Archive for Health – Page 2

Project “I am” -Jahkil Jackson

Project “I am “was started by a nine year old Jahkil Jackson in Chicago. Jackson helped his aunt distribute cans of food to the homeless in Chicago which sparked his own idea. The I Am project is a non-profit and shares a goal to help to the homeless in the world that are in need to his coined terms as ‘Blessing Bags.’ These consisted of deodorant, wipes, toothbrushes, toothpaste, bottled water, granola bars and more. Jackson’s small business quickly grew, and he has impacted more than 50,o00 lives of the homeless around the world. Atlanta, Virginia, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., and Idaho and many more states in the U.S. have been greatly impacted by his generosity and care. There has also been a worldly impact where the blessing bags have been sent to many countries in Africa, and South America for special relief packages after natural disasters.

Jackson is really emphasizing the need for donations that go towards project I Am, so they can continue to make an impact around the world. He encourages everyone to be able to see the importance of helping out can make in your community. I AM thankful for my many blessings 🙏🏽 including @walmart for believing in my mission. This donation will help make over 500 blessong bags for those in need. #walmart #endhomelessness #BeTheChange #YouthDoItBetter #JahkilJackson #DontWaitToBeGreat

While Jackson had a lot of help from his family in the idea of helping others, he took that idea and pivoted to make a bigger idea. This is very inspiring, because Jackson saw that there was a need for the homeless that was unfulfilled. Instead of just handing out money, Jackson knew he wanted to make a real life impact by giving them the opportunity for staying healthy and clean as they go through difficult times. Jackson was acknowledged by former president, Barack Obama as well for his efforts in 2017 and featured on Cartoon-Network and many other platforms. This helped a lot with networking and getting his message out there for the public to understand the mission.

Sundara

Erin Zakis is the founder of Sundara, a company that recycles used bars of soap from hotels and redistributes them to people in India, Uganda, and Myanmar. This year she began expanding the company to Haiti and Jordan. It all began when she took a trip to Thailand and was shocked to find that teenagers had never seen soap before- they were so confused by this new thing they even tried to eat it! This was a huge wake-up call to Erin which inspired her a few years down the road to enter a LinkedIn for Good pitch competition where she ended up winning $10,000. With this money, she moved to India and immediately began making her vision a reality. Erin works with large hotel chains on a fee for service model. The hotels pay her company to pick up their trash with the soaps separated out, then it is taken to a recycling facility. Sundara hires widows, domestic violence victims, single mothers, and other women as community hygiene ambassadors to raise awareness in these countries where soap is an abstract concept. In this way, Erin Zakis has united her passion to help others with her entrepreneurial skills. Not only does she bring life-saving hygiene to over 100,000 people each month, but she empowers disadvantaged women by providing employment.

The GOAT

Tom Brady has shown us time and time again what he is about on the field. Leading the Patriots to six super bowl wins. Besides the fact that he is the greatest of all time, he has also used his platform to his advantage. Unlike other quarterback Tom is playing at a peak in his career at the age of 42, for a quarterback in the NFL this is unheard of; and he isn’t even playing on retiring anytime soon. This is all thanks to his top of the line fitness and nutrition lifestyle he calls “the TB12 Method”. He has used this methImage result for tom brady tb12od to market his lifestyle to his fans. He is one of the most well known names in football which is genius because on top of the millions of dollars he’s making from the NFL, he’s making millions on the side all because of his TB12 Method. He could continue to sell his method until after he retires as well and would always have a source of income. But who needs an income when your model wife Gisele Bündchen makes double what you’re making… crazy how that works.

Anne Wojcicki: 23andMe

After graduating from Yale, Anne Wojcicki started her career as a health care investment analyst with Passport Capital. After deciding this job was not for her she quit. Initially she thought about appearing at MCAT to do her medicine. However, her love for biotechnology prevailed and she started doing research. This led her to team up with Linda Avey, who was a biologist, and together they created 23andMe. The startup was a hit, and was featured as the “Invention of the Year” by Times Magazine in 2008. Today 23andMe has built one of the world’s most exhaustive databases of personal genetic information. Empowering people to take charge of their healthcare. Anne believed that scientist do not get their deserved fame as other celebrities do. So she decided to take measures into her own hands and thus co-founded the Breakthrough Awards in the USA to felicitate eminent scientist.

Dairy-free Alternatives

The options for sweet deserts, such as ice cream, have always been off limits for those who are dairy-free; until now. Meet Matthew Billington, the CEO of OLelei’s. At the young age of 18, Matt is in charge of OLelei’s which is a dairy-free option company. OLelei currently offers dairy-free milk, yogurt, and ice cream. These products are all made with almond milk which doesn’t contain any trace of dairy.

Matt started this business back in 2015 through the Young Enterprise Scheme (YES) program. YES is a program based solely out of New Zealand that offers 12-13 year students an opportunity to create a business venture and run it. Matt, along with his some of his classmates, participated in this program and created OLelei’s. They saw an opportunity in market for lactose intolerant people who were limited to a certain amount of dairy-free products. Matt emphasis the fact that OLelei’s main mission is to include everyone saying, “Inclusion is one of our core values. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you eat, where you’re from, what nationality you are, what race you are, what you’re allergic to, our products cater for everyone. We want to make sure everybody feels included” (You Unlimited).

YES allowed them to learn things that were unteachable in the classroom such as networking and managing. In 2017, Matt along with his team had won the Lion Foundation YES national award. OLelei is now currently stocked everywhere in New Zealand. Not only has Matt created a brand that offers a different type of tasty food, but has also helped solve problem for those who are live a dairy-free lifestyle.

