business, here are some best strategies distilled, to balance family life with a demanding career:

1. Prioritise sleep.  Many millennials don’t prioritize rest in their quest to get everything done, which can end up seriously backfiring, leading to health issues and burnout. A. Huffington believes sleep deprivation is the new ‘cancer’.  Swap your late night movie, for a good book. Go to bed an hour earlier and hits the books instead of reaching for the remote.  You will find you will be less stimulated, more relaxed, inspired, and become more ready to sleep if you just make that one adjustment in that 20 to 30 minutes before bed.  

2. Carve out time to reflect on what you appreciate.  Despite my busy schedule, I am in the habit of 10 to 30 minutes of reading and meditating on positive, spiritually enriching material every day.  For me, the best time is upon waking, and I take time to read something that will generate personal reflection concerning personal qualities and meaningful relationships.  It sets me up for a far better day and helps me be a better parent when I have just reflected on the virtues of, kindness, for example.  For someone else, your time for personal reflection might be taking advantage of a commute to work. Instead of listening to music or making phone calls, wasting time checking a Facebook newsfeed, reflect.

3.  Schedule
Based on your child's schedule, reserve times just for them.  For example, when our twins were infants, I took the 6 AM feed.  They had their dinner at 6:00 P.M, and if I was not traveling, I was there for that as well.   I've known dad's that could not get home for dinner, yet always back for 8:00 bathtime, and bedtime reading.  Getting upstairs in time for a bedtime story is just the best. Tucking them in with a cuddle and some goodnight banter, including much ‘I love you’s’ along with words of appreciation, ‘prayers’ even is a killer for a stressed, anxious mind! 

4.  Traditions
Some make it a condition of their job to be home every weekend, wherever they are in the world during the week. Make the most of those days. Create traditions. Daddy Breakfasts.  Beach walks. Leaving work early every once a week to coach a child's sports team, or be involved in some other regular activity. When not traveling, I take the daily school run as it gives the girls a chance to talk, to discuss something positive, to encourage, to bolster them, to commend.  Always device free.

5.  High points
There are “rubber” and “crystal” moments in life. While you can bounce back from missing a rubber moment, like one of 100 soccer games, do not ever drop a crystal moment, like graduation, the birth of a child or a special anniversary.

6. Show Appreciation
From time to time, remembering flowers, bubbly, or some unexpected event or gift for your spouse is never a bad idea.  My girls are always excited when I plan things for their mum, and I’m rewarded with hugs every time! It doesn’t have to be expensive. It’s fun, and energizing to give!  

7.  Shared Personal experience
As a traveling photographer, working in offices right below my home we have the ultimate kid-friendly environment.  Ours is a family business.  We've never had a vacation where I didn’t see a client. Honestly, we don't have time or resources for traditional holidays. The plus side has been our daughters' work ethic.  They see us planning, talking to clients, creating products, at the desk, editing video, they meet suppliers, and have stood by a Heidelberg press proofing products and seeing things made.  On a trip to Europe, they participated with us in creating a series of travel images.  It has taught our children the value of working when is time to work, and fitting play around responsibilities.  Recently we overheard one of the girls explaining why she was not going to do something she considered a time waster when homework was urgent. "I have a work ethic, okay."

What are some of your family life tips?

Good Headshot Portraits get Noticed; get Published.

You as the business owner are the face of your business. That’s why having a professional headshot portrait is so essential. It is a good idea, once a year to have a portrait session to date update your visible brand. A selfie, with your phone, usually won’t be a good look! Read on to get tips for your visual brand.

You Need the Right Support Team
When it comes to creating great Head Shot portraits, a photographer who can draw on your natural style and embellish it or AMP it up appropriately is going to help you get a genuinely engaging image. Creating new publicity photos can be crucial to the small business owner. One of the most important reasons to update your brand pictures is to make sure people recognize you when they meet you in person.

Make it Easy for the Media
In addition to striving for the most authentic yet flattering Head Shot, get a few full-length portraits and if relevant, family pictures you can use for media interviews. Often when magazines do feature articles, they request at least four photos other than a headshot. If the images are storytelling and engaging, they are far more likely to use them! Your story may then grow to more than one page! 

