The Happiness Contribution™ Show

Welcome! In today's episode, our guest is Alwin Put, the author of Captains of Leadership: Build your Facilitative Confidence, a Design Thinking expert, sought-after facilitator, trainer, and speaker. He has a long track record in Marketing & Brand Strategy, working with start-ups, scale-ups, corporates, and his own ventures. His book summarises his learnings when leading co-creation sessions with countless people from all kinds of organizations. 

I first met Alwin while I was delivering a workshop on using the science of Happiness in Business during the Design Thinking Conference in Amsterdam in 2019. Later on, I followed his journey of publishing his book Captains Of Leadership –which I loved and I highly recommend reading - and last year I followed two of his courses, one on Facilitative Leadership and one on Breathing work. He fully embodies and applies in his work what I call HCX: Human-Centered, Happiness-Contributing, and Heart-Centered Experience, and I’m glad to have had him on the podcast to share just a pinch of his wisdom with our audience.

Alwin in 6 sentences:

💛 I am a father of two sons and a husband to an amazing woman living in the area of Belgium which is close to the Netherlands and Germany.

💛 I love reading and writing, movies, theatre, concerts, and basically everything that conveys stories.

💛 I have been exploring the concept of spirituality since my teens and I have spent half of my life in corporate environments and some but too little in start-up environments

💛 I honestly hate parsnip, it really makes me nauseous which is one of the strangest words to write in English 

💛 I wish I could turn the whole world into Captains of Leadership. If that happened I would finally watch the news again

💛 To me, happiness contribution means making other people happy

Here is a glimpse of some of the topics covered in this episode:

🌻 Definition of Happiness & his Yellow Factor Inward and Outward,

🌻Empathy, Autonomy, and Purpose,

🌻 Facilitative Leadership,

🌻 Importance and impact of managing our own state

🌻 3 key steps of facilitation: Guide, Conduct, Catalyze

🌻 3 key steps of facilitation

🌻 Golden nugget: there is no truth in life, everything changes continuously and there are just different perspectives. Facilitation is about the celebration of different perspectives. There is just creation, and life keeps changing and evolving.

You can connect with Alwin on:

In this episode, I share the highlights, and the learnings made during the three months of my husband's hospitalization and after, and what contributed to my happiness also on hard times.

Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show!

Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with remarkable people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders. And we do so grounded in the reality of life.

Episode 16 –  the first episode after 3 months unplanned hiatus – was a “special” edition in an unusual format… a solo during which I shared the life that happened to me in the 3 months which turned out to be the hardest time of my life to date. It turned out to be a very long episode.

In the first 1 hour and 15 minutes I share the chronicles of my husband hospitalization and in the following 30 minutes I shared what depleted me and what enriched me during these 3 months. Given the length and the answers in the poll attached in the spotify episode which asked to split it in two episodes, on March 22nd I recorded this new solo where in the first 10 minutes I share really the highlights of what happened November through January and how I’m doing now and then the conclusions and learnings I initially shared in February in episode 16 (and that I will soon remove from there) including the insights from Tal Ben-Shahar on how to turn a traumatic experience into an opportunity for growth, and my overall learning and conclusion.

Ready? Tune in and listen.

Links mentioned in this show: 

- New sessions and programs open to individuals to nurture your well-being and flourish: https://wownow.eu/opentraining/

- Book extract of the entire Smile chapter of the book (and a few extra chapters as Lagniappe): https://wownow.eu/YellowFactorSmile 

Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show!

Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with remarkable people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders. And we do so grounded in the reality of life.

Welcome! Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders.

In today's episode, our guest is Houda Dortland, a certified Life coach and Happiness trainer. She is passionate about helping individuals who feel emotionally stuck and experience too much stress in their daily lives or at work. With over 22 years of experience in acute medicine, she has seen the effects of stress on the mind and body. Today she helps people to shift from stress to success and uses the science of happiness, #wellbeing, and #EFT (#EmotionalFreedomTechniques) to do so.

