Small Hands, Big Ideas Has Moved!

I will be redirecting soon, but thought I would say it here: I've MOVED, to WordPress that is.

I've been meaning to take the leap for a while now and I have finally done it. You can find the new Small Hands, Big Ideas at: http://smallhandsbigideas.com. To subscribe you can use this feed address: http://feeds2.feedburner.com/smallhandsbigideas

Please scoot on over that way, because I won't be here anymore. Thanks Blogger, it's been fun and exciting starting out this blog here but I'm movin' on up.

Yours Truly,
Grace

New Blog: Small Hands, Big Ideas

A Comparison: Men VS. Women's Online Behavior

In high school I did a science fair project in conjunction with a Brain Research Institute evaluating risk-taking behavior in adolescents, while focusing on the prefrontal cortex development in the brain comparing men and women. I'm far from a science geek, but data and research like this really astounds me (hey, I even got 5th in the State of Iowa) and I think it pertains to everyday life.

What I found and learned in high school, has helped me with relationships (personal, friendships, professional) and I'm still intrigued because men and women are so different. I know, I'm stating the obvious but did you ever wonder why? Since I spend a lot of my time online, I started to find interesting studies about the significant difference in online behavior of men versus women.

Photo Credit: Come Date Blog

Pew Internet Study shows the that men are "the hunters," where their status comes from how well they are able to accomplish tasks and go online, get what they're looking for, and get out. Women are "the nurturers and gatherers," they employ social networks for information, make comparison to find the best option and maintain these connections. This can be tracked back to prehistoric age with hunter-gatherers and really can connect to any activity in life.

Compared with women, online men are more likely to use the Internet to:
-Check the Weather
-Get News
-Check for sports information
-Get Political information
-Get financial information
-Do a job-related search
-Download software
-Listen to music

Compared with men, online women are more like to use the internet to:
-Send and receive email
-Get maps and directions
-Look for health and medical information
-Use websites to get support for health or personal problems
-Get religious information

More women than men send and receive email and they use it in a "richer and more engaging way." Women write to friends and family, but there is a commonality between men and women that we both appreciate email for its "efficiencies and convenience."

I find the comparison between what men and women interesting in this specific example: After 9/11 men visited more websites to tell them about things that were happening while more women said the internet helped them find people they needed to reach. There's a distinct difference between the actions of their online behavior with a curiosity versus a need to connect.

This is an interesting concept that we choose different websites, we react differently and treat the online space differently. However, at the end of the study the researchers cite, "our data show that men and women are more similar than different in their online lives, starting with their common appreciate of the internet's strongest suit: efficiency." The second strength that men and women value is the internet as a "gateway to limitless vaults of information." Of course, there is room for generality here and there are the exceptions. I believe the information is interesting but it's nice to find a common ground even amongst our inherent differences. What do you think?

Male or Female: Do you agree with these statistics? How do you think you're sharing or contributing to the online behavioral generalities?

Humility

"I can’t even articulate how powerful and attractive I find humility…especially in the shared presence of talent, strength and intellect. Any fool can brag and bluster – afraid that if they don’t highlight their own value, no one will notice. But it takes such unrelenting bravery, such confidence and peace to choose to be humble and understated instead."

{via been thinking}

I couldn't agree more. I am deeply moved by humility and think it is a subtle characteristic and tool for success. I'm more apt to look up to and respect a powerful individual, who knows their worth versus someone who brags and talks about themselves (no matter how successful they really are).

What do you think? Is humility as attractive to you as it is to me?

Friday Linky Love

I love paying attention to everyone's digital and real-life contribution via the Web for Earth Day and beyond. Specifically, these were some of the best tips and commentary I found for your green dose.

Photo Credit: BoingBoing

1. Ma Vie en Vert: Making Your Beauty Regime Earth-Friendly in Four Easy Steps
2. Advertising Age: Green-Marketing Revolution Defies Economic Downturn
3. Green Living Ideas: "Good" Ideas For Earth Day
4. The Happiness Zone: Earth Day if my Birthday
5. Twilight Earth: Earth Day-Celebration, Gimmick, or Eco Guilt Forgiveness Day?
6. The Good Human: Greenwash of the Week: Earth Day & Coca-Cola
7. Seventh Generation Blog: Celebrating Earth Day by (Re)Generating Some Great Ideas
8. The Huffington Post: The Politics of Earth Day
9. Daily Kos: Happy Earth Day, National Parks
10. Boing Boing: Happy Earth Day

What Inspires You? Guest Post XII: Erica Prather

I admire Erica's strength which became immediately evident as she jumped into the Lijit office with vigor in January and is still going strong. I get to see her pretty face across from me each day! With her writing background, I knew Erica would be a great addition as the 12th in What Inspires You, especially as she is just getting into the blogging scene.

Erica Prather
Bio: A 23 year old Kansas native, Erica originally hails from Wichita, but has made homes in Lawrence, KS, New York City, and now Boulder. With a penchant for traveling and living a semi-nomadic lifestyle, Erica decide to move to Boulder in September of 2008, in search of a place (or at least state) to finally plant some roots. Armed with an English degree, stage time in plenty of ballets over the years (performing in over 50 Nutcrackers!) and a dry sense of humor, Erica enjoys the ‘Colorado Lifestyle.'

