106: Life Lesson From 15,000+ People That Will Make You Happier with Amy Newmark

Publisher, editor-in-chief and coauthor of Chicken Soup for the Soul, Amy Newmark was a writer, speaker, Wall Street analyst and business executive in the worlds of finance and telecommunications for more than 30 years. Today she is publisher, editor-in-chief and coauthor of the Chicken Soup for the Soul book series. Since 2008, when Amy, her husband, and an investor group bought the company from its founders, Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen, she has published more than 100 new books, doubling the number of Chicken Soup for the Soul titles in print today. As publisher, Amy is credited with revitalizing the Chicken Soup for the Soul brand. She redesigned the look of the book covers and interiors, and changed the format of the title so that the books can cover topics of interest to today’s readers. This has led to national bestsellers such as Chicken Soup for the Soul: Think Positive, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Messages from Heaven, and Chicken Soup for the Soul: Angels Among Us. By compiling inspirational and aspirational true stories curated from ordinary people who have had extraordinary experiences, Amy has kept the 21-year-old Chicken Soup for the Soul brand fresh and relevant, and still part of the social zeitgeist. Amy graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University where she majored in Portuguese and minored in French. During her junior and senior years, she researched and wrote a thesis about popular, spoken-word poetry in Brazil, which involved living in Brazil for several months, traveling throughout its impoverished northeast region, and meeting with poets and writers to collect their stories. She is delighted to have come full circle in her writing career—from collecting poetry “from the people” in Brazil as a 20-year-old to, three decades later, collecting stories and poems “from the people” for Chicken Soup for the Soul. Amy works alongside her husband, Bill Rouhana, CEO and fellow co-owner of Chicken Soup for the Soul. She and Bill are the proud parents of four grown children and in her limited spare time, Amy enjoys visiting them, hiking, and reading books that she did not have to edit. Once taking over the Chicken Soup for the Soul brand, Amy and her partners have extended the company much further than just books. Can you believe they even have the top-line of dog and cat food!? They care about their pets just as much as they do themselves. Amy is an incredible example of a powerhouse business woman. Just listening to her speak, it is obvious she is passionate about her work and it most definitely shows in the outcome! “Continuously reading all the stories in our books reminds me how grateful I should be for everything in my own life because I am exposed now, to what other people go through.” She teaches us how important it is to realize how lucky you are and how each and every one of us is here to serve and help those in need. “I find that the one thing that connects most of the stories I have read, is people saying 'I had no idea I was capable of this. I had no idea I had this much strength.'” She was a great reminder for me today, that we all already have the tools we need within us. “We can all be our own mechanics of our lives!” In this Episode You May Learn About: Entrepreneurship Business Branding Hardwork Perseverance Experiences Vulnerability Stories Self-Empowerment Resources: Chicken Soup for the Soul Book Series Simply Happy by: Amy Newmark The Chicken Soup for the Soul Podcast Chicken Soup for the Soul’s Hidden Heroes TV show Project Dad TV show You can catch Amy Tweeting away on Twitter @AmyNewmark or go to see it all at chickensoup.com. Follow me on social media @LoriHarder on Instagram and Lori Harder on Facebook. You can also see more at my website: LoriHarder.com