Ali O'Grady

Founder, CEO

Maya Enista Smith

President

Hey! I'm Ali. I’ve been on a complex journey with grief since I lost my favorite human to colon cancer in 2011. I’ve watched many family members and friends struggle with addiction and other mental health issues, and have seen firsthand the devastating effects for everyone involved.

I created Thoughtful Human in 2017  to help people find honest ways to communicate in complex relationships and challenging circumstances like these. To me, Thoughtful Human represents our shared struggle to love, fight, grieve, forgive, overcome, and celebrate — even in some of our darkest moments. It’s accepting and de-stigmatizing our differences and meeting our loved ones where they’re at. It’s being there — consistently — when it really counts, and leading these difficult conversations with and kindness.

WE CHALLENGE YOU — to care, connect, and communicate more. We challenge you to ask the simple questions — again and again — that build trust and create the space for real conversations. We challenge you to practice radical empathy and lead these difficult conversations with kindness.

WE INVITE YOU to join this movement and make it your own — share your story, share your needs, share your feedback. We want to hear it — all of it — so we can keep creating honest, relevant sentiments and series that matter to you. (hello@thoughtfulhuman.co)

Learn more about my personal journey and “why”:

TEDx Emerald Glen Park: The Questions We Never Ask About Cancer, Depression, Addiction

Maya Enista Smith is proud to join Thoughtful Human as President, bringing years of experience in the non-profit sector to their mission of creating emotionally resonant greeting cards, designed to reflect the complexity of human emotions and experiences. As President, Smith will spearhead the company's strategic initiatives, focusing on expanding market reach, product innovation, building partnerships across sectors and furthering Thoughtful Human's mission to promote empathy and understanding through heartfelt communication.

Previously, Maya served as the founding Executive Director of Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation for over a decade, where she worked to empower young people to create a kinder, braver world, and also be a source for mental health support. Prior to her role at the foundation, she was CEO for Mobilize.org, where she worked with millennials to identify societal challenges unique to their generation and fund their solutions through grants.

For her leadership, Maya has been awarded a Youth Action Net Fellowship, the Independent Sector NGEN American Express Fellowship, Utne Reader’s 50 Visionaries Changing Your World Award, WIN’s Young Women of Achievement Award, and Gelman, Rosenberg + Freedman EXCEL Award for Excellence in Nonprofit Management. Maya was also awarded the competitive Prime Movers Fellowship of the Hunt Alternatives Fund and was named a Presidential Leadership Scholar, joining a cohort of bold and principled leaders who are committed to facing critical challenges, both at home and around the world.