The Heart Series: A Conference For Conscious Companies
Earlier this year, on February 11-12, The Heart Series, a conference for conscious companies, celebrated its’ second anniversary in Los Angeles packed with innovative business minds and like-minded counterparts who shared their knowledge through strategically curated panels. The two-day conference took place at the WeWork Gas Co. Tower location in downtown Los Angeles.
With back to back discussion panels with charismatic moderators and expert speakers and a choice of breakout series workshops each day, this year’s conference opened up with a heartfelt message from Loretta Whitesides, Founding Astronaut of Virgin Galactic, who spoke about the importance of a mission, for yourself and for the company. Whitesides praised the “Hero’s Journey: to be brave, to be unapologetically amazing, to surrender yourself to service, to be willing to bear your soul to your colleagues, and most importantly, to have the willingness to put yourself out there and keep breaking yourself down to put yourself back together again.” Between panels, group activities and lunchtime activities allowed attendees to chat and share stories while thoughtful discussion topics kept the positive energy flowing all day.
- Impact and Inspiration: Good Design Inside & Out, How to Build a Movement, Best Practices for Measuring Impact, Thinking Different, Innovation & New Solutions, and Futurism & Forward Thinking
- Creating a Happy Culture and Paying it Forward: The Value of Happiness, What’s Love Got to Do With it? Keeping the Community Passionate Through Challenges, Messaging Cause Above The Noise, and Using Entertainment to Influence Change
- Hands-on Workshops: Launching New Ideas, What it Takes to Be a B-Corp, Mindful Leadership, Design Thinking, Playful Problem Solving Though Improv
Other highlights and inspiring talking points from The Heart Series lineup of conscious leaders included:
- “What do you geek out about? Hone your craft. Be authentic and people will find you,” – Ryan Williams, Influencer Economy
- “Start small- help one person. Help tell one story at a time,” – Jamie Tworkowski, To Write Love on Her Arms
- What’s the big idea? It’s got to be bigger than you, something that you’re in awe of, something that you’re humbled by,” – Jim Moriarty, 72 & Sunny
- “Your product must be able to stay/stand on its own,” – Chris Kajander, Runa
- “Measuring impact is ever-evolving. We take impact very seriously and spend a lot of time measuring impact. Start small and quantify it,” – Adam Thompson, Krochet Kids International
- “Don’t be afraid to talk about the dark stuff- the truth about the problems you’re trying to solve,” Ani Okkasian, Impact Hub LA
- “What is your message? Is it fridge-worthy? Keep going viral. Iteration is perfection,” Miki Agrawal, Thinx
- “Futurism is cool. So are school gardens and the power of learning. Keep two things in mind when building your business: keep it fun, and remember we can only do great things when we do it together,”- Robert Egger, LA Kitchen
- “Share stats with everyone. The culture you’re creating is not just for HR or executive teams. It’s for everyone,” – Katie Hunt-Moor, Etsy
- “Have the courage to pioneer the new landscape. Just be you. Chasing your dreams is all about love. That’s it. It’s love,”- Duke Stump, Lululemon
- “Tell stories that help make progress. Make sure to follow through with what you are saying. How will you report back on your business and mission?”- Danielle Gano, Elle Communications
- “Find the community you can work with. Find the people that are willing to work with you with what you have and when you can,” Ryan Devlin, This Bar Saves Lives
- “Content is still king, and awareness can change everything,” – David Ambroz, Disney ABC Television Group
The conference closed with an impactful message from Brit Moore, President of The Giving Keys, who spoke about the importance of scalability. For any social business, there are a variety of factors to consider when looking at scale, development and growth. From The Giving Keys brand perspective, Moore offered 3 simple tips: Say yes to everything, let your team evolve, and learn to fail fast. “Losing yourself to find yourself – that’s what scaling is all about,” said Moore. “It’s messy, chaotic and it’s scary. But worth every minute.”
Save the Date: The Heart Series is a must-attend conference for any socially conscious company or individual looking to find new ways to make a difference through learning, connecting and collaborations. Save the Date for next year: February 9-10, 2017 – Click here to sign up for more information and make sure to get The Heart Series 2017 tickets here. To find more information about The Heart Series, visit The Heart Series website.
About the Co-Producers: Meg Sette and Gail Cayetano, the dynamic duo behind The Heart Series, started the event in 2015 in an effort to bring together leaders from game changing companies to share stories of how they personally wanted to change the world as well as how their leadership positions in some of the most socially impactful companies have empowered them to make a difference.