Sir Ken Robinson: Fearing Failure

Aside from the fact that he is absolutely hilarious,  Sir Ken Robinson is a captivating speaker.  I enjoyed listening to him and found myself agreeing with many of the points he made.  His position on the necessity for creativity and cultivating an environment that welcomes creativity early on in life was fascinating.  I was lucky to grow up in a family who embraced creativity before knowledge or logic.  Our creative ambitions were applauded more often than our academic achievements (perhaps there were fewer of those! ;) ).  Sir Ken's point about children being more creative as a result of their willingness to accept fail if it should arise, versus an adult fearing failure, was remarkable.  I have missed so many opportunities in my adult life because of my fear of looking stupid, dumb or inept.  A memory that is fresh in my mind that relates to this idea is my soccer career.  When I was little, I loved soccer.  I could not play for the life of me, but I loved going to the field and all the excitement surrounding the game.  I was the goalie (not sure why, I only stood about 3 1/2 ft tall...maybe it was to keep me off of the field).  As goalie, I saw it as my duty to dance in the goal, spin around and pick flowers.  I was bold and confident and quite creative with my time.  When senior year of high school rolled around, my friend Kati and I decided we would try out for soccer so we could "get a good workout before spring break".  We made excuses to make our attempt seem cool.  We were awful and I recall the feeling of failure and masking it with negativity and a "too cool for school" attitude. Truth is, I was just as bad as a senior as I was when I was in 2nd grade, but I did not fear failure early on.

I really appreciated this video and I hope that there are more thought-provoking videos to come!

Wow!: Bath and Body Works Foaming Hand Soap

Bath and Body Works Foaming Hand Soap (shown in Energy above)

It may seem odd, but I really enjoy foaming hand soap in any form.  I have Bath and Body Works foaming hand soap in my apartment- both in the bathroom and the kitchen and it just makes the whole process of washing hands much more pleasing. I like foaming hand soap because of the luxury of having the soap pre-lathered. When you pump regular cream soap (or worse, bar soap) into your hands, you need to have the right ratio of water to soap to get a good lather going. The consistency of cream soap is slimy and thick. Sometimes it just slides right off of your hands when you turn on the water. Foaming hand soap leaves you feeling cleaner and more fresh, not to mention, the scents offered by Bath and Body Works smell excellent!  Foaming soap requires little to no water during the cleansing process. On that note, it is also a great product for kids.  I am an avid babysitter and a proud aunt. Foaming soap is so much easier to use when I am helping the kids wash their hands. I do not need to rub the cream soap in for them, I just pump the soap into their palms and let them squish around and play with it - good, clean fun. 

Bath and Body Works foaming hand soap is also one of my favorite products because the packaging is attractive. Instead of having plain, old Dial soap in my bathroom, I have Energy - Orange and Ginger foaming soap on my sink ledge.  The amber bottle dressed in a burnt orange and apricot label which gives a detailed description of the contents of the bottle, has an old apothecary feel.  The design of the bottle compliments my bathroom decor; deep autumnal shades of burnt orange and gold. 

I can categorize my feelings about foaming hand soap into the following categories to help me better understand why this product and others is attractive to me:

Packaging: Bath and Body Works foaming hand soap is always packaged nicely.  The graphics on some scents are a small piece of art for your bathroom. The aromatherapy line, with it's old apothecary feel, is a nice addition to a bathroom with a slightly more "earthy" feel. The shape of the bottle is tall and thin, taking up less surface space and keeping your sink ledge less cluttered. 

Convenience: The convenience of foaming hand soap is key.  The pre-lathered aspect of the soap takes one step out of the process and thus taking time off of hand washing. You simply press down the pump, swish around, run your hands under the water and you are done. The soap slides off when the water hits it in a nice clean sweep. 

Effectiveness: Foaming hand soap is an effective way to wash your hands. As I mentioned before, it works. The foam clings to your hands, whereas liquid or cream soap so often slides right off of your hands before you are able to get a good lather and clean your hands. Foaming soap seems to clean hands better and faster.

Luxury: I appreciate a product that boast luxurious qualities. Foaming hand soap is luxurious in a number of ways - the texture, the pre-lathered aspect, the scent, the well-designed packaging and the smoothness of the pump when activated. 

Pricing: It is important to mention that while this soap is excellent quality, it is moderately priced.  Bath and Body Works Foaming hand soap runs anywhere from $5.00 to $7.00. Sales and promotions are frequently offered at Bath and Body Works. 

These qualities are applicable when judging many hygiene products. If something is relatively high quality, feels good, looks nice and works well, it will likely sell.