Depending on your needs having your children involved after completing the main images makes the photo shoot a lot of fun. It becomes a family affair, and it’s a great excuse to get your annual family card photos at the same time.

Making Your Headshots The Best Possible
If it’s time to update your headshots, consider these steps:  

1.    Hire a professional photographer and makeup artist. A photo from your iPhone will not do.

2.     If you need to tweak your style, hire a professional stylist to go shopping with you to pick out a few outfits that would be flattering in a headshot.

3.    Plan at least two clothing looks, (pick a colorful jacket or tie and avoid black or white).

4.    Plan on spending at between $500-$2000 for what you need.

5.    Be sure to purchase web ready and printable up to A4 .jpeg files so you can use them online and in print.

It’s essential to have a visual brand that presents you in the best light, with an up-to-date look. Invest in a new headshot today; it could do wonders for your business.

Pops; The wonderful world of Louis Armstrong

Among the most recent biographies gracing my over-crowded nightstand is Pops; The wonderful world of Louis Armstrong by Terry Teachout. From the dust jacket; In POPS Terry Teachout has drawn on a cache of rich new sources unavailable to previous biographers. Offstage Armstrong was witty, introspective and unexpectedly complex, a beloved colleague, whose larger-than-life personality was tougher and sharper edged than his ardent fans ever realized.

Not being Jewish and knowing very little about that culture, I found if intriguing to learn that Armstrong used to wear the Star of David around his neck. He never 'got' people hating the Jews, who were White! A Jewish family took him under their wing when he was a boy and helped buy his first cornet. HE gave "the Jewish people" credit for having taught him "how to live-real life and determination."

This book is fascinating on so many different levels. Worthwhile even if the history of Jazz or the life of a truly inimitable musician and human being has no 'grip' on you.

Refreshingly honest opinions about life and getting along with others by demonstrating a genuine love for humanity and simply being alive.

Duke Ellington said at Satchmo's death; 'He was born poor, died rich, and never hurt anyone on the way'.

With his ability to make heart connections around his love of music, and on being labeled a 'White folks nigger' Satchmo's retort was, "Believe it the White Folks did everything that's decent for me, I wish I could boast the same words for, (racial reference)". "They hold too much Malice-Jealousy deep down in their hearts for the few Negroes who tries".

When I purchased this thick as a brick memoir I never thought this book would hold my interest, but night after night with it's references to the time period, uplifting raw perspectives, and delightful insights, it did! 

Burt Bacharach's book is far from 'C Major'-Vanilla!

Burt Bacharach's book,' Anyone who had a heart' really got me, when he said of the pop music of the sixties; 'A lot of those songs consisted of just three chords, C to F to G. If they had thrown in a C major seventh that would have been a lot more interesting, but the plain C major chord just seemed so vanilla to me'.

Perhaps I've been a fan of Burt's all these years without being able to admit it! His music is a 1000 miles from Mick Fleetwood's cowbell thumping 'Gold dust woman', the rip and raw of Neil Young's 'Rust never Sleeps'.... part of my teen age 'sound track'.... but in all my attempts at writing a good 'Beetles tune'... I never had a C major in it...ever! C maj 7th/D perhaps.... Burt has a great quote from Darius Mihaud, his Carpinteria composition teacher; "Never be ashamed to write a melody you can whistle".

The Book started to get me before page 43! .. 'once I saw a piece performed that Lou Harrison had written for Martha Graham. It was sixteen minutes long and thirteen minutes were complete silence'! Additionally, Chapter 3 'I Married an Angel'; 'The attraction between us was physical, because she was really good-looking and had great breasts, which back then could not be prefabricated'!

I've only just started the book, but am sure I'm up for plenty more Bacharach 'raindrop' stories! The writing is a little; and then I went, and then I did, and then I met... however I'm going to stick with it; wishing I was on a Auckland to San Fran flight, getting stuck into it .... there's nothing like laughing out loud on a plane... people looking at you with a, shocked-quizzical-missing-out sort of look!

