How to Start a Group That Nourishes Your Creativity
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” ~Margaret Mead, cultural anthropologist Whether it’s Benjamin Franklin’s Junto, C. S. Lewis’s Inklings, John Wesley’s class meetings, or the Latin American base communities, one thing is clear. Join or start a group […]
Over at Books and Such…
A while back two commenters asked how big a platform was big enough. “How many Twitter followers, Facebook fans, email subscriptions should I be shooting for? What’s the goal I should have in mind?” In a guest post over at that Books and Such blog, I address these questions. The post is called 5 Questions […]
How to Get Published in Five Steps
Recently I participated in a Q & A session for writers at Baker Book House—a very fine Christian book store in Grand Rapids, Michigan. (By the way, if you don’t already subscribe to Louis McBride’s “Baker Book House Connection,” it’s worth your time. While you’re at it, check out the blog of Josh Mosey, the […]
Four Simple Ways to Find Peace in Your Daily Life
I do quite a bit of traveling for my job. In the past when I arrived at an airport, I immediately beat feet to my next gate. If it was meal time I scarfed something down on the way or at my gate. I realized at some point that this sense of urgency, while sometimes […]
How to Come Up with a Great Book Concept
Let me start with three reasons working on a book with a lousy concept is a bad idea: Beautiful, compelling writing is terribly important to publishers, but if your beautiful writing is in the service of a concept that no one will buy, publishers will have a hard time getting excited. A far-reaching platform is […]
Why Asking Why Is So Important
In 1939 Herman Baker was twenty-eight years old. He had a young family and a steady job working for his uncle, Louis Kregel. Everyone would have expected him to continue in that job, providing for his family and moving up the company ranks. It was, after all, the Great Depression. Herman was lucky to have […]
How to Generate Ideas and Not Forget Them
Recently I listened to a fascinating interview with astronaut Dave Wolf, who talked about the importance of “resources” when it comes to spacewalking. To the spacewalker, resources are a life and death matter. Without resources like oxygen and carbon dioxide filtering, the outcome is so grisly Wolf didn’t want to talk about it. With resources, […]
Is This the Life You Want?
Recently my wife and I watched a movie called “I’m Fine, Thanks.” It’s a documentary about several people who reach a breaking point in life and respond by doing something unconventional. Several of the featured people achieve financial success but realize they’re miserable. One couple decides to pay cash for a 300-square-foot house and focus […]
Four Steps to Conflicts You’ll Be Glad You Had
Conflict is inevitable when people care about themselves and the work they’re doing. In fact, a lack of conflict can be worrisome because it can mean people have grown apathetic or don’t trust others to play fair. But for conflict to actually go somewhere and change things for the better, we need a way to […]
Three Questions to Ask When It All Goes South
My week was all planned out. I knew what my priorities were, I had blocked off time for a project that needed sustained attention, and I was feeling pretty good about how mapped out my week was. Then it all went south. An agent offered a phone call with an author, which I accepted. I […]