This weeks feature is Bryan Skavnak, founder of Be the Nice Kid. I learned about Bryan’s company through a friend and was immediately compelled to reach out. His core principles resonate with what I hope to communicate through this website so I thought he would be the perfect candidate!
Bryan is the author of the #1 Best Selling book, Happy Golf Starts Here, a Top 50 Master Kids’ Teacher, and the driving force behind the Be the Nice Kid revolution. As an inspiring speaker and writer, Bryan has helped thousands of kids become happier, more confident, and leaders through kindness. Be the Nice Kid’s intention is to spread positivity and inspiration to kids, their parents, and their teachers through real-life stories, speaking engagements, classroom posters, and fun merchandise. Be the Nice Kid serves as the reminder, the inspiration, the encouragement, the responsibility, and the spark of positivity. Because how you treat people matters.
Ever since Bryan was little he enjoyed writing and being creative. He tried to pursue this in different ways over the years and it just wasn’t working, no one could relate to him. He was scared to put himself out there and to truly focus on helping people rather than selling something. Bryan lost his mom in 2011 and around this time these thoughts were popping up, it was extremely challenging to him. He was placed in a sink or swim moment where he had to show what he was made of. He could either wallow in the pain or try and look at the bright side just like his mom always did.
He realized all these years he had taught golf to kids that he also taught them how to live with manners, respect, self confidence, laughter and generosity. He continued to write more and more about his passions around this concept. In fall of 2011, before school started, Bryan wrote a letter to his golf students titled Be the Nice Kid. The basis of the letter explained that there will be things you love at school and things you don’t. Some teachers you will like and others you won’t and some kids will be nice and others won’t but no matter what, Be the Nice Kid.
Bryan realized he had something he wanted to get out to the world because of all the positive feedback he received from the letter. A message of inspiration, hope and giving is how Be the Nice Kid was formed. Bryan loves working with kids and believes everyone can learn from stories. By merging these two, the goal is to have a positive impact on kids from a young age.
Bryan has been teaching golf for 22 years, his Be the Nice Kid platform being part of that 22 year legacy, started eight years ago with this letter. Bryan doesn’t have employees, but simply just people that work and volunteer to help share his message to the world.
“I’m a big believer that generosity can help the world and if we even have a small thing to offer that helps someone else, then we should do it.” His inspiration comes from his mom and he realized the greatest gift she gave him was the gift of perspective and the ability to recognize the positive things in our lives. “It was the realization that you can be happy if you choose to be happy. It was the fact that no matter how bad you have it, someone else has it worse. It was not knowing all the answers, but always looking for ways to make things better. It was perpetual positivity.”
Bryan chose to run with this concept because it was an easy choice, “being nice to people shouldn’t be anything profound” he said. He wanted to show kids that you can do what you want as long as you start with kindness first. Everyone can do small things, small things turn into big things and each thing we do for someone can help them. (saying please and thank you, opening the door, listening,etc.)
He believes “kindness is simple. It just means letting other people be happy. Letting other people have their thing. Letting other people have the freedom to make their own choices. Even if we disagree with something, it’s not our job to drag them down, tease them, make fun of them, and find fault in what they do. My mom used to tell me that I could do anything I wanted as long as it wasn’t illegal, immoral, or it hurt myself or someone else. “Just let other people be happy.” Bryan shares, without kindness nothing would work and Be the Nice Kid wouldn’t exist. It is the center of his universe.
Go follow Be the Nice Kid and see what Bryan is doing to spread kindness and positivity through his platform!