I met Houda at beginning of 2022 first virtually as a fellow member of the Uppiness Game Facilitator and the HSA communities, then in person in June during the HSA Alumni meet-up and Happiness@work conference in Antwerp. In August, we started weekly calls as we became accountability buddies since we both are freelance entrepreneurs.

And in November and December, she coached me on how to use EFT practice during the most challenging time of my life. As you may have heard in the solo episode 16, EFT has been really my lifebuoy in the most stressful moments during my husband’s illness, and I’m very excited to share this practice with you in this episode, where Houda also guides through the key steps of the practice with simplicity and empathy.

Houda in 6 sentences:

💛 I am a wife and mother who loves life!

💛 I am a dreamer and thinker, passionate about well-being and happiness.

💛 I love exploring the world through food and fitness and chocolate 🙂.

💛 I hate: I don't think I hate anything, maybe dislike but hate? no.

💛 I wish everybody would take off their masks and start to show their unique greatness.
💛 To me, happiness contribution means contributing to the well-being and happiness of others. Change the I and U in WE.

Here is a glimpse of some of the topics covered in this episode:

🌻 Definition of Happiness & her Yellow Factor Inward and Outward,

🌻 Value of energy, simplicity, and autonomy

🌻 Mental Fitness,

🌻 EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques),

🌻 Sample EFT Practice

Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show!  Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with remarkable people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders. And we do so grounded in the reality of life. 

This episode – after 3 months unplanned hiatus - is a “special” edition in an unusual format… it is a solo episode during which our host Rosaria shares the life that happened to her in the past 3 months, which turned out to be the hardest time of her life to date. Within a few days, her world literally went upside down and got twisted, as her husband got a sudden life-threatening disease starting November 9th and was away from home for 85 days - 49 days in the hospital (of which 38 were in ICU) and 36 days at a rehabilitation center. In the first 75 minutes of this (long) episode, we share with you: 

1) The full chronicle of the first few weeks in the hospital with a heavy dose of reality and challenges due to uncertainty about diagnosis (either Guillen-Barré Syndrome, Miller-Fisher variant, or botulism or both), including the bumps and the breakdowns Rosaria had along the journey, 

2) The key interactions she had in this period (with companies, brands, doctors, nurses, and/or small local businesses) and the role each played 

The part after 1:12:30 has now been moved to episode 19 and will soon be deleted from this episode. Now it still includes:

From (1:12:30) What depleted or saddened Rosaria 

From (1:22:00) What enriched Rosaria and contributed to her happiness

From (1:32:00) Insights from Tal Ben-Shahar on how to turn a traumatic experience into an opportunity for growth 

From (1:35:00) Rosaria’s overall learning and conclusion 

Ready? Grab a cup of tea & if you are not into details just skip to the last 30 minutes for the learning 

Links mentioned in this show: 

- Book extract of the entire Smile chapter of the book (and a few extra chapters as Lagniappe): https://wownow.eu/YellowFactorSmile 

Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show! Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, & Laughter Yoga Teacher), in this show we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders.

In today's episode, our guest is Daniella Rubinovitz, ecological Artist, Author, Life Coach, and Art Therapist.

Daniella has been my intuitive painting teacher since 2015 when she also published her book SMART, How Art Inspires Action in Business.

She creates international Public Art in her historical studio located in the heart of Amsterdam, where she also facilitates intuitive painting sessions. She is fascinated by the non-verbal communication of the arts. As an artist, she explores the potential of physical materials, forms, lines, and colors to depict personal experiences that connect to the past, present, and future. They translate into drawings, paintings, and sculptures. Feelings and art therapist techniques help her to reach a deep place of understanding. She uses humor and wit to make art approachable. She aspires the public to interact, in order to connect and express themselves. Daniella’s art touch upon stories and metaphors, often connecting with subconscious reminders. She believes in challenging perspectives and inspiring the viewer. 

