Shownotes:

In this sixth episode of the Social Lights Podcast, podcast host and Social Mediology founder Kate vanderVoort has a conversation with Ali Villani, author of Ali the Shiny Sparkly Unicorn.

ABOUT ALI VILLANI and ALI THE SHINY SPARKLY UNICORN

Ali Villani is on a mission to redefine what it means to be alive. She is an international speaker, sought after assertiveness coach and Founder of the ALIVE Women’s Circle; a thriving network of like-minded women seeking a safe place to grow.

She also created ‘Ali the Shiny Sparkly Unicorn’ a children’s book inspired by her own experiences of being bullied at school and aimed at sharing a powerful message of self-awareness. Her desire to empower individuals all over the world also led to her creating the Tree of Life Group, a philanthropic project in Nepal designed to develop leadership and create resources for those in need. 

BIG IDEA 1

Ali has a strong desire to connect others for the greater good, first serving herself, and then finding ways she can serve others.

The creation of Ali the Unicorn

“I see everything in bright colours, I don’t see anything within the box or within the lines.”

Ali always knew she was different. Experiencing mental health challenges and illness in her developmental years, these experiences led her to hide her shiny, sparkly ingredients from the world.  Through an online community of women that she created on Facebook, Ali found a safe space to share uplifting messages and ideas with others and was soon referred to as ‘Ali the shiny sparkly unicorn’, hence the character was born.

What Ali the unicorn teaches us (7:00) 

“Your shiny sparkly ingredients are what make you special”.

The character was created to show children how to embrace their differences and channel their uniqueness into doing good in the world. Ali talks about how she uses the book and character  as a tool to connect with kids and teach them about bullying.

BIG IDEA 2

“I love connecting with humans on a very deep level but I don’t like connecting with them on a very superficial level.” (10:55)

Imagine what we could do for the consciousness of the planet if we only spread kindness and positivity through social media? Social media can be polarising but Ali believes we all have the opportunity to influence and inspire others through using social media as a tool for spreading kindness.

“We need to see moral education being taught in everyday curriculum.” (13:00)

Ali believes that learning psychological skills will help address rising mental health problems and suicide rates in young people and she sees a dire need to bring more moral code into our education system.

BIG IDEA 3

How to set boundaries on social media (17:30)

Facebook has been an amazing tool for spreading Ali’s message around the world and allowing her to post uplifting content that has influenced people’s behaviour, but she has had to set strong boundaries in using it to ensure she maintains her mental health and happiness. We all have that same power to engage or disengage with content and it’s important we recognise the boundaries we can set ourselves.

How to connect more authentically with others (23:25)

Ali talks about the roles of self awareness and personal responsibility in understanding our own behaviours and teaching others how to treat us.

Episode Links

You can find Ali Villani and more about Ali The Shiny Sparkly Unicorn here:

• Instagram or Facebook @AliTheShinySparklyUnicorn

• You can buy the book and kindness dolls here:  https://www.alitheshinysparklyunicorn.com/local-store/

• https://www.alitheshinysparklyunicorn.com

Keep listening to the upcoming episodes of podcasts by joining in Social Lights Podcast produced by Social Mediology.

You can connect with us on Facebook at @SocialLightsPodcast and find future episodes at socialmediology.com.au/sociallights.

Thanks for your time and stay inspired,

Kate vanderVoort