Debbie Tenzer
Encyclopedia
Debbie Tenzer is an American non-fiction
author, motivational speaker
, and the founder of the international kindness movement, Do One Nice Thing. She also coined the term Nice-o-holic, referring to a person who performs acts of kindness on a regular basis.
, and grew up in Piedmont, California
east of San Francisco. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley
with a B.A. in Communication and Public Policy
, and from University of Southern California
with an M.A. in Communications Management
. She is married and is the mother of three children.
. One day after having lunch with friends who were bemoaning the sad state of the world, an idea occurred to her: Instead of worrying about the big problems she could not solve, she would look for small problems that she could solve.
She committed to doing one nice thing for someone every Monday, her hardest day of the week
. After hearing about it, her friends urged to start a website, which she did - www.DoOneNiceThing.com, and word of it spread rapidly. The movement has members in ninety countries.
Tenzer posts a different “nice thing” to do each week as well as stories about the kind people who do them. Do One Nice Thing members have:
) on May 5, 2009.
ISBN 978-0-307-45421-8 (0-307-45421-5)
http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780307453808
It is a book for people who want to do good but can’t find time to do it. Do One Nice Thing offers readers over 100 ideas for easy, inexpensive ideas to help kids, friends, co-workers, soldiers, the planet and more.
From Publishers Weekly: “Tenzer is the force behind the internationally popular website, DoOneNiceThing.com, and has crafted a book of ideas and stories on how anyone, whatever their time or resources, can find a way to do something nice each week for their community, colleagues, children or the world at large.” http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6561931.html
Non-fiction
Non-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...
author, motivational speaker
Motivational speaker
A motivational speaker or inspirational speaker is a speaker who makes speeches intended to motivate or inspire an audience. In a business context, they are employed to communicate company strategy with clarity and help employees to see the future in a positive light and inspire workers to pull...
, and the founder of the international kindness movement, Do One Nice Thing. She also coined the term Nice-o-holic, referring to a person who performs acts of kindness on a regular basis.
Background and education
Tenzer was born in Oakland, CaliforniaOakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, and grew up in Piedmont, California
Piedmont, California
Piedmont is a small, affluent city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is surrounded by the city of Oakland. The population was 10,667 at the 2010 census. Piedmont was incorporated in 1907 and was developed significantly in the 1920s and 1930s...
east of San Francisco. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
with a B.A. in Communication and Public Policy
Public policy
Public policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and...
, and from University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
with an M.A. in Communications Management
Communications management
Communications management is the systematic planning, implementing, monitoring, and revision of all the channels of communication within an organization, and between organizations; it also includes the organization and dissemination of new communication directives connected with an organization,...
. She is married and is the mother of three children.
Career
A marketing and advertising executive for many years, Tenzer became frustrated with the divisive political climate in the U.S. surrounding the 2004 electionsElections in 2004
-March 14: Spain:-March 20: Republic of China :-March 21: El Salvador:-March 23: Antigua and Barbuda:-March 28: Georgia:Georgian presidential election, 2004-March 28: Guinea-Bissau:- April 2: Sri Lanka :...
. One day after having lunch with friends who were bemoaning the sad state of the world, an idea occurred to her: Instead of worrying about the big problems she could not solve, she would look for small problems that she could solve.
She committed to doing one nice thing for someone every Monday, her hardest day of the week
Days of the week
The names of the days of the week from the Roman period have been both named after the seven planets of classical astronomy and numbered, beginning with Monday. In Slavic languages, a numbering system was adopted, but beginning with Monday. There was an even older tradition of names in Ancient...
. After hearing about it, her friends urged to start a website, which she did - www.DoOneNiceThing.com, and word of it spread rapidly. The movement has members in ninety countries.
Tenzer posts a different “nice thing” to do each week as well as stories about the kind people who do them. Do One Nice Thing members have:
- mailed more than 75 tons of school supplies to U.S. soldiersMilitary of the United StatesThe United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
in Afghanistan and Iraq, who give them to local children so they can study - sent tens of thousands of cans of food, packages of pasta and boxes of energy bars to food bankFood bankA food bank or foodbank is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes mostly donated food to a wide variety of agencies that in turn feed the hungry. The largest sources of food are for-profit growers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers who in the normal course of business have...
s and needy schools - given numerous backpacks to foster childrenFoster careFoster care is the term used for a system in which a minor who has been made a ward is placed in the private home of a state certified caregiver referred to as a "foster parent"....
who often carry the little they own from home to home in garbage bags - donated thousands of blankets to U.S. soldiers in Iraq who give them to local people living without electricity or heat
- and sent countless books to schools, libraries and hospitals
Writing
Tenzer is the author of Do One Nice Thing: Little Things You Can Do to Make the World a Lot Nicer, released by Crown Publishers (Random HouseRandom House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
) on May 5, 2009.
ISBN 978-0-307-45421-8 (0-307-45421-5)
http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780307453808
It is a book for people who want to do good but can’t find time to do it. Do One Nice Thing offers readers over 100 ideas for easy, inexpensive ideas to help kids, friends, co-workers, soldiers, the planet and more.
From Publishers Weekly: “Tenzer is the force behind the internationally popular website, DoOneNiceThing.com, and has crafted a book of ideas and stories on how anyone, whatever their time or resources, can find a way to do something nice each week for their community, colleagues, children or the world at large.” http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6561931.html