She has a Life Coaching Certification from CTI and a long list of Art education: Bachelor of Art Therapy Degree, Master of Technology Management Degree, Master of Industrial Design Degree, Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree.

Her art is for indoor and outdoor (public and private) spaces. Most works are for sale and site-specific pieces are on commission.

Daniella in 6 sentences: 💛 I am a wife, and mother of two boys living in Amsterdam. 💛 I am enthusiastic about life, art, inventing, and exploring. 💛 I love Stracciatella ice cream. 💛 I hate politics. 💛 I wish for peace. 💛 To me, happiness contribution means spreading our light and the energy

Here is a glimpse of some of the topics we covered: 🌻 Definition of Happiness & her Yellow Factor Inward and Outward, 🌻 Gratitude, smile, nature, play, and empathy,🌻 Intuitive Painting, 🌻 SMART framework and much more! 

🤨 Curious? Tune in and listen to this episode.

Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show!

Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders.

In today’s episode, our guest is Stan Phelps, Author, Speaker, Goldfish Titan, and Founder of StanPhelpsSpeaks.com

Stan is also the co-author of the book Yellow Goldfish written in 2018 with Rosaria.

For Stan, happiness contribution means… doing what I’m passionate about and feeling like I’m helping others.

Here is a glimpse of some of the topics covered in this episode:

🌻 Definition of Happiness & her Yellow Factor Inward and Outward,

🌻 Smile and smiley 50 years anniversary,

🌻 The power of being present in the moment while moving forward,

🌻 How and why Stan started as a speaker and author,

🌻 Lagniappe and the power of little extra things,

🌻 Differentiated Experiences (DX), Marketing, and Branding

🌻 Black Goldfish, the most recent book of the collection

Welcome to The Happiness Contribution™ Show!

Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in this podcast we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders.

In today's episode, our guest is Cara Crisler. Founder of Crisler Coaching & Consulting, Cara is a human communication specialist. She is an EMCC accredited senior-level coach, a CNVC certified Nonviolent Communication trainer, and also serves as a mediator and facilitator. Originally from the U.S., she’s been living in the Netherlands since 2010, supporting individuals, couples and teams. She currently enjoys the role of “in-house” coach for three different organizations, supporting staff to work through and grow skills in both internal and external communication. She’s specialized in creating safe spaces for honest dialogues, conflict transformation, collaborative learning, and inclusive decision-making processes.

Cara in 6 sentences:

💛 I take on many different roles: daughter/sister/wife/mother/friend/colleague/mentor

💛 I am passionate about easing connection between people and fostering inclusion

💛 I love (feel most peaceful) being among trees and mountains

💛 I dislike experiencing pressure to do things against my will

💛 I wish for all humans to experience dignity, choice, sense of agency

💛 Contributing to happiness to me means first listening with a welcoming/accepting attitude, followed by a trust that the person I’m listening to has their own inner wisdom and doesn’t need advice or fixing

Here is a glimpse of some of the topics covered in this episode:

🌻 Definition of Happiness & her Yellow Factor Inward and Outward,

🌻 Interconnectedness, curiosity, and empathy

🌻 Abundance versus scarcity lenses,

🌻 Needs awareness and emotions,

🌻 The role of NVC Nonviolent Communication in contributing to our happiness,

Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show!

Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders.

In this episode, our guest is Marjolein van der Kruk, the Queen of Hearts and Founder of Be Your Own Best Friend Forever. She's a senior facilitator for THNK (School of Creative leadership) and Design Thinkers Academy. She is certified in Emotional Intelligence and Applied Positive Psychology, and she is trained as a coach.

Marjolein in 6 sentences:

💛 I am a proud mother, bad-ass woman, wholehearted coach, and wise trainer.

💛 I am passionate about the science of positive psychology, emotional intelligence, and self-love.

💛 I love the sea, hearts, and my inner best friend.

