Lest We Forget. ANZAC Day UpBeat

At the going down of the sun

and in the morning,

We shall remember them.

To pay our respects on ANZAC Day, a group of us from The Upbeat Collective decided to perform a random act kindness centred around sharing home baking with the locals who attended Onehunga ANZAC Day parade.

The reaction was positive and many people were pleasantly surprised to receive an unexpected treat!  

A big thank you to those who helped and to the talented Brigette for taking amazing photos on the day.  

#do.be.do.   #UpbeatNZ  

3...2...1... Lift-Off!

I am very pleased to say that The Upbeat Collective successfully launched last Wednesday.  Woo hoo! 

The launch took place at Long Black Café at the Unitec Mt Albert campus, attracting over 40 people during the evening.  Leading up to the launch I was feeling excited about bringing like-minded people together, but also slightly nervous about whether any one would turn up.  Thankfully I need not worry about this as on the stroke of 5pm a steady stream of people came in the café and I must say it was exhilarating to meet many of them for the first time. 

An eclectic range of people attended the event, all with different backgrounds to share and stories to tell.  What immediately struck me was a strong sense that people wanted to help others in meaningful ways.  Some attendees shared how they overcame past adversities, some expressed a desire to make a difference, some were already involved in community organisations, some stated they had time and energy to share, and some were simply curious.  All were valid reasons.  All were welcome reasons.

For the first half of the evening people had a chance to mingle with others and have refreshments.  There were also big sheets of paper on the wall where people could respond to prompts including “Draw Happiness” and “What Inspires You”.  A photo wall was also set-up to add a bit of fun too. 

I then said a few words to officially mark the launch of The Upbeat Collective.  To be honest I did not have much time to prepare my speech(!) so I decided to speak from the heart and say what felt right at that time.  I spoke of how we were all ordinary people who can make a extraordinary difference in lives of others.  It was so exciting to see the genuine gestures of support from everyone in the room… yes, we were all in this together. 

Two members from the group, Yolanda and Nicole kindly sang few songs, each with a strong message of support for helping others and not being afraid to be who we are.

As I grow older I am aware that I not motivated by a strong need to earn lots of money or to climb the corporate ladder.  What mattered more to me was having the opportunity to speak passionately about my desire to make a difference and that we could achieve more through collective efforts.  I unashamedly like the idea of inspiring others and I am energized by the thought of performing great acts out in the community.  It was a surreal experience talking to those who came along and I meant every single word I said. 

If I could describe the launch in one word, it would be ENERGY.  The rocket has begun its launch and I cannot wait to see what new frontiers it explores over the coming months.    

Keep it upbeat :)

Andrew

Introducing the Upbeat Collective. do.be.do. ♫

The Upbeat Collective. do.be.do. ♫

A movement for positive social change where ordinary people can do extraordinary things.  

#upbeatNZ #bethechange #dobedo 

My name is Andrew Tui and I am an everyday Kiwi guy with a few ideas up my sleeve!  I decided to create The Upbeat Collective to inspire and motivate people to take action and to make a real difference in our communities. Many of us want to ‘give back’ and live in a harmonious environment, but we either don’t know what to do, feel powerless, fall prey to negative media messages, or simply become apathetic.   

So lets begin the Upbeat revolution! To clarify, race, gender, religion, age or ability is not a defining criterion. The Upbeat Collective It is built around a desire to live a satisfying life through engaging in meaningful activity. With a world facing increasing pressure, there has become a need to remember that our future wellbeing can improve if we seek to strengthen and empower ourselves and the communities around us; this can take place in many shape and forms depending on what your interests and passions may be. 

By being part of the Upbeat Collective you are indicating that you wish to make a real difference in the lives of those around you. I often hear that people are sometimes turned off by ideas or initiatives that are perceived as too airy-fairy or goody-goody. The aim of this project is to ‘keep it real’ and to demonstrate that giving-back in a meaningful way can be a powerful and very cool thing. 