Matt Damon, David O. Russell and Jeff Skoll to Receive Career Tributes

Matt Damon; Director, David O. Russell along with Philanthropist and Social Entrepreneur Jeff Skoll will be presented with career tributes at the 22nd Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards™ on Monday, November 26th at Cipriani Wall Street, in New York City. Signaling the official kick-off for the film awards season, the Gotham Independent Film Awards™ is one of the leading awards for independent film. Along with these three tributes, seven competitive awards for Best Feature, Best Documentary, Breakthrough Director, Breakthrough Actor, Best Ensemble Performance, Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You and Audience Award will be announced.

This year’s Tribute selection is a group of individuals involved in incredibly relevant work who have made an indelible cultural impact on the industry– all film veterans with indie roots who celebrate and support independent visions. These honorees represent some of the most highly anticipated films of 2012 including: Promised Land from Focus Features (featuring Matt Damon and directed by Gus Van Sant, produced by Participant Media); and the upcoming Weinstein Co. release Silver Linings Playbook (directed by David O. Russell and featuring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence).

“It is with pride and great pleasure that we give tribute to these three luminaries, each of whom plays an amazing role in expanding the language of film, breaking boundaries along the way,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of the IFP. “Each has a unique voice and clearly defined vision of cinema for the current generation, bringing perspective and relevance to the film world today.”

Matt Damon has been honored for his work on both sides of the camera, most recently earning Academy Award, Screen Actors Guild Award, and Critics’ Choice Award nominations for his portrayal of South African rugby hero Francois Pienaar in Clint Eastwood’s true-life drama Invictus. He was also recently a double Golden Globe Award nominee, for that performance and for his starring role in Steven Soderbergh’s The Informant! Earlier in his career, Mr. Damon won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and received an Oscar nomination for Best Actor, for his breakthrough feature Good Will Hunting, which he wrote and starred in with his lifelong friend Ben Affleck and which was directed by Gus Van Sant. The movie also brought him a Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay as well as Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Best Actor. He has since reteamed with Mr. Van Sant, acting in Finding Forrester; starring opposite Casey Affleck in Gerry, which the trio wrote together; and now making Promised Land, which Mr. Damon wrote with John Krasinski and which will be released in December.

Mr. Damon has also repeatedly teamed with Mr. Soderbergh. He was part of the ensembles in the Ocean’s trilogy and in Contagion; and recently completed his starring role as Scott Thorson opposite Michael Douglas as Liberace in the telefilm Behind the Candelabra. He played the title roles in Anthony Minghella’s The Talented Mr. Ripley, for which he was a Golden Globe Award nominee, and in Saving Private Ryan, which won five Academy Awards including Best Director (Steven Spielberg); and starred in The Departed, which won four Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director (Martin Scorsese). With his fellow actors from the latter two movies, Mr. Damon shared Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.

Hailing from Boston, Mr. Damon attended Harvard University and gained his first acting experience with the American Repertory Theatre. He is partnered with Ben Affleck in the production company Pearl Street Films, developing projects for multiple mediums including film. He is a co-founder of H20 Africa, now known as www.water.org.

David O. Russell directed THE FIGHTER (2010), a film that earned seven Oscar nominations, including Best Achievement in Directing (Russell) and Best Motion Picture of the Year. Two of THE FIGHTER’s stars Christian Bale and Melissa Leo won Academy Awards for their performances. Russell’s prior films include THREE KINGS (1999), starring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Ice Cube, which earned Russell a nomination from the Writers Guild of America for Best Screenplay, in addition to appearing on over 100 critics’ top ten lists and being awarded the Boston Film Critics Society Film of the Year and Director of the Year. Russell’s comedies I HEART HUCKABEES (2004) and FLIRTING WITH DISASTER (1996) appeared on many top ten lists. The first film Russell wrote and directed, SPANKING THE MONKEY, won the 1994 Sundance Film Festival’s Audience Award and won Best First Feature and Best First Screenplay at the 1994 Independent Spirit Awards. In 2002, Russell joined the board of the Bronx’s Ghetto Film School, then abrand-new, all-volunteer local summer project with a very small budget and no presence within the film industry. Today, GFS is New York’s first public high school for cinema, an award-winning program model that has helped over 500 teenagers tell their stories.

