THEY SPEAK TO HIS HEART
From the outside, Chip Conley's home on Potrero Hill looks unassuming - a no-nonsense brown-shingled house shrouded in greenery.
"Objects are really unimportant to me," says Conley, author, motivational speaker, business consultant and executive chairman / chief creative officer of Joie de Vivre Hospitality.
To the right of the front door, meditation cushions are set in front of an arrangement of sacred souvenirs:
Prayer beads, photos and small icons collected from far-flung corners of the world - Bhutan, Bali, Morocco - spill onto the wood floor.
Experiences, people, travel ...
Stacks of books- some more than 6 feet high - are at every turn in the otherwise simple one-bedroom, four-bathroom house.
"I don't need guest bedrooms - I can put up friends in any one of 2,000 hotel rooms," says the hotelier.
Simple Truths for Creating Happiness and Success, he uses mathematical concepts to explore psychological states.
Written after a particularly difficult time in 2008 following a breakup and the death of several close friends, "Emotional Equations" is already riding high on the New York Times' list of best-selling business books.
In his 2010 TED Talk, Conley spoke of creating hotels as "habitats for happiness."
Not a metaphor: A candle set under the piece once caused the oil paint to burst into flames.
Secrets revealed? "Maslow is often credited with starting the human potential movement, but he actually battled depression - there's some of my story in there, too."
Floating daisies? "They're an expense, but I enjoy shopping at the flower market every week or two; it's one of my rituals."