I had always been casually writing comments on Google Maps before, but this story below is the first seed that led me to become an active Local Guide and made me believe that the meaning of it is to add colors to other people’s lives. 
HOW MY LIFE WAS ADDED COLORS BY THE LOCAL GUIDES PROGRAM BEFORE:
Years ago, I traveled to New Zealand with my friends. There was one day that the place we stayed in was in the middle of nowhere. Just when we were upset about having nothing fun nearby, I found a lake on Google Maps that highly recommended by many Local Guides, so we decided to go there and take a look. After a 20-minute walk, we arrived at Lake Te Anau. That was absolutely THE GREATEST VIEW during that whole trip. I shot a video of me singing by the lake, which became one of my favorite videos of all time, and then we drank and sang together by the lake the whole night. 
That was the most memorable night of that trip, and it all thanks to the Local Guides program. I’m pretty sure without the Local Guides program, these videos wouldn’t even exist:
Lake Te Anau, New Zealand
Old Town Square, Prague, Czech Republic
HOW I ADD COLORS TO PEOPLE’S LIVES NOW:
As a musician, I love shooting music videos in beautiful views when I have a chance to travel abroad, just like what I did in New Zealand. 
Therefore, I’ve been benefited from the Local Guides program since I started using Google Maps. What’s different is, because I’m also a Local Guide now, I have the same power and chance to help others, just like those who helped me.
Since I’m a coffee lover and a romantic person, I love exploring romantic cafés in the city because they blend these two favorite elements of mine. Every time I meet a café that I love, I mark it on my Google Maps. As the marks growing more and more, I thought, “Why don’t I create some public lists for more coffee lovers to follow my footprints?” 
Therefore, I createdBest Romantic Cafés in Taipei 
,Best Places For Romantic Kisses 
, andLate Night Cafés 
, lists include all my favorite cafés and romantic places in my city, Taipei. I hope they help not only people who share similar interests and personalities with me but also the café owners, for the cafés I listed are not always the popular ones.
Since then, creating lists has become one of my favorite things to do as a Local Guide. 
Café Muller in Zhongshan District, Taipei, Taiwan
My Personal Favorite: Café Bucciarati in Neihu District, Taipei, Taiwan
There’s one time after I went to 藍色微光One Earth Café and tried to write comments because I liked that place a lot, I found that it’s mistakenly shown as “Permanently Closed” on Google Maps. Therefore, I submitted an edit application and successfully corrected it into “Open”, which must have a very good impact on its business and also made me proud of myself for helping others.
藍色微光One Earth Café in Banqiao District
THE MEANING OF THE LOCAL GUIDES PROGRAM TO ME: ADDING UNEXPECTED COLORS TO PEOPLE’S LIVES
Since the first time I personally learned how the Local Guides program brings color to my life as mentioned, I started to write longer comments, take more beautiful but not over photoshopped photos, and share them as frequently as I can on Google Maps. The idea of knowing my works could possibly make a day, a trip, or even a memory of the life of a person who I don’t even know at all really excites me and makes me proud of myself. 
Every time I read the emails that Google sends me about how I’ve been doing as a Local Guide, I feel like a hidden hero in the city. 
Whether as a musician or as a Local Guide, CHANGING AND HELPING THE WORLD, even just a little bit, has always been the biggest dream in my life, and I believe that by adding colors to people’s lives through the Local Guides program day by day, I can be able to achieve it. When I do so, it will surely become the greatest meaning in my life. 