Jeff Skoll is a philanthropist and social entrepreneur. As founder and chairman of the Skoll Foundation, Participant Media and the Skoll Global Threats Fund, he is bringing life to his vision of a sustainable world of peace and prosperity. Jeff founded Participant Media in 2004 with the belief that a story well told has the power to inspire and compel social change. Participant’s films are accompanied by social action and advocacy campaigns to engage people on the issues addressed in the films. Jeff has served as Executive Producer on over 33 films to date, which have collectively received a total of 5 Academy Awards® and 22 nominations. Participant’s films include, among others, Good Night, and Good Luck, North Country, Syriana, An Inconvenient Truth, The Kite Runner, Charlie Wilson’s War, The Visitor, The Cove, Countdown to Zero, Waiting for “Superman”, Food, Inc., The Help, Contagion, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Lincoln and Promised Land. In 2009, Participant launched its digital hub TakePart.com, an on-line Social Action Network™ that engages people in the major issues which shape their lives. TakePart launched a digital magazine on MSN and a YouTube network in 2012.

The Premier Sponsors of the 22nd annual Gotham Independent Film Awards™ are Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and The New York Times, Presenting Sponsor euphoria Calvin Klein, Preferred Sponsors Directors Guild of America and PMC, Official Spirit Russian Standard Vodka, Official Wine Partner Mionetto Prosecco, Official Partners: charitybuzz; MoMA; Andaz Wall Street. Additionally, the awards will be promoted nationally in an eight-page special advertising section in The New York Times on November 16th, 2012.

Susie Spanos, Tanya Snyder, And NFL Support "A Crucial Catch"

The National Football League and NFL Players Association will support October's National Breast Cancer Awareness Month with their fourth-annual national breast cancer screening initiative and fundraising campaign. In collaboration with the American Cancer Society, the initiative, called "A Crucial Catch: Annual Screening Saves Lives," reminds women 40 and older about the importance of having an annual mammogram. Tanya Snyder, wife of Redskins owner Dan Snyder, Susie Spanos, wife of Chargers president Dean Spanos, and players including Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, Panthers tight end Greg Olsen and running back DeAngelo Williams have all embraced A Crucial Catch-each has been touched by breast cancer. In addition, Saints quarterback Drew Brees recently filmed a breast cancer awareness PSA with the American Cancer Society to show his support for A Crucial Catch.

To date, the partnership has raised more than $3 million for the American Cancer Society, with the majority of the donation coming from the sale of pink items at retail and on NFL Auction. Beginning this year, money raised through A Crucial Catch will support the American Cancer Society's Community Health Advocates National Grants for Empowerment (CHANGE) program. This program provides outreach and breast cancer screenings to women who need them. The NFL markets being supported in the first year of the program are Atlanta, Baltimore, New England, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Kansas City, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Seattle, and Washington, DC.

In 2011 alone, the NFL's A Crucial Catch campaign reached more than 151 million viewers, including 58 million women age 18 and older. The campaign's message is making a real impact-64% of NFL female fans and 61% of all NFL fans identify the importance of annual screenings, especially for women over 40, as the key message of the A Crucial Catch campaign.

Jeff Skoll Named in Top 50 NonProfit Times List

The NonProfit Times has released its fifteenth annual Power and Influence Top 50 list, and Jeff Skoll is among them. They wrote: “Skoll fuels the international juggernaut of social entrepreneurism. He is correct when saying that innovation and change come from curiosity and his world forums feed that prying loose of ideas. He is pushing for what he calls Humanity 2.0, a sustainable world of peace and prosperity and he’s using every media toll possible to get there.”

