Shaboo is an innovative social expression company that features a variety of ever-evolving goods and services, social media, and digital entertainment, including:
- Greeting Cards: Physical cards that are leading the industry in the use of interactive augmented reality bonus experiences, thanks to a recent partnership with software company iGreet.
- Coloring Books: Made for painting or watercolors and including uplifting inspirational quotes — “Shabooisms” — to contemplate while you color.
- Light the Magic Lamps: Decorative tabletop lamps that “come alive” using innovative augmented reality technology. Download the free SHABOO! app to use your smartphone as a “wand” to enter the colorful World of Shaboo and reveal positive stories or uplifting messages for yourself or others.
- Cheerytoot Slide Whistle: A mood boosting tool for positivity, embellished with an elevating “Shabooism.”
- Power of You Video Coaching: Helping individuals and small business owners develop a digital video presence online; beginner course and advanced course available.
More than a series of fun products and services, Shaboo is also a social movement, Veronica explains. She calls people who practice Shaboo in the world “Shaboo Messengers.” A Shaboo Messenger is:
Someone who encourages and inspires others through their own radiating joy for life.
“We hold space for good messages on social media and elsewhere,” says Veronica. “We are resisting all the negativity that’s prominent in the world today to uphold all that is still good. We use the power of positive messages and images to support the well-being of others and the power of storytelling to connect people with deep positive truths that may be forgotten by the current mainstream. We believe in the power of play to reveal one’s true self and release dormant creativity.”
I had a chance to interview her to learn more.
Why was Shaboo Prints started?
I worked hard in various jobs, earning a pension and benefits and living for the weekends, as was the norm. I always felt that I was born for more, but because life at that time did not seemingly support that, I started to get depressed. After an emotional breakdown one Monday morning while preparing for work, I realized that if I was going to continue to live within that context, I had to do more of what I love — do things that brought me joy. I went back to the memories of my childhood to examine what that even was: playing, creative writing, and drawing. I started to do those things without purpose for pure survival and it quickly evolved into Shaboo Prints. Shaboo Prints now exists to provide uplifting products and messages that encourage others to return back to their Happy Place, like I did.
Can you explain the name?
Shaboo came from watching the three-year-old son of a friend play. I used to romp around with him and yelp, “Shaboo! Shaboo!” It was a random word that felt good and expressed our joy. Today, Shaboo represents a youthful state of being that exists when we are filled with wonder, when we create and play, when we feel capable of being anything we want — even super-human — and doing what we love. Shaboo Prints is on a mission to return adults back to being Shaboo!
How can people inspire joy in others?
True joy cannot be faked; it comes from being honest with yourself. You cannot inspire another to be joyful if you aren’t truly joyful yourself. So, you must first work on your own joy, which can be acquired by doing what you love. When you do something you love, you become joyful. When you are joyful, you become magnetic, charismatic, and infectious.
Children are wonderful examples of inspiring others through being honestly joyful. We feel joy watching their honest expression of joy. Our hearts expand, the corners of our mouths turn up, and we nearly lose ourselves in their joy.
Possessing real joy ourselves gives others permission to seek and possess real joy. Being happy makes you a social leader, by default.
Why is creativity important?
It is important to understand that everyone is creative. There is no one who isn’t. Why? Creativity is an innate aspect of being human. It is individual freedom of expression, and it is demonstrated in how you do anything with your unique style.
Creativity doesn’t come from the mind; it is the exhale of the heart, an expression of who you really are. That’s why it feels so fulfilling when you create. The more you create, the more you exercise a deeper connection with yourself. Creativity requires listening, then following the messages of the heart. It is an outlet that helps keep you healthy and balanced.
Creativity is a natural human feature, so when we don’t create, we fall short of our real potential. When we feel as if we are falling short of our potential, we become disengaged and depressed. This is backed up by many studies, like those shared in “The Woman’s Book of Creativity,” by C. Diane Ealy, Ph.D.
Creativity is so powerful that it is used as a tool by healthcare providers and referred to as “expressive therapy.” It is important to take time in your day to do something that you love, expressed creatively. It will push at the boundaries of your potential, like spiritual calisthenics, and it will feel gosh-darn good!
About: Imagineer Veronica — aka Veronica Vargas — was a creative and whimsical child, but after decades of conformity she found herself struggling with dissatisfaction and a deep longing for fulfillment. In her forties, she returned to her childhood passions — drawing, writing, and playing — and established Shaboo Prints, a boutique lifestyle brand designing positive, feel-good products. Today, Veronica considers herself a social expressionist and entrepreneur on a mission to return millions of adults back to a wondrous world full of potential, play, and a knowing that expressing their real self is the whole point — i.e., finding their happy place!
An expert on play, imagination, and creativity, Veronica partnered with software company iGreet in 2019 to expand the experience of Shaboo’s physical products with augmented reality.
Veronica received her bachelor’s degree from California State University – Fullerton and her master’s degree from Woodbury University. A breast cancer survivor, she loves reading, people-watching, being with family, traveling, connecting with friends, health, cooking and baking, creative writing, and doodling. Leading by example, Veronica is living a fulfilled life and sharing her mission-driven business in hopes of inspiring others to tap into their own happy place where they are free to live big and play hard. She resides in Pasadena, CA. Visit www.ShabooPrints.com.
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