Reconnected+Stronger

Connect and Color® Team Building for Adults and Teens!

As an entrepreneur, my life’s journey inspires my business direction. My pain points are the fuel for finding solutions to support others in their trials and challenges. Seeing the fruits of all my labor brings me immense joy with Connect and Color®.

For years, I have mentored and taught a business brainstorming class to junior high students starting their own business with the Young Entrepreneur Academy (YEA). We discuss how oftentimes the most successful start-ups are born out of someone’s pain points, whether their own or those of family/friends. And sure enough, the students who solve their pain points with their business idea often rank very high during the annual Investor Panel (think Shark Tank for junior high students!) because they are so invested in it.

About eight years ago, I felt like someone took the contents of my life, stuffed them into a box, violently shook the box, and dumped out the contents on the floor, broken and in disarray. Many pieces to pick up, but not much left intact. About this time, I learned of a Japanese art form called Kintsugi. According to Wikipedia, it is “the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with urushi lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum.” The concept of something good coming from something broken spoke to my heart and brought me immense hope at a desperate time.

Through the pain in my own life, Connect and Color® was born. While we are not dealing with broken ceramic pieces, it dawned on me when I began Connect and Color® that there are some similarities with Kintsugi and what I accomplish with my business.

Oftentimes, people come to our events who are dealing with stress and anxiety. As they color their pages, we see the stress melt away. After the coloring is completed, putting the puzzle together is an easy way for new connections to form in a very relaxed, casual setting. Just like the broken ceramic pieces in Kintsugi, the individual coloring pages come together to create a unique Art Collaboration, and we realize that together we are stronger than we are alone, just like the broken ceramic pieces that have been mended and made more beautiful with the Japanese lacquer technique.

What makes us stronger together? Often, society tells us that we can do it alone. We are weak if we ask for help. The truth is that it takes vulnerability and courage to ask for assistance. Being in community is just like the lacquer that holds the broken ceramic pieces together. We hold each other up through the most challenging times. And who couldn’t use a little more of that? This is why we do what we do at Connect and Color®. It’s all about nurturing commUNITY and emotional well-being. Is there someone in your life who could use a little support today?