💛 I hate violence, disconnection, and my inner comparison queen.

💛 I wish every person would know how to love themselves unconditionally.

💛 To me, happiness contribution means self-love

Here is a glimpse of some of the topics covered in this episode:

🌻 Definition of Happiness & her Yellow Factor Inward and Outward,

🌻 Being Your own best friend forever,

🌻 Self-Connection and Kindness,

🌻 Ego and need for validation,

Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show!

Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders.

In this “Insight episode” (20 to 30 minutes recording in which we share in-depth content about happiness, what contributes to our happiness, and how businesses can do their part in contributing to the happiness of their employees, customers, or society) we cover:

🌻 International Day of Happiness,

🌻 the World Happiness Report,

🌻 Gandhi’s definition of Happiness and mine

🌻 the 3 types of happiness and related aspects and

🌻 why Happiness Contribution

We hope you find it insightful, and we look forward to hearing your feedback! 

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Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show!

Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders.

In this Happiness Practice (5 to 15 minutes recording in which we share one practice that contributes to our happiness or increases our awareness) we:

🌻 explain what the Loving Kindness or Metta Meditation is and why can be so beneficial, especially in times like during a pandemic or a war which are out of our control and make us worried for our loved ones

🌻 guide you through a short Metta meditation

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Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show! 

Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders. 

In this "Practice Episode" (5 to 15 minutes recording in which we share one practice that contributes to our happiness or increases our awareness) I guide you through the visualization of two different types of interactions, one which I call OW and one which I call WOW. Almost daily we interact with “companies”. These interactions generate emotions in us, and ultimately influence our happiness. When our experiences or interactions are enriching, we are happy, the employees we interact with are happy and we both start a ripple effect of happiness in the interactions that follow. Unfortunately, we are so used to doing that in auto-pilot mode that we lack conscious awareness of the impact these interactions have on our time, on our happiness, and on our subconscious purchase choices, hence on overall growth. By designing and having mediocre interactions, we are missing out both on economic growth and on a better life. We design and create the world we live in. We are all on the same journey. So why not make this journey as extraordinary as we can for each other? 

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Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show! Hosted by Rosaria Cirillo (Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher), in “The Happiness Contribution™ Show” we talk with incredible people about the various roles Happiness plays in our lives, and we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders. In this Happiness Shot (3 to 5 minutes short recording in which we share one insight and practice that contributes to our happiness) I talk about the remarkable benefits of Laughter for business.

Did you know that just 10 minutes of daily laughter are equivalent to 30 minutes on the rowing machine and can have incredible health benefits such as: 

✅ stronger respiratory system and increased oxygenation, hence more concentration and better performances 

✅ reduced stress & related illnesses, because Laughter activates our parasympathetic system & reduces cortisol production 

✅ better mood and less anxiety & depression, because of the production of serotonin & endorphins 

✅ better digestion, because of the movement of abdominal muscles & diaphragm provide a gentle massage to all digestive organs, functioning as internal jogging

✅ healthy heart and better circulatory system 

✅ stronger immune system and less sickness because of the increased number of natural killer (NK) cells and interferon-gamma (IFN) 

✅ and so many more benefits, which makes one wonder why don’t we all just laugh daily like we shower and brush our teeth! 

🤔 🌻What about you? Have you already experienced the amazing power of unconditional laughter? 

🤔 Would you like to give it a try? 👉 Join us our FREE #laugherzoom Club. Just 15-20 minutes during which I briefly explain the benefits of Laughter and deep breathing and then we laugh together for 10-15 minutes, which is the time needed to our brain to release the #joycocktail and #doseofhappinesschemicals #dose Register on www.wownow.eu/Laugherzoom 

🤔 Would you like to learn more about the benefits and opportunities for your team? Get in touch