Image result for matt billington

Tech for First-Responders

Young entrepreneurs are always impressive, but Mihir Garimella is one that really strikes me. He made in on an 18 under 18 list for inspiring entrepreneurs and businesses owns. Mihir is currently a sophomore at Stanford has a passion for working with robotics. His mission is to create real impact. He has definitely accomplished this through his invention of the Firefly.

At the age of 17 Mihir designed The Firefly, a modified drone which is specifically designed for  first-responders. It allows them to explore situations and disasters that could be dangerous and helps to find trapped survivors.

The Firefly is only one of Mihir’s creations. He has started work on projects that included self driving cars, adding scent to the movie theater experience, image processing that will help doctors with diagnosing patients, an app called Series which helps solve complex calculus problems using handwriting recognition and Citelt, a tool for writing correct bibliographies.

Image result for firefly drone mihir

Mihir is a strong example of the left and right brain working cohesively and productively to create new and amazing things. I am excited to see the impact that will come from his hard work and passion.

Brandless

Brandless is an online retailer started by Ido Leffler and Tina Sharkey. The company sells household products from toothpaste to ketchup. The main idea is to just give people the products they want without any additional costs that come with buying from brand names. Each product simply states what it is, and its ingredients. For example, you may buy a bottle of just mustard, and you’ll get a yellow bottle of mustard, no brand name, and just it’s ingredients list.

The other reason why they are doing this online is so that they can cut out supermarkets and such so that its easier and cheaper for people. They also only sell hundreds of items, as opposed to the thousands or millions on Amazon or Walmart. They want to keep things simple and clean. With every item bought, they donate a percentage of that to Feeding America.

Some information on Brandless.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/brandless-new-online-retailer-household-product-3-dollars/

https://brandless.com/

https://nrf.com/blog/how-brandless-reimagining-modern-consumption

 

Gladiator Lacrosse

In 2013, Rachel Zietz identified an issue identified a relatable issue to most athletes. She believed equipment was both too expensive and not durable enough. At the age of 13, Rachel sought to solve this issue. Hence, the company Gladiator Lacrosse was born. After attending the Young Entrepreneurs Academy in Boca Raton, Florida, she had an opportunity to pitch her idea to a panel of investors. She was given $2,700 to get started. She used this start up capital to create a line of lacrosse rebounders which is affordable, high quality, and durable. After just one year on the market, Rachel had made $200,000 in revenue. Two years later, her sales had increased to over $1 million dollars! Not to bad for 3 years considering her startup money began at $2,700. She continues to impress the entrepreneurial community as she was honored as a finalists for the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce’s 2015 Entrepreneur Award. Rachel is a shining example for young entrepreneurs everywhere.

Sources:

-https://www.cnbc.com/2015/07/27/8-young-entrepreneurs-making-serious.html?slide=7

-http://www.gladiatorlacrosse.com/

Zollipops

In 2014, Alina Morse asked her dad a simple question to solve a prevalent issue among children: cavities. She asked, “Dad, why can’t we make a lollipop that’s good for your teeth?” This question sparked the creation of Zollipops. With help from her father and a significant amount of research, this 7 year old entrepreneur was able to make this dream a reality. But what would she call these healthy lollipops? Her little sister Lola came up with Zollipops and Alina loved it. Zollipops are a sugar free, vegan, smart, organic, and “yummy’ candy. They are made with the sweeteners xylitol, erythritol, stevia and other natural ingredients which are healthier alternatives to sugar. They also help to neutralize acidity in the mouth, which prevents bacteria that causes tooth decay to grow.

Last year, Alina made $70,000 in sales and entered the kids’ version of “Shark Tank.” Even through this remarkable success, Alina is not quite finished yet. She’s currently working on getting Zollipops into dentist offices and schools across the country!

Sources:

-https://zollipops.com/our-story/

-https://www.cnbc.com/2015/07/27/8-young-entrepreneurs-making-serious.html?slide=4

Clean Eating Alice

Often, when people think of personal trainers, they think of big, bulky men who eat enormous amounts of protein and only wear sleeveless shirts. Alice Liveing, however, does not fit that stereotype. Alice Liveing, instead, is a girl who used to describe herself as a “junk food addict.” After years of unhealthy eating habits, acne-prone skin, and low confidence, she decided that it was time to make a change. She started to change her eating habits by only eating healthy or “clean” foods. She would post all of her meals onto her Instagram page in order to keep herself accountable. On top of this, she started to workout regularly and posted her progress to her Instagram account as well.

She was able to quickly shed two dress sizes, going from a 12 to an 8, by simply changing her diet and exercise routine. It was not long before people started to notice and admire her progress. Through her Instagram, they were able to track her journey and use it as encouragement to fuel their own. She quickly gained 636,000 followers on this social media platform, catapulting her entrepreneurial and fitness career.

She capitalized on her newly found fame in order to launch her own personal training and fitness business. She has also written 3 books, one of which is the famous: The Body Bible. By the age of 24, Liveing has been able to build a successful career, not only as a personal trainer, but also as a business woman and entrepreneur. She used the resources at her disposal to grow and market her business as much as she possibly could.

Alice Liveing is a terrific example of a young entrepreneur because she adapted her business model to fit the needs of other young people. She used social media to reach other millennials in order to better advertise to the market she was familiar with. This shows the importance of pivoting your ideas and adapting your businesses to align with your target market. I am inspired by Alice Liveing and would like to take a similar approach to marketing with my future business.