Neil Pasricha (born September 17, 1979) is a Canadian author, entrepreneur, podcaster, and public speaker characterized by his advocacy of positivity and simple pleasures.
"[18] Pasricha also holds an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws - Faculty of Education from the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT).
Polar ice caps were melting, there were pirates storming the seas, the economy was on the verge of collapse, and there were wars going on all over the world."
As a result, he created a website discussing "popping bubble wrap, snow days, and the smell of a bakery.
"[20] In later interviews, and through a series on his blog, Pasricha shared that his personal divorce and a close friend's suicide are what prompted him to begin looking for positive things in life.
[22][23] In 2009, Pasricha was approached by literary agents after his blog received 10 million hits and won the Webby Award for "Best Blog"[24][25] and signed with Erin Malone from WME who also represents Christian Lander,[26] author of Stuff White People Like, and Rainn Wilson, star of The Office and author of SoulPancake.
His frustration with the 'gloom and doom' in the news caused him to expand on simple pleasures of life through new written essays complementing existing material from his blog.
[34] Published in 2015, Awesome is Everywhere is a Children's book that Neil wrote to share "the principles of attitude awareness and authenticity" with his child.
[38][39] Pasricha was returning from his honeymoon in Asia when his wife took a pregnancy test in the airplane bathroom and told him on the plane that she was pregnant.
Upon landing, he began writing a letter to his unborn child on how to live a happy life, which evolved into the book.
This audio book is subtitled "A Memoir of Failure & Resilience" and was published as an exclusive title to the Amazon audiobook brand of Audible.
[42] In it Pasricha discusses topics of resilience,[43] failure,[44] cell phone addiction,[45] and our inability to predict the future.
The Toronto Star said it was "inspiring advice on developing resilience and putting a positive spin on life's setbacks and heartbreaks"[47] while Publishers Weekly wrote it was "a slick but ultimately underwhelming production with little to appeal to the thoughtful reader”.