Discovering What Matters With Dr. Peter Brill

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Altruism Repays Its Debts

September 29, 2019

What really matters in life? What experiences shape our journey? How is today a reflection of our journey and what we have learned and experienced along the way? And mainly, what causes a person to dedicate their life to philanthropy? I have been writing about community, change and capital for months now and I thought I should talk to someone who has spent and does spend the majority of his life dealing with those three concerns. Ron Gallo is a high-energy, intelligent, and charming man with a great sense of humor and who is passionate about effective philanthropy and giving back to society. He is the President and CEO of Santa Barbara Foundation (SBF). SBF is as central to philanthropy in Santa Barbara as central can be. I wondered how he got into philanthropy. What were his greatest accomplishments along the way? What was his model of how things change? What had he learned along the way? And finally, where does impact investing fit into philanthropy and c

A Heroine’s Journey

August 19, 2019

QUESTION: Dear Dr. Brill. I have appreciated much of what you have written. I understand that you are interested in what produces change. With the crises in our ocean, could you say something about that? . . . Marlene in Carpinteria Thank you, Marlene. I thought I would try to answer your question in a different way—by telling you a story of a journey. Many people know the work of author Joseph Campbell. He described myths and an important one was “the hero’s journey”. A hero’s journey is one that starts with an adventure, intended or not, where the person goes through a series of experiences that transform them into a hero. In this column the hero is a woman—it is a heroine’s journey. Laura Francis is a fit, attractive, energetic brunette, with sparking eyes and a warm heart, who does yoga every day. She lived all over the country as a child, moving seven times. At age 11, she had an inspiring experience that shaped her life. A wonderful teacher in Santa Barbara took h

How to Find Your Passion

July 13, 2019

QUESTION: It is clear to me that you are passionate about impact investing. I am having trouble finding my passion. How did you do it? . . . Michael from Santa Barbara Thank you for the question; it really caused me to think. Very few people actually just walk into passion and success. Passion, like great loves, develops over time. When I first retired at 52, I didn’t like the term retirement. It seemed to focus on withdrawal. I was also interested in how people do this stage of life well. So, I started a radio show called “The Third Age” (first age childhood, second age career and family, third age after that), and that gave me the opportunity to interview 400 people. Some of the people I interviewed were just like you and me, and we learned from their life stories. Some were experts in some field, and we learned from their research and knowledge. It became clear that the human spirit was vital to happiness and longevity. That the spirit that makes a person with artificia

What Makes a Person Great?

June 06, 2019

What makes a person great? If they are rich enough, are they great? What do we look for when we say they are wise? What does it mean when we say they make a difference? If we want to make a difference, are there models we can emulate or admire? I have been answering questions put to me in this column by others so I thought this month I would ask myself a few of my own. I came across someone who I think is a great person, and who has taken me a long way toward answering my questions. Tom Washing, who now lives in Montecito, certainly is highly successful. He has been active in the venture capital industry for over thirty years. He is a founding partner of Sequel Venture Partners, a Colorado-based venture capital firm investing in emerging growth technology companies which, at one point, had 400 million dollars under management. He has served on dozens of corporate and non-profit Boards of Directors, including as founding Chairman of the University of Colorado Center

Dealing with Betrayal and Hurt

April 25, 2019

QUESTION: I have felt betrayed in my love life and also at work. Can you help me to get over these feelings of hurt? . . . Patricia in Goleta Thank you for your question, Patricia. It is an important question and a large topic. You have given me very few details of either situation, so I am going to have to write in general. I am not going to address betrayal at work in this column, but perhaps in another, as it is a broad topic and deserves one of its own.You have caused me to think deeply about my own life and the betrayals I have faced. Certainly, betrayal is very painful, and it can undermine trust and color our experiences for a lifetime. I am going to start by telling you a story about an experience I had in the past. I was doing an interview in the bar at the Montecito Wine Bistro for a radio show I had at that time. My producer and I moved indoors because the weather was becoming a problem. The woman I was interviewing was producing a play in Los Angeles for the

The Profitable Future of Traditional Philanthropy

March 18, 2019

QUESTION: I hear there are 1,000 non-profits in Santa Barbara. I am newly retired and moved here from Chicago after selling my business. I look at an organization like the Girl Scouts which provides for a significant portion of their financial needs by selling cookies and other things. Why don’t more of these organizations find ways to create revenues to help them sustain themselves? . . . Stephen in Montecito That is an excellent question, Stephen. I feel that this is such an important question that I hired a research assistant, Mariah Miller from UCSB, to help me research it and write this column. I believe that finding more diverse ways for these valuable organizations to sustain themselves is vital. You are right about the Girl Scouts. They generated $23 million in revenues through gross profit on merchandise compared to $15.5 million through gifts, grants and bequests in the previous fiscal year. There are other non-profits in Santa Barbara that are also using this