Peter Samuelson is an author, Founder and President of First Star, a film producer and a serial pro-social entrepreneur. In 1982 he co-founded the Starlight Children’s Foundation; by 1990 the positive psychological impact of Starlight seeded his next pro-social endeavor, Starbright World, co-founded with Steven Spielberg. 1999 saw the formation of First Star, 2005 EDAR Everyone Deserves a Roof, and 2013 saw him launch ASPIRE, the Academy for Social Purpose in Responsible Entertainment. In the midst of all this Peter has produced 26 films and raised four children. Educated at Cambridge and the Anderson School of Management at UCLA, Peter resides in Los Angeles with his wife Saryl, and continues to fight every day for those less fortunate, chief among them abused and neglected children.
Company: Random Opportunities Of Kindness (“ROK”)
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Peter Samuelson: Fear dressed up as hate has been harnessed by despots since time immemorial to fuel self-serving power by bending their cult followers to their will.
An epidemic of loneliness is also pervasive throughout global society. Depression, unhappiness, and the number of suicides have increased at an alarming rate especially among our youth.
The time is overdue to create a robust, viral movement for kindness in order to push back on the exponentially growing levels of hatred that surround us and be a catalyst for more happiness by fostering impactful positive connections with others: Random Acts of Kindness!
PURPOSE
Champions of Kindness™ is one of the three main pillar initiatives of KindnessWorldwide.org. The purpose of the viral Champions of Kindness campaign is to ignite a self-propelling, widespread grassroots ecosystem to encourage, enable, recognize, and reward acts of kindness in such a manner that their replication becomes self-amplified. As a result, we make a measurable dent in the unprecedented levels of hatred which divide us and the loneliness which isolate us. We engage proactively by celebrating intentional acts of mindful kindness.
METHODOLOGY
Kindness Worldwide, together with its growing ecosystem of stakeholders and influencers, offers a Points Based System of encouragement that demonstrates, enables and acknowledges acts of kindness of every kind.
What was the defining moment when you decided that strong ethics and high profits were not in conflict, but could actually reinforce each other in your business?
Peter Samuelson: A simple act of kindness by Brooke Dubs to return to Kevin Smith the wallet he lost on April 7, 2023, was the spark that ignited the global movement of Kindness Worldwide. It has had meaningful ripple effects touching countless lives throughout the world.
Peter Samuelson has been teaching Pay It Forward/Random Acts of Kindness (“PIF/RAK”) to teenage foster kids in high school across the country and internationally since 2013 through www.firststar.org.
Imagine the impact on others who, just like Brooke and the foster youth, perform acts of kindness and find meaning and purpose from knowing the ripple effects their actions inspire!
The viral Pay It Forward™ campaign of Kindness Worldwide’s Champions of Kindness™ outlined below brings this vision to reality while being a powerful ongoing reminder of Brooke Dub’s original simple act of kindness that spawned it all, and that if penniless foster kids can do it, so can you!
Can you share one specific decision or policy where you chose the ethical path even though it appeared more expensive or risky in the short term, and what was the long-term business impact?
Peter Samuelson: I am the producer of 27 films, some very successful and award winning (Revenge of the Nerds, Wilde, Arlington Road, Topm & Viv, etc.) I realized years ago that the same tool kit of entrepreneurship could allow me to conceive, invent and lead new charities to address old needs. So, I’m the founder of www.starlight.org with Steven Spoielberg, www.firststar.org , www.edar.org and www.People4peace.org . Between them, they have raised well over $1 billion in the USA, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom.
In the process, I have worked closely to implement win-win corporate sponsorship programs with, for example, Disney, Nintendo and Colgate-Palmolive. Cause Related Marketing moves the bottom line, while also earning trust and affection with customers, staff, stockholders and communities. A true win-win.
How do you embed your core values into daily operations and decision-making without sacrificing speed, competitiveness, or profitability?
Peter Samuelson: Servant Leadership, named by Peter Drucker, helps us to lead from the middle, and yields many dividends by supporting a staff of high-achievers who are united by sharted goals and mission. It is the opposite of yelling at people. Encouragement, recognition, high-level listening skills and other methods yield the best results.
What’s the biggest pushback you’ve received from investors, board members, or stakeholders regarding your values-driven approach, and how did you handle it?
Peter Samuelson: Pushback is usually under-informed and yields to knowledge and information.
For other CEOs who want to build a values-driven yet highly profitable company, what is the one practical piece of advice you would give them to get started?
Peter Samuelson: Investigate how Cause Related Marketing can work for you. www.kindnessworldwide.org for example. We are happy to help.
