Welcome to a #Wonderlust soul… striving to make this world a little more Whole.
My name is Jonathan Isbill, aka Jonathan ZaZa.
My name is Jonathan Isbill, aka Jonathan ZaZa.
Italy — 2017
I’ve been known by several nicknames over the course of my — recently turned — 22 year old life. As a child, I was known to run around in circles a lot, with my feet and with my voice. I’ve always had a passion to speak to people, to be on the move, and to help others with my time running between endeavors.
Just a little bit about me:
As a holistic wellness advocate and soon to be Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, I know a thing or two about health and nutrition. I have a strong background in nutrition focused research projects from my time at University. My most recent work is directed towards international obesity and diabetes, with primary interests on children’s health.
I see myself as a social entrepreneur, rooted in my faith, desiring to utilize my life and career to others as a good steward of the life I’ve been given. I will never take my time for granted. I am someone who wants to share and promote ideas that align with forward progress and improvement for each and every person on this planet — our greatest shared resource.
This is my dedicated pursuit to enrich the lives of others’ and improve their quality of life.
Highlighting Food as Medicine, Wellness in Whole, and finding our Medium of Mindfulness in all aspects of our lives, I strongly believe there are many ways we can #GetBetter.
Coming from a broken home — single parent household — God Bless the woman I owe my life to — I have a particular affinity to helping others, providing mediation, and promoting harmony between conflicts.
I’m a peacekeeper.
I’m a guardian.
Always working to #GetBetter — for you — and for myself.
I started writing a blog over on Wordpress in 2016 as a way to bridge a gap between myself and my audience, who at the time was simply my friends and family. I started writing to them in blog format as a way to document my travel journey through Singapore → Thailand → Australia → that I completed over the course of 5-weeks in the summer of 2016.
Now, I’m thinking about writing in a much broader perspective.
I think witting can be used as a form of education.
I can express myself and connect with readers.
I can grow in relationship with other people.
I can learn from others by reading their own writing, and others can have a chance to get to know me through reading what I write.
I’m going to be as authentic as I can, in anything I post. Just like this current piece now. But, I don’t want to write to just dump all my thoughts out on to a page.
NO.
I want to write to help build others.
I want to write to help lead others.
I want to write to educate others.
I want to write to help people grow and flourish.
I know earlier I mentioned that I am only 22 years old, but just like a crazy yellow sponge — aka “SpongeBob Squarepants” — when it comes to engaging in my world each and every day.
My good friend Jodan recently commented on my unique perspective on life and how I interact with people. He went on to try to describe me in one word. The word he ended up choosing was the word observant.
Honestly, I was shocked that he was observant enough to be able to articulate my personhood as such. I’ve long struggled with the perception that people around me just don’t see as much as I do. When walking down the street, shopping at the store, taking a hike, or simply people watching (you know you people watch too), I have always been pretty observant. As I’ve grown older, I’ve started to realize that I might be a little more than just observant, but hyper-observant.
For this reason, I am always learning and absorbing information, skills, knowledge, and insight into all the many aspects of my life that lead each and every step I take. At 22 years old I can say I still have a lot to learn, and I’m a true novice when it comes to some topics like audio and video technology.
Yet, I know that with the experience I’ve attained at this level of my life, I may be a little more well versed than the next guy on the block. I’ve been pursuing secondary education for myself towards several different outlets since becoming a podcast and audiobook junkie. I learned in high school that I was a strong audio learner, so listening to educational tracks while in the midst of my normal hustle and bustle of life-school-work is a great way for me to keep sharp and to always continue learning and growing my experience and expertise.
People often throw out the old phrasing about a “Jack of all trades” and how one can be either “know a little about a lot” or “know a lot about a little.” For me, I’m definitely a jack-of-all-trades to some degree, always wanting to broaden my horizons and always open to learning new topics and stepping into fresh interests. Yet, as I approach graduation from University with degree in Nutrition & Dietetics, I can say that I am pretty immersed in the fields of health and wellness and know a thing or two about food, nutrition, disease, and exercise.
Though I may only be 22 years old, I’ve always been described as an old soul. In other words, I have a deep thoughtfulness behind my decisions and my actions. I have a gentle spirit, yet I’m ambitious and hyperactive when it comes to particular topics.
I have learned all sorts of information, hints, tips, tricks, and life-hacks — otherwise known as “a better way to do something.”
I’m not trying to boast, I’m not here spouting out all this speech to act as if I’m an expert, because I know I am not.
At my young age of 22, I still guarantee I have something to offer.
I guarantee I know some things in the worlds of travel, finance, personal saving, loans and scholarships, personal coaching, holistic wellness, nutrition and metabolism, entrepreneurship and matching passions to paychecks.
I hold myself to my core values of loving people and places and wanting to give back bleeds through all of who I am and every breath I take.
I love to travel to far and distant lands. I want to see the world. I love meeting people from around the globe. Having friends that I’ve been blessed to live life with from over 20+ countries consistently causes me to think about the bigger picture when it comes to many world issues, especially the ones I’m particularly passionate about like food, hunger, sustainability, and global health.
One thing I think people in the western world often neglect is looking at the potential consequences of actions before taking action. Another thing that may ignore is truly understanding the intentions behind the thoughts and beliefs that lead to outward actions. Having been showcased through much of my University experience just how little my perspective really has been throughout my life, I can honestly say that my personal bubble has grown abundantly since my childhood.
Having had the chance to travel to a handful of different countries and get to know the people and culture of these regions, I’ve grown accustomed to mindfully considering my fellow men and women in various parts of the world on a daily basis. I’m reminded of the need to always strive to #GetBetter by hearing others’ stories, learning their culture and their country and seeing how we impact one another.
My previous experiences have drawn me to meet quite incredible people, hear their stories and piece together all the strings of our lives that connect us together in this beautiful web of life.
At the end of the day, one thing remains true for all of us.
We are all just seeking peace, love, security, and happiness.
This is what I will continue to dedicate my life to promoting.
Whether that be on the grassroots level or on the global scale,
I am here for other people. I am here to help.
So help… I will strive to achieve.
Get ready people. Because I might just have a lot to say, but it will take great hard work and dedication towards that long-sought balance of life — work — and school, amidst the normal ebbs and flows of everyday life.
I hope with every post I make, with every word I write, with every word you read, it will make us better and improve our lives. We will climb mountains together and always be improving our quality of life along the journey.
Keep on the lookout as I begin this journey of writing for a wide range of topics directed towards improvement. Follow or Subscribe and I guarantee you’ll learn something awesome along the way.
Health, Entrepreneurship, Business, Finances, Writing, Blogging, Websites, Student, Nutrition, Politics, Social Justice, Food, Relationships, Dreams and Aspirations. We have one life to live, and we can always, always get better.
Stay connected and keep in touch, let me know why you’re writing, why you’re reading, and ways that you are improving in your day-to-day life. I want to hear from you.
Lets Do This!