The first step in creating your group is finding members. Mastermind groups should serve as places for growth and learning rather than therapy or gossip circles; when screening potential members, you must ask difficult questions, such as whether they have family commitments or are single.
Mastermind groups usually focus on subjects like ecommerce or investing, with members contributing skills and expertise that benefit other members.
Fanny Liao
Fanny Liao takes an unconventional approach to gardening. A novice, she began @fansinthegarden on Instagram as a learning platform to document her experience growing food and connecting with nature. From celebrating an abundant harvest to mourning a watermelon that didn’t thrive, Fanny shares all aspects of gardening experiences on Instagram.
She’s part of a new wave of gardening influencers who aim to demystify and broaden the appeal of gardening. These influencers include Fanny Liao, Kevin Espiritu, and Timothy Hammond, who bring the joy of planting to wider audiences—including people of color who might otherwise be excluded due to Environmental Master Gardener (EMG) requirements.
Social media has also broadened access to gardening information. Many new gardening influencers have gained audiences on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and others without needing extensive education or certifications, which allows them to reach a broader, younger demographic of potential gardeners.
Espiritu, who has amassed over two million subscribers across all platforms with Epic Gardening, started his multiplatform gardening presence due to the need for more reliable online information about gardening. He teaches through his easygoing personality while sharing beginner mistakes and solutions from experience gained over time.
Christina Chung offers accessible and comprehensive gardening advice in YouTube videos that cover everything from saving seeds to what to do during a heatwave. In addition, Christina runs an international gardening coaching business that serves customers worldwide.
Joe Lamp’l is another well-known gardening account. He hosts a long-running public television show and podcast. Additionally, he’s written several books, with his latest being “The Vegetable Gardener’s Guide: Your Complete Guide to Growing an Edible Organic Garden from Seed to Harvest” (affiliate link), which draws from lessons learned both personally and from customers he’s worked with over time.
Fanny Sullivan
Fanny Sullivan (nee Mary Frances Carter), one of Helen Keller’s most well-known pupils, was known for her beauty, charm, and natural soprano voice. Due to these attributes, Fanny soon became popular among wealthy New York men whom she would mesmerize before taking advantage of their money by entertaining them at her Manhattan mansion.
She managed to con two of the wealthiest men in town: Leonard Jerome and August Belmont. She entertained them in her home theater, which she created at luxurious dinner parties on her yacht, or by hosting lavish theater shows she designed. She never revealed this fact to either man, even when she knew they were married.
Her record of accomplishment would even make the Boston Brahmins shudder with admiration. She actively advocated for deaf-blind people, writing several books detailing her experiences working with them. Additionally, she ran a restaurant and music promotion business.
Fanny Sullivan lived with Nathan Appleton and two of his daughters. She also had an affair with Pierre Lorillard Ronalds, a wealthy banker whom she married for eight years. She left behind his castle in Carmarthen, Wales, and eight Manhattan buildings that Fanny used to support herself and her children.
She lasted only a short time in Carmarthen. In 1886, she traveled with a group of her friends across Europe and recorded their travel experiences in six manuscript journals she kept. These accounts chronicled museum visits, Parisian opera performances, and presentations to royalty, and she became widely popular throughout her world tour.
Jessica McFarland
Jessica McFarland was an exquisite young woman full of life and joy and loved people and the outdoors. Always cheerful, Jessica never met a stranger, making everyone around her feel welcome and joyful. Jessica will be greatly missed; however, her children, Kaiden & Kaine, Terry & Linda, and Penny survive her. A memorial service will be held Sunday, October 13th, in Silverton School Gym to remember Jessica; donations in Jessica’s honor can be made to the cancer center or West Penn Hospital to remember this wonderful soul.
One of the most inspiring stories I heard was about how a group of Maine supermarket workers created a small vegetable garden behind their store. Spending their breaks tending to it was worth every minute! Not only were they able to grow enough healthy produce for themselves and coworkers to eat, but this year, they plan on expanding it even more so more people may benefit from their hard work!
Ryon McCamish’s story illustrates how community gardens bring people together; as a first-timer, he harvested 150 pounds! He carefully tracked every crop he planted, weighing each batch to record its weight accurately, and was so proud to share his harvest with family and friends! He found sharing it the most fulfilling aspect.
Gardening provides many aha moments, but most gardeners I surveyed agreed on one: gardening serves more than just its original purpose as food production; it can also bring people together through community building and friendship building.
Thank you to these incredible gardeners for sharing their stories and motivating others to get into gardening! Please join me on this journey by subscribing to my weekly public radio show, The Guardian newspaper, ranked among the five best garden podcasts worldwide. Robin Hood Radio hosts it every Monday morning from 8:30 AM Eastern on Robin Hood Radio’s network – it airs each Monday morning from 8:30 AM Eastern time!
Kimberlee McFarland
Kimberlee McFarland, commonly known as “Kimi,” hails from California. Due to her experience as an athlete, writer, and gardener, she has appeared in shows such as Selfie and Childish Killers with minor character roles.
Her passion for gardening has led her to cultivate her fruits and vegetables, which brings her great satisfaction, allowing her to contribute to her family’s well-being directly.
Research has demonstrated the many health benefits of gardening. These can be attributed to its significant creative, financial, and physical investments (Bhatti 2006). Gardening also falls within Stebbins’ classification of leisure activities into serious, casual, and project-based pursuits, making it unparalleled.