Simple Message, Simple Request

Since 2004, the Feel Your Boobies Foundation has been spreading one simple message “Feel Your Boobies.” It’s all we do - promote proactive breast health in young women. And our unconventional reminders have saved lives.

In April 2012, I will be an 8 year survivor because I felt a lump that the doctors didn’t. And in those 8 years, I have enjoyed so many simple pleasures that I might have otherwise missed.

I never thought I could get breast cancer. But at 33 I did. Because of my diagnosis, I wasn’t sure I’d be around to get married. But at age 38 I did. Having children was a question mark. But on February 1st this year, at age 40, I welcomed my son Eli and was even able to enjoy breastfeeding him.

You see, the “feel your boobies” message is more than a funny slogan. For young women it may just be the reminder that makes them pay attention, the one that actually gets through. Our TESTIMONIALS are proof that our approach is working.

Our message is simple, but the work that goes into planning our CAMPAIGN is not. It requires donations and support to keep it going. If you’ve shared our logos on Facebook, laughed at one of our YouBoob videos, claimed a free sticker, or even been lucky enough to see the Boobies Bus and steal a free car magnet…then our campaign has touched you.

Won’t you please consider making a donation so our campaign can reach even more young women in 2012? Whether you can donate $10 or $100, it will enable our one simple message to make one huge impact.

DONATE NOW!

To a healthy 2012.

Reinvention, Chapter 2

I had the pleasure of speaking at the Massachusetts Conference for Women this week as part of a panel on Reinvention. I chuckled to myself as I made my way to Boston for this event because I was, quite frankly, having a pretty shitty week in the land of Feel Your Boobies. How in the world could I possibly be speaking on a panel about “reinvention” when I myself was in the midst of a pretty deep hole of self-doubt.

I arrived in Boston and checked into my hotel and experienced minor flashbacks from my past life as a corporate road warrior. Travel for work is 1 part glamorous and 2 parts sucky, for sure. But as I unpacked my bags and settled into my room I was reminded of the perks (like the yummy beds at the Westin) and the convenience of having a hair dryer delivered to me after forgetting my own.

I made my way to the Boston Opera House for a VIP Reception that was being held for the speakers participating in the conference. It was a beautiful venue and probably a building I would never have gotten to see on my own. I fumbled my way through a crowd of unfamiliar women and began that uncomfortable process of networking. I never really did feel good at that and that night was no exception.

Bright and early the next morning I was putting on my game face to work the Feel Your Boobies table at the Expo portion of the conference. I figured if I was going to be at the conference to speak that having a table to meet more women would be a good idea. Sometimes I feel really good at that type of thing and sometimes I feel like a used car salesman on a rainy day.

Later in the morning, I made my way to the speaker hospitality suite to mingle with the other presenters. (It’s really is amazing how many awesome women there are doing some really kickass things.) We were escorted to the session room and soon 750 women filed in to hear our nuggets of wisdom on “reinvention”. The panel consisted of Bobbie Weiner (Hollywood makeup artist for the Titanic and manufacturer of the camouflage used by the US Armed Services), Chef Barbara Lynch (high school drop-out turned restaurateur who now owns 4 reknown restaurants in Boston), Kimberly Kissam (owner of Isabel Harvey jewelry with 3 locations including one on Nantucket), and me. That’s right…me.

As I listened to these women’s stories of reinvention a funny thing happened…I was inspired by the very panel on which I sat. I realized that perhaps even I had become a little numb to my own story of reinvention, allowing my own self-doubt to creep back in. You see, reinvention is a process, not a destination…but even though I know that, it was advice that I needed to hear for myself that day.

So as I left the conference feeling inspired and rejuvenated, I took a moment to pat myself on the back for all that I’ve accomplished. On the cab ride to the airport, I remembered a question I was asked by one of the many visitors to the Feel Your Boobies’ table. She asked, “So what’s next for you?” I didn’t have an answer at that very moment, but I suppose I’m realizing it’s Reinvention, Chapter 2. And off we go.

Gossip for Good

From the time we’re little we’re reminded about the power of the spoken word. I grew up in Middletown, which is a very small town, and many of the residents in the town have families that have lived here for generations. So as you can imagine, everyone knows everyone’s business. My parents, who both came from multi-generational Middletown families (that sounds important doesn’t it?), could easily keep me on the straight and narrow with one threatening sentence “Remember, Leigh, word travels fast.”

Now, I feel it’s important to mention that my brother was much more likely to get into trouble than I was – I was a pretty squeaky clean kid. But just like any kid, I talked about other girls I was mad at and was left behind occasionally when my friends “forgot” to tell me about something they were all doing together. My parents reminded me that gossip was not nice and that if I didn’t have something nice to say, I shouldn’t say anything at all. Even when I was the one being talked about, they taught me to take the high road and not strike back. It’s not an easy lesson to put into practice, but it’s one I’ve tried to follow throughout my life.

