Arianna Huffington: Charming and Humble

Courtesy: Broadrecognition.com

This week I had the chance to listen to one of the world's richest women, Arianna Huffington, speak. She is the founder of the online newspaper, The Huffington Post, which as you may know, just got bought by AOL for a cool $315 million. I know money doesn't buy happiness, but sheesh...think of how much easier life would be with $315 mil. I was hoping by meeting her this week, we would end up "besties" who'd go shopping and lunching together.

Sadly, that didn't happen, but listening to Ms. Huffington was really enjoyable. I found her to be honest, charming and humble. She talked about the importance of volunteering, and how much it has enriched her and her family's lives. She said it's easy to get down on our circumstances-- relationships (she said, Lord knows that's certainly true for her--online is says her ex-husband is now bi-sexual), our jobs, children, etc. She said the quickest way to feel better about ourselves is to volunteer with people who really have it rough. Her daughter struggled with an eating disorder until she volunteered at an at-risk home for children in a tough L.A. neighborhood. Suddenly her daughter didn't think her own life and image issues were so bad.

I really need to learn how to use my camera

Ms. Huffington says volunteering is especially helpful for people who have lost jobs/homes and even self-esteem in the recession (I can totally relate.) She say helping others makes you feel like you're a contributor instead of a victim.

I'm so glad I went to hear her speak, and I'm going to start looking at volunteer opportunities this week. Anyone care to join me? I'm looking for the ones that pay $315 mil--I'll let you know what I find.