This was Jeff Skoll’s first time on the NonProfit Times list. Other first-time honorees on this year’s list include Robert F. Ashcraft, executive director of the Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation; Donna Butts, executive director of Generations United; Diana Campoamor, president of Hispanics in Philanthropy; Anna Maria Chávez, CEO of the Girl Scouts of the USA; Tim Delaney, president and CEO of the National Council of Nonprofits; James Firman, president and CEO of the National Council on Aging; Robert Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts; Tim McClimon, president of the American Express Foundation; Ben Rattray, founder and CEO of Change.org; Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation; Judy Vredenburgh, president and CEO of Girls Inc.; Ann Silverberg Williamson, president and CEO of the Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations; and Samuel Worthington, president and CEO of InterAction. - September 26th 2012

See the complete list at http://www.thenonprofittimes.com/article/detail/the-npt-power-and-influence-top-50-2012-4775

Koch Industries, Inc., and the Fred and Mary Koch Foundation Diversity Scholarship Support

Koch Industries, Inc., and the Fred and Mary Koch Foundation have announced a commitment totaling $814,000 to the Kansas State University Office of Diversity. The commitment includes a combined gift of $514,000 to increase enrollment of multicultural students in K-State’s College of Business Administration and College of Engineering and help them succeed in college and beyond. In addition, the company made a $300,000 commitment for future diversity scholarship support.

Koch Industries’ funding will continue its support of K-State’s College of Business Administration’s efforts to promote recruitment, retention, graduation and placement of greater numbers of historically under-represented students. In addition, the company’s commitment will also extend scholarship funding to students in the College of Engineering.

“Koch Industries and the Fred and Mary Koch Foundation’s support is essential to the success of so many students,” said Myra Gordon, K-State associate provost for diversity. “Not all students have the awareness, support and financial means to make college a reality. This is particularly true among many multicultural groups. However, with special partnerships like this one, we have created a sustained effort — called Project IMPACT— that nurtures the talents of multicultural students that will be needed to invigorate the domestic and global workplace.”

Drew Barrymore & Will Kopelman Plus Olive

Congrats to Drew Barrymore & Will Kopelman on the birth of their baby girl, Olive. We love Drew's work in this family with Never Been Kissed and Ever After on our daughters love to watch list. We can't wait to see what direction her creative energy will take as she finds herself inspired by motherhood!

Eamon Cleary Will Be Greatly Missed

Father of eight, Eamon Cleary has died at his horse stud in Kentucky. The oldest of a large Irish family, Mr Cleary left school at 11 to work on his father's farm, later marrying at 24.  The last public accounting of his financial accomplishments listed his wealth at $1.2 billion, with a range of assets across four continents.

Eamon Cleary moved to New Zealand in about 1994, using the proceeds to invest in farming, building a fortune converting sheep farms to dairy farms.  While he indulged his love for breeding racehorses, he did not live an extravagant lifestyle.  For a time he owned the 22,000 hectare Coronet Peak Station, although last year he sold it to Robert 'Mutt' Lange.

This wonderful man, fabulous father, and generous lover of New Zealand, it's land, and it's racehorses, will be much missed.

The Forbes 400 Summit on Philanthropy

I'm looking forward to reading the Current Issue of Forbes Magazine.  The Forbes 400 Summit on Philanthropy, was the greatest-ever meeting of its kind. Warren Buffett, Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, Melinda Gates, Peter Peterson, Leon Black, Jon Bon Jovi, Marc Benioff, David Rubenstein, Steve Case, Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen, and Marc Andreessen will grace the cover of Forbes October 8th 30th Anniversary Issue.

Read more about it http://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2012/09/18/the-forbes-400-summit-bill-gates-warren-buffett-and-the-greatest-roundtable-of-all-time/

David and Simon Reuben Support Film Library

The Reuben Foundation have provided the principal funding to construct the BFI Reuben Library on Southbank, London The library provides one of the biggest collections of printed materials relating to film and television in the world.

The BFI Reuben Library's priority is comprehensive coverage of the moving image in Britain from pre-cinema to the present, but the scope of the collection is international with material held in more than 15 languages.

Researchers, students and moving image enthusiasts of all ages will be able to use the BFI Reuben Library's collections and resources daily. The BFI Reuben Library will also lead to the creation of a BFI Academy for young people wanting to enter the film industry.

"The BFI looks after the world's greatest collections of film and television material and we opened this new library at BFI Southbank to inspire more people about the future of film," said BFI chair Greg Dyke.