As the technology age has evolved, you don’t have to live in a small town for word to travel fast. Today, word travels faster than we ever imagined possible. All the sudden that awful outfit you wore out on Friday night is not just the discussion among your friends, it’s the topic of gossip for anyone on Facebook or who has a cell phone that can receive pictures. In one flat second, your small town fashion faux pas can become a national disaster. That’s scary.

However, technology has also enabled another type of gossip – a type that I like to call “Gossip for Good”. With so many people online, the Internet has become a very powerful place to spread all kinds of positive messages too, like the life-saving message “Feel Your Boobies.” Many physical obstacles have been removed through the virtual qualities of technology. The useful and positive messages that travel on the “information superhighway” are reaching people we never before could reach in ways that previously were only possible in The Jetsons cartoon.

Feel Your Boobies has embraced technology as a primary way for spreading its message. Last year we received testimonials from women who believe the Feel Your Boobies campaign saved their life. Many of them were touched by our campaign through the power of the Internet. Now that’s “Gossip for Good” – spread the word…fast!

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Did you know National Feel Your Boobies Week is October 14-21? Join the Remind-A-Thon to help us remind 1Million people on Twitter to "feel their boobies"...now that's gossip for GOOD.

Watch the video on our home page now.

Growing While Standing Still

I wrote a poem a long time ago; in 1993 I believe. It was at the beginning of my career at a time in my life when I yearned to shed the known for the unknown, to break away from the small-town girl I had been and discover who I wanted to be. At the time, I believed that personal growth came from physical movement.

Fifteen years after writing this poem, almost to the date, I moved back to my small-town. I was tired of physical movement and was looking for a different kind of personal growth, the kind that happens from the inside out not the outside in; the kind that doesn’t come from external experiences.

This poem has been posted at every desk and every job I’ve ever had. It has inspired me and helped me. As I read this poem now, I realize it may just be time to write the next verse – the one about how good it feels to have learned how to grow while standing still.
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I walked outside, I don’t know where, between the earth and sky.
Birds flew above, streams raced below,
But I stopped and I stood still.

I heard a song upon the wind, a song I’d known before,
By heart I sang this tune I knew,
While I was standing still.

The wind brought clouds against blue sky and soon my song was gone.
The clouds sang loud but I did not,
While I was standing still.

The rain soon came to feed the earth and all who use its wealth.
It wet the ground with its new song
While I was standing still.

I dodged the drops that fell on all – all, that is, but me.
And all things grew around my feet
While I was standing still.

The flowers came, after the rain, and sang their own new song.
I reached for them but could not touch
While I was standing still.

You see, this rain gave strength to all – all, that is, but me.
For I stood still and dry and safe
And sang the same old song.

The storm, its power, force and face, was screaming down at me.
“Do not stay dry, come feel my song
and I will help you grow.”

Right then I left my safe, dry spot and walked out in the rain.
And I got wet and very cold,
But I sang my own new song.

I sang and I moved on.

Becoming the "Boobies Girl"

I wasn’t always known as the “Feel Your Boobies girl” who drives around in the Boobies Bus. Sometimes it’s hard for even me to remember my life before breast cancer. In just 7 years, I went from being an carefree upwardly mobile 30 something who was blissfully ignorant about breast cancer to resigning from the corporate rat race, becoming a urban extract/small town returnee, and a young breast cancer survivor running a national breast cancer non-profit called Feel Your Boobies®. These life changes were as unexpected and unconventional as the non-profit’s mission I’ve created and I’m thankful everyday for the experiences breast cancer has brought my way.

You see, in my early 30’s I was single and living in NYC, working a pretty kickass corporate job, running marathons and pretty much loving life. When I felt a (little) lump in my (little) breast I didn’t think too much of it because, well, frankly I didn’t think too much about breast cancer. It didn’t run in my family so I felt certain it wasn’t something that could happen to me. This feeling of being invincible was reinforced by the fact that doctors didn’t notice the lump during my annual exams. Well, not until I brought it too their attention by placing their hand directly on the area of suspicion. Then they felt it, but showed little concern. “See, I knew it was nothing,” I thought. “Even the doctors said so.”

Long story short, it was something. Two years later, following a mammogram, ultrasound and biopsy at the suggestion of a nurse practitioner/angel, I learned that I wasn’t invincible afterall. I was 33 and I had breast cancer. No way! “So now what?” I thought. “I was planning on finding prince charming, getting married, having babies and living happily ever after. This breast cancer thing is really screwing the plan up.”

Sharing my story through Feel Your Boobies®.

That was April 2004 and I can remember it like it was yesterday. Soon after my diagnosis I realized that the only way my lump was detected was because I was “feeling my boobies.” The doctors didn’t feel it and I was too young for mammograms so it really was a situation that I need to take into my own hands, literally. Even though I didn’t do traditional self-breast exams I still knew when something felt different. I wanted to make sure other young women were ‘feeling their boobies’ too!

