Why we started Own Your Story
Identity and meaning
Research shows that meaningful social connections are essential to foster wellbeing. However, despite living in a time when we are most technologically connected, our rates of loneliness are increasing.
In Malaysia, mental health issue is predicted to be the number 1 disability by 2020, affecting millions of the population.
Our Story
Our co-founders, Frankie and Isabelle, experienced mental health issue in the past and thought about using creations to design for meaning and connections for people around us to improve our general wellbeing and build a strong support system to find our collective meaning of life.
Therefore, ‘Own Your Story Community’ is created to collaborate with conscious leaders to co-create meaningful and experiential creations to cultivate a sense of purpose and connection in people’s life.
We empowered local millennials as well as individuals who had experiences living, studying and working abroad (US, EU, UK, AUS, Canada) to make the city a fun and exciting place to explore, learn, connect, and share with like-minded people.
How might we utilize spaces in the city to foster purpose and connection?
We have co-created experiential creations with individuals like
Kevin, a creative entrepreneur who has worked in Europe for the past 10 years, to launch Co-Living Malaysia and cultural activities at Mano Thinking, KL first Magazine Library, to help people rediscover the Joy of Living.
Jolene who holds MSc in Mental Health from King’s College to advocate for mental health issues by turning people’s struggles into strengths with the launch of “Facebook Board” and screening of ‘Temple Grandin’ to raise fund for autistic children in collaboration with Early Autism Project Malaysia.
Tien, a fitness coach and food science graduate from Canada, shared yoga and Eastern philosophy in nature to improve the health and wellness of the public.
Zhe Hui, a local graphic designer with the mission to make a meaningful impact through visual art. Zhe Hui created art jam sessions that bridges participants with oneself and others, opening up a space for story sharing.
We also designed peer-learning sessions such as Idea Jam, Creator Jam, Teach & Learn and etc. that brought our community members together, helped each other learn and grow together and turned ideas into realities.
Impact
To date, we have collaborated with over 10 creators and launched 34 creations ranges from a game that helps people discover their personal values by auctioning their life goals, tasting Christmas together with interactive cultural activities, and etc. that helped over 340 people discover the joy of living with authentic connection formed.
We strive to transform spaces into fertile grounds that foster a community of conscious creators through creation, service and connection, one experience at a time!
