All Things Gwen

Jared’s story is a great one! It’s about passion, purpose and “living the life.” I hope you find it inspirational and uplifting. I also hope you take a few minutes to help his non-profit, A Good Idea, win $1 million! A Good Idea connects people in need with people who want to help — but it’s actually much more than that.You’ll learn all about it below.

Right now, you can take action. Vote for A Good Idea in the Chase Community Giving contest between January 15 to January 22 by clicking here. Please send the link – http://tinyurl.com/ydm6d3o – to your friends and family as well!

ATG: Tell me about yourself.

JP: My name is Jared Paul, I am 33 years old, and I’m the founder of the San Francisco nonprofit, A Good Idea. 

ATG: Tell me about significant things in your life that have let up to A Good Idea.

JP: About two years ago, I went through a major life transformation. I like to call it a “1/3 life crisis.” It happened after a break-up with a girl that I lived with at the time. I had been so stuck living by societal standards and making decisions for so long that would make other people happy. After my break-up, I started digging deeper into my spiritual self and realized that I wanted to take my natural skills — which I had been using for almost eight years in business development and sales — to start helping those in need.

Since surrendering to and accepting what “was” and most importantly, what “is” in the present moment, the most incredible synchronicities — or as some people call them coincidences — have occurred. Once you stop trying to control your destiny and just live your life, amazing things will happen.

ATG: What is A Good Idea? 

JP: A Good Idea, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is a vehicle for positive social change ideas that connect people in need with people who want to help. We have been fully volunteer-driven since our formation and have served thousands of people in need with virtually zero funding.  A Good Idea is in the process of bringing a first-of-its-kind, fully accredited residential high school for homeless teens to San Francisco.

ATG: What was the motivation behind it?

JP: The motivation behind A Good Idea was to get people together who were going through a similar life transformation that I was going through, to better ourselves as human beings so that we could ultimately provide a higher level of service to those in need.

ATG: What do you envision for A Good Idea?

JP: My long-term vision for A Good Idea is to have a few different divisions of the organization that focus on different social issues. Some of those might be homelessness and poverty, the environment and people in need (for example, cancer patients, the deaf and blind communities, personal growth). We’d have people come to us with their “good ideas” and we’ll help them bring them to fruition. Then, we’ll truly live up to our mission of being a vehicle for people’s positive social change ideas!

ATG: How has A Good Idea made a difference for people? 

JP: A Good Idea has made a huge difference in both the lives of the people we serve, predominantly the homeless, and in the lives of the people that are serving those in need. At all times we are trying to strengthen and connect our society through service, which ultimately builds compassion and empathy. 

ATG: Please share an example. 

We hosted a party last December called “A Good Day” for homeless members of our community.  It was a very fancy party where we offered new clothes, live music, gourmet food, manicures, massages … and much more. I will never forget some of the testimonials from the guests and volunteers that day. Hearing someone who has very little in this world say: “You gave me my dignity back” or “I haven’t danced in 20 years” will not only make your day, but can change your life.  By the end of the evening, it was very difficult to tell who was a volunteer and who was a guest. Everyone was up, dancing, and just having the time of their life.

ATG: How have people supported you?

JP: People have supported us in numerous ways.  Whether it be simply by attending a volunteer event, sending in unsolicited donations, spreading the word about A Good Idea on social networking sites, or just sending kind emails. Our volunteer base and supporters have made A Good Idea what it is today.

ATG: What are you most proud of?  

JP: I am most proud of my organization’s ability to weather the storms, the ups and downs, and always come out thriving. There have been some very challenging moments the past couple of years and many times where I wasn’t sure how we would continue on, but here we are, stronger than ever. Another thing I am very proud of is the fact that we recently made the top 100 out of 500,000 nonprofits across the country in the Chase Community Giving contest on Facebook. We are one of, if not the youngest nonprofits in the top 100 and are in amazing company with nonprofits such as Kiva, the American Cancer Society®, Susan G Komen For the Cure®, and tons more. For being in the top 100 we won $25,000 and have a chance starting Friday, January 15 to 22 to win $1 million.

ATG: How can people help?

JP: People can help by voting for A Good Idea in the Chase contest  between January 15 to 22. We made the top 100 by our supporters really getting out there and spreading the word to their email and facebook networks so that’s another great way to support us. Click here to vote. Please send the link - http://tinyurl.com/ydm6d3o - to your friends and family as well!

We are also always accepting in-kind donations and online financial contributions which can be made at http://agoodideasf.org/. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit so all contributions are 100% tax deductible.

Jared Paul, A Good Idea

Learn more about A Good Idea: website, Facebook and Twitter.