I’m putting it out there – this is not a group focused on clichés or saccharine sentiments. It is focused on real actions that speak louder than any words. 

The Upbeat Project

My intention is to form a group (collective) of like-minded people to join up to share ideas and take action. Whilst we can take individual action, our ability to make a bigger impact can be enhanced through collective activity. Also, groups are an effective way to meet people, be energized, be inspired, gain the motivation to take action, and of course to have fun! 

Basic group principles: 

Who: Anyone and everyone is welcome to join the group. No expert knowledge is required. 

Where: The primary focus is to form an Auckland-based group with potential to grow. 

When: The group could meet fortnightly or once a month.  It is not compulsory to attend and people can weave in and out whenever they want.  People can also participate contribute by simply participating in events, or contributing/following our social media sites including the Facebook page.

What: The group will be focused on the central theme of contributing to positive social change and enhancing the happiness and wellbeing of others. The group will learn about, discuss or take action in relation to happiness and wellbeing. 

Community projects and activities could include: 

• Performing random acts of kindness for individuals and groups in the community (eg. gifting baking to passers-by, street cleanups)
• Undertaking organized voluntary work on behalf of charities and not-for-profit organisations
• 'Surprising and delighting' deserving recipients
• Organising community events or concerts
• Organising food/clothing/household item collections
• Promoting wellbeing (or other expertise) out in the community

I believe the group's success will come about through the collaborative efforts of everyone involved, so do not hesitate to share your ideas.


Ways to get involved...

• 'Like' and follow us on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/upbeatnz
• Follow us on Twitter:  Upbeat Collective
• Meet like-minded people by attending our launch in April and ongoing events thereafter (details to come soon!)
• Find out about upcoming events on our group page on Meetup.com:  http://www.meetup.com/The-Upbeat-Collective/
• Carry out meaningful activities in your own time and know you've made a true difference in this world of ours.
• Simply smile.

Sources of inspiration 

There is growing evidence about how we can build our resilience and create happier lives. Positive Psychology is an emerging field that focuses on growing wellbeing and is a movement away from deficit models or ‘fixing problems’. Key proponents of positive psychology include Martin Seligman, Barbara Frederickson, Todd Kashdan, Tal Ben-Shahar and Mihali Csikszentmihalyi. In New Zealand we have the New Zealand Association of Positive Psychology, now coming into its sixth year of existence. http://www.positivepsychology.org.nz/ 

The Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand, provide inspiration through their promotion of the Five Ways to Wellbeing. These five simple, evidence-based actions are Connect, Give, Take Notice, Keep Learning and Be Active. http://www.mentalhealth.org.nz/page/1180-five-ways-to-wellbeing 

The Five Ways to Wellbeing are based on the UK Foresight Project's Five Ways to Wellbeing report on communicating the evidence for improving people's wellbeing, put together by the Centre for Wellbeing at the new Economics Foundation.   http://www.bis.gov.uk/foresight/our-work/projects/published-projects/mental-capital-and-wellbeing

A successful example of someone who took wellbeing concepts to the masses is US-based Gretchen Rubin who wrote the highly acclaimed Happiness Project. She went on to develop an interactive website encouraging people to engage in wellbeing-focussed activities. http://gretchenrubin.com/ 

I have also drawn upon the collective approach taken by the Action for Happiness movement www.actionforhappiness.org 

Local sources of inspiration include Jimi Hunt, who created the Live More Awesome charity http://www.livemoreawesome.com/, The RAK Foundation who encourage random acts of kindness throughout the year http://rak.co.nz/ and John Kirwan who actively campaigns for the awareness and support for depression sufferers www.depression.org.nz 

Naturally, these are but a few examples of those who have made fantastic contributions to the promotion of positive wellbeing. 

I finish with a quote from Jim Henson:

When I was young, my ambition was to be one of the people who made a difference in this world.  My hope still is to leave the world a little bit better for my having been here.  It's a wonderful life and I love it.