"It is a vital hub and resource for everybody from filmmakers, academic researchers, students and the industry itself, or anyone with an interest in film and we are indebted to The Reuben Foundation along with our other benefactors for their incredible support."

Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: "This is a tremendous initiative, providing an exciting resource for Londoners that will also be a huge attraction to film fans, students and curious tourists from far and wide.

"I thank The Reuben Foundation for its support with this fantastic example of philanthropy in culture. London has provided an iconic backdrop for so many famous films, be it Harry Potter or James Bond and it's only right that we have such a fitting tribute to our great film heritage."

Designed by award-winning Coffey Architects, the BFI Reuben Library cleverly combines hanging metal mesh, timber bookcases and subtle new lighting to create a rich, vibrant yet welcoming and calm space, which serves all manner of visitors.

The Reubens said “we are delighted to support the BFI in creating the new BFI Reuben Library, which we hope will benefit film students, researchers and moving image enthusiasts of all ages for many years to come”.

San Diego Chargers, Dean Spanos, & Payless ShoeSource

Today the San Diego Chargers, Dean Spanos, and Payless ShoeSource provided funds for 1,000 pairs of shoes for San Diego children in need. Chargers Antwan Barnes, Melvin Ingram, Jarret Johnson, Ryan Matthews, Kendall Rayes, Charlie Whithurst, and Demmorio Williams took their day off to visit four local San Diego Payless Shoe stores and help kids pick out and try on new shoes for school.

Congratulations to Robbie Williams & Ayda Field

British singer Robbie Williams is celebrating after becoming a first-time father. Robbie's wife Ayda Field gave birth to a baby girl, Theodora Rose, on Tuesday.

The proud father took to his official blog to announce his happy news, writing, “Praise be, it’s Theodora Rose Williams, affectionately known as Teddy… Born 3.33pm on 18.9.12, 7lbs 4oz… Baby, mummy and daddy are all rockin… Thank you for your best wishes.”

Phil Knight and his wife Penny make gift to OHSU

Phil Knight and his wife Penny have provided a transformational gift of $125 million to the Oregon Health & Science University to advance OHSU’s world-class programs in cardiovascular medicine and research. The gift is the largest in OHSU history and may likely be the largest private contribution ever made by living donors to benefit a single Oregon organization. This is the Knights’ second landmark gift to OHSU, following a 2008 pledge of $100 million that advanced the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute.

OHSU President Joe Robertson, M.D., M.B.A. commented that “Phil and Penny Knight have made a gift to all Oregonians.”

Phil Knight followed that up by saying “Penny and I are pleased to help upgrade cardiovascular health in Oregon and around the world. Drs. Starr and Kaul have built a great program in research, care and outreach, and we are excited about what it can contribute to the fight against these deadly diseases.”

With the Knights’ support, the leadership duo of Starr and Kaul a heart surgeon and a cardiologist will be able to move forward on a vision to build a comprehensive assault on cardiovascular disease that spans the entire health care spectrum.

Kudos to the Knights for their generosity.

Sir George Fistonich's Villa Maria named New Zealand Winery of the Year

Villa Maria Estate has been named New Zealand Winery of the Year by WINE Magazine in China. Six well respected wine personalities formed the judging panel for these awards including Debra Meiburg MW, Dennis Lin (wine writer), Ji Yang (wine writer & educator), Ronny Lau (wine judge), Bai Chang (wine judge) and Qi Shaoren (wine educator).

WINE Magazine established these awards to help consumers identify category leaders. New Zealand’s most awarded winery received the top award in the New Zealand category given their market share and influence in the Chinese wine market.

WINE Magazine is the first wine focused consumer publication in China with the aim to be the most authoritative professional magazine in this emerging market.

Villa Maria has exported to China since the inception of Summergate Fine Wines and Spirits in 2000 and was the first brand they carried. The 100% New Zealand owned company is placing a high degree of focus into the Chinese market, as it is their most rapidly growing export market. In 2010, Villa Maria appointed their first dedicated Asia Market Manager, Charlotte Read, and in 2011 they appointed their first China based employee reflecting their commitment to growing the presence of New Zealand wine and Villa Maria in this fast growing market.