So I enlisted a couple of friends to help me make some fun t-shirts for my friends and designed the “feel your boobies” logo. I wanted to remind everyone about an action that had saved my life, but I wanted the message to be fun and lighthearted. I initially bought 100 shirts, put up a one-page website, and the rest is history.

7 years later, what started as a fun t-shirt project has evolved into an international non-profit media campaign that runs out of my little pink garage in Central Pennsylvania. The mission of the Feel Your Boobies Foundation is to utilize unexpected and unconventional methods to remind young women to “feel their boobies.” With a background in media strategy and technology design, I decided that using new media (like social media) was a great way to make the message interactive and friendly. I also believed that the key was to identify ways to put this reminder is places where you wouldn’t normally expect to see it and maybe we could get their attention. From that our guiding principle was born, “A friendly reminder when you least expect it.”

As the campaign has grown, operations have gone from my retired parents doing all of the packing and shipping to today where I have three workers to help manage the volume of orders and requests we get through our website. We still operate out of my little pink garage in Pennsylvania (aka Boobies Central) and have been able to reach over 2 million followers on Facebook with our campaign, which makes us one of the Top 30 largest charities on Facebook. And we’re proud that we’re more than just a funny slogan, we actually promote and ACTION that can save your life. Just check out our testimonials from young women who credit our campaign with the reason they found their own breast cancer.

Like what we’re doing?

The Feel Your Boobies Foundation is funded through donations and merchandise sales through our website. (Check out our STUFF). 100% of all donations and sales are used to help us continue to create cool media campaigns to remind the younger audience to be proactive with their breast health.

Each October, we also host National Feel Your Boobies Week, where we use a creative technology solution to allow people to interact with and share our campaign. This year's promotion is a Remind-A-Thon on Twitter and our goal is to remind 1 million people to "feel their boobies" during Nat'l Feel Your Boobies Week (Oct. 14-21). Check out this video to find out more.

Feel Your Boobies! Are You Doing It?

Learn more about the Feel Your Boobies campaign

Read more about Leigh's Say Something Big Speaking Series

Keep it simple...silly!

It’s taken me a long time to really “trust my gut”. You know, the “gut feeling” you get down deep in the most inner part of your soul that just tells you when something feels right or wrong. Being the analytical person that I am, I spent the majority of my teens and twenties suppressing these simple raw emotions with complex rational thought patterns. I guess I figured my gut needed to learn a few things.

You see, growing up things were pretty simple. Do well in high school so you can go to college, then do well in college so you can get a good job. Ok, so I did that and even a bit more…but then it all got so complicated.

As I began to embark on my adult life, I started to realize there were opportunities coming my way that I just couldn’t pass up. I mean, really…once in a lifetime types of things. The world was wide open to me and soon there were more options than I ever imagined. How could I possibly decide which path to take? That’s simple, I just came up with a clever little formula for judging my options objectively. Well how else could I decide, silly?

Not so fast. Over time, the voice down deep inside me started getting in the way of my objective and practical decision-making. (That wasn’t supposed to happen, by the way!) I started to realize that just because I was able to do something, didn’t necessarily mean I that I wanted to do it. One of my earliest memories of this realization was in my consulting job. It wasn’t long into my career that I knew that even if I could make partner someday, that it was something I didn’t want to do.

All of the sudden my clever formula was out the window. Oh &##^*, that really complicates things! Or does it? And therein lies possibly the most profound lesson I have learned in my 39 short years of life. It’s not your emotion that complicates things, it’s your head. And once I learned that my “gut feeling” was something so pure; something that didn’t need to be rationalized or explained, things got really simple.

Now don’t get me wrong, my brain and my gut still go to war sometimes…I suppose that is just part of my makeup. But the enlightened me understands that the less I interfere with the process, let go, and trust the clarity of my most inner voice, the simpler my life becomes.

(c)Copyright 2009, Leigh Hurst

Putting pen to paper - finally

So I've been writing articles and various pieces focus on various aspects of my experience with breast cancer as a young woman as well as my thoughts on starting the Feel Your Boobies Foundation and the mission that has changed my life. Here I will begin to put these thoughts down and continue to explore just what it means to "Say Something Big." It's a work in progress...welcome.

I never really planned to “say something big”. What does that mean anyway? After all, at 5’ 2” there has never been anything “big” about me. Though I can assure you I’ve never been called shy, and most certainly have been called blunt, but “saying something big?”…that’s just not something I set out to do.

“Saying something big” is about affecting others. It’s about taking your own experience and making it meaningful to those who may never know you but who can relate to what you’ve been through. We all have life changing things happen to us and we have the ability to recognize those moments and use them to create substantial “movement” in ourselves and others if we really want to.

Sometimes the most seemingly insignificant moments in your life result in very profound change and it’s only in retrospect that we can actually realize the true significance of that moment. For me, big change has come from many small moments. Some big changes (moving to New York City without a job) resulted in a small amount of true “movement”, while other very small moments (feeling my boobies) have resulted in a total life change and a large social movement.

www.saysomethingbig.com