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Meet Mary Tucker, CEO of UPIC Health and co-founder of My Care Village. She has spent over 25 years successfully launching, leading, and transforming award-winning, multi-channel communications centers. She launched UPIC Health in 2014 rooted in the core value of empathy. Empathy for patients and employees achieves a happier workforce, healthier ratings and bottom lines for Upic’s clients, and meaningful engagement in care. Proving the model works, UPIC Health has grown six-fold in its first four years and has been honored with 2018 Velocity Growth Awards by CEO Report in Baltimore and Washington D.C. UPIC Health was selected by Stan Phelps and Rosaria Cirillo in their book Yellow Goldfish as lead example in the category Empathy, one of the nine factors and paths to happiness and prosperity, and as a lead example of 3 stages of G.R.O.W.T.H.: Grounding, Wow Blossoming, Harvesting.

While Global Consumer Care Director at Philips in 2008, Mary has been Rosaria's manager for over 2 years, and, even after they both took different paths, they have kept talking, learning, sharing, and celebrating each other impact.

Mary joins Rosaria in an honest conversation about HAPPINESS, what contributes to it, and how leaders nurture it for themselves & their team, and through their business!

Mary shares the insights she has gained in business and in life and the practices she does daily to cultivate her happiness.

Here is a glimpse of the topics covered in this episode:

🌻 Definition of Happiness & the pursuit of happiness,

🌻 Integrity and BCorps,

Meet the “Sunflower of Happiness”, introduced in Yellow Goldfish by Stan Phelps and Rosaria Cirillo to symbolise the nine paths companies can choose to contribute to happiness for customers, employees and society. The 9 petals of this sunflower also represent the “pollen tanks” we need to keep charged as individuals to blossom towards happiness in business and life! ​In this episode, Rosaria takes us through these nine petals, each representing a letter of the acronym H.A.P.P.I.N.E.S.S.: Health, Autonomy, Purpose, Play, Integrity, Nature, Empathy, Simplicity, and Smile; recommending simple practices and actions that can be taken to cultivate them.

In the episode we reference a scoring chart and a blog post with all related tips. You can find both on the show page www.happinesscontribution.com

This episode is introduced by Chantel Botha and co-hosted by Tess Gouw and represents an edited extract of a live webinar recorded in July 2021, with participants answering questions in Slido (hence you may hear this referenced in the audio).

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Meet Anthony, president & CEO of Engel & Völkers Americas since January of 2014, member of Forbes’ Real Estate Council, recognized on the Swanepoel list of “Top 200 Most Powerful People in Residential Real Estate” for four consecutive years, noted as a Real Estate Influencer by Inman News and honored as a RIS Media Newsmaker.

Anthony credits his business and real estate success to his philosophy of providing exceptionally personal customer service and constantly implementing the most up-to-date systems for efficiency and comprehensive service. He has authored several books to share his advice for success in business and in life with others, including Essentials of Personal Achievement, Taking Charge, and Positive Impressions.

In this episode (an extract of the webinar version initially called “Human Kind”), we talk about:

🌻 #Happiness & love (and meaning of 3),

🌻 Authenticity versus safety, pride and coming out,

🌻 Leadership in daily life and in the workplace

🌻 Daily Happiness strategies (like diluting unhappiness and increasing happy moments) and practices

Welcome to “The Happiness Contribution™ Show.

I’m Rosaria Cirillo, Happiness Change Catalyst, Certified Happiness Trainer, Customer Experience Professional, and Laughter Yoga Teacher. And the host of the “The Happiness Contribution™ Show”, where we share knowledge and practices about what contributes to our happiness and how we can contribute to others’ happiness as individuals and as business leaders.

We share content in three main formats:

1. Trailblazers Interviews: 30 to 45 minutes interview with conscious and inspired leaders that are setting the example with their leadership at work and in life

2. Shots: 3 to 5 minutes short recording in which we share one insight and practice that contributes to our happiness

3. Lungo: 30 to 45 minutes recording in which we share in-depth content about what contributes to our happiness and how businesses can do their part in contributing to the happiness of their employees, customers, or society