Erica at the Ellis Island Wall of Honor, pointing to her ancestors' names from Croatia

Blog: There's No Place Like Home Twitter: @ericaprather

There are so many things that inspire me; including the people that have guest posted before me on this blog. I’d have to resound all of their notions that inspiration can be found everywhere; but my strongest source of inspiration comes from strength. It’s not always easy to be strong, but strength is one of those mysterious things that somehow replenishes itself thousand-fold without you ever really knowing it.

Of course there is physical strength, and I admire that very much. But the kind of strength I am talking about is not physical.

I’ve always known my entire life that the best things in life don’t come wrapped in packages or with price tags. Strength is one of those things. I come from a family of very strong individuals, and it has been stressed to me from the time I was born that being strong isn’t just a ‘good quality’ – it’s a necessity. The strength to face your fears. The strength to tell someone how you feel. The strength to be a true, honest friend. The strength to carry yourself with integrity and do the right thing, always. The strength to push yourself into doing something that might make you a little bit uncomfortable. I truly believe that all of the qualities in a person I most admire – sincerity, curiosity, independence, emotional intelligence, humility, self-awareness and self-confidence – to name a few, come from a place of strength.

My mother always says “You come from peasant stock – your ancestors were strong farmers and worked outdoors. So are you.” I admire the strength of individuals I do not know – people such as Lance Armstrong that refuse to succumb to an illness and play the victim, and literally strongly cross the finish line. But of course I admire people in my own life that have made a difference (big or small) by merely being strong.

Both of my parents emit this strength in everything they do – the way they love each other and their children, their commitment to their careers and their community, and the way they are each very much their own person. My father especially overcame a less than ideal childhood to not only pay for his own college education (and be the first in his family to go to college at that), but also to start his own architectural firm and raise a family. But he couldn’t have done it without the strength of my mother, who sacrificed quite a bit by always having the steady job when times are tough in the architecture industry.

I admire the strength of my Croatian ancestors who left the former Yugoslav to seek a better life in America. I admire the strength of my friends who have lost jobs. I admire the strength people have in their beliefs. I admire the strength people carry as they battle a long illness; the list goes on.

Sometimes strength has a negative connotation – you can be bullheaded or stubborn. As my mother says “Your biggest virtue is oftentimes your biggest vice.”

But being strong doesn’t necessarily always have to equate to that. Strength is something that you have inside that nobody can take or buy from you; yet you can let others borrow your strength when they need it most. People and communities give each other strength when others feel they have nothing left. And you always have more strength than you realize. The strength to get out of bed when you don’t really feel like it. The strength to move to a place where you hardly know anyone. The strength to go about things alone. The strength to mend a broken heart after somebody has busted it into a billion pieces. The strength to carry on after a tragic loss. The strength to admit you were wrong or made a mistake and say you are sorry. The strength to cry and be vulnerable and open. We can all be strong for each other, be aware of when someone else needs our strength.

To me, strength and hope are in the same family, and we can always use more of that. Find whatever gives you strength or empowers you – family, friends, the activities that you love to do, and dedicate time to those things every day. I can tell you right now that whoever you are, you won’t find strength in money, power, or activities that generally involve instant gratification.

Buddhist philosopher Daisaku Ikeda says, “Strength is Happiness. Strength is itself victory. In weakness and cowardice there is no happiness. When you wage a struggle, you might win or you might lose. But regardless of the short-term outcome, the very fact of your continuing to struggle is proof of your victory as a human being.”

Video Interview with Jun Loayza of Viralogy-Awesome Revolution

It's true, I do have small hands and (huge) ideas! If you're interested in hearing me, really my voice, no more writing here, check out the conversation and interview with Jun Loayza of Viralogy- Awesome Revolution.

I talk about the big risk and leap I took in moving West to Boulder, how I got my job at Lijit and find out what really drives me, my passions and the secret career I've always wanted.

I think Viralogy's Awesome Revolution mission and series of Awesome Bloggers is fantastic. Jun gives a voice to bloggers and their community, because the human touch goes so far. Check them out on Twitter and their website, here.

Happy Birthday Earth (and Mom)

I'm happy to say that Earth Day is also my beautiful mother's birthday and my good friend, Erica so big celebration to be had for these wonderful women (yes, you too Mother Earth)!

I'm all about greening up our Earth, sustainability, eating organic (I was raised that way) and being environmentally friendly. However, I kind of feel the same way about Earth Day as I do about Valentine's Day. Why do you need one day to help the Earth? Why do you need one day expressively say you love someone? It should be habitual and part of your regular life, practice. Just a thought. Do you feel the same way?

Either way, part of my contribution (amongst many others) today, for April 22nd was in buying my mother an Odor Free Compost Caddy. We always compost at our house, but we use a bucket which isn't too appealing and yes, can smell a bit odd after the disposed food is there too long. This green bucket is only $20.50, can hold up to 2.5 gallons and is easy to transport out to the garden or wherever you compost.
For other blogs contributing useful, green content on Earth Day try: Ma Vie en Vert, The Good Human, Twilight Earth, Forced Green and Crunchy Domestic Goddess.

What other green gift ideas for the Earth (or someone you love) do you have up your sleeve?