Jeff Goins's Blog, page 58

042: Everybody Writes: Interview with Ann Handley [Podcast]

Everybody is a writer. Writing is a basic life skill and everyone should be able to put sentences together. To be a writer, all you have to do is write.

To be a good writer, you need to consider the needs of your audience. Is your writing adding value to their lives?

Ann Handley is someone who adds value well. She’s been living a portfolio life for 12 to 14 years making a living as an author, a speaker, and the Chief Content Officer at MarketingProfs. Her latest book Everybody Writes is filled with great tidbits and tricks for writers. I love the short chapters that are part inspiration and part guidebook.

Listen to this week’s episode of The Portfolio Life as Ann and I talk about what makes marketing good, how deadlines are beneficial, and struggles all writers face.

Listen to the podcast

To listen to the show, click the player below (if viewing this in email, click here)

You can also listen on iTunes or on Stitcher.

Highlights from the show

Write first for yourself then switch places with your reader and go through the piece to see what kind of experience you’re creating for them.
It’s never a good idea to trick people into paying attention to you. It’s better to be useful to your audience and generous with your help.
Good marketing is about helping worthy ideas spread.
“You can’t rush art” is folly; you have to rush art otherwise art sits on the couch watching Netflix.

If this podcast was helpful to you, please share it with others who could benefit from it and leave a review on iTunes.

Special announcement: I’m giving away a limited number of copies of my upcoming book, The Art of Work (you just pay shipping). In addition to the book, you’ll also get some exclusive bonuses. I’d love for you to get a copy and tell your friends about it, too. Get your copy today!

What is one of your biggest struggles as a writer? Share in the comments.

The Surprises of Success

Note: I recently released a free eBook called The Surprises of Success . Other contributors include Seth Godin, Michael Hyatt, Ally Vesterfelt, Bob Goff, and others! Below is an excerpt from my introduction.

“I don’t have a dream.” It was the fear that haunted my thoughts that day. In fact, in a way, it still haunts me.

Photo Credit: iainsimmons via Compfight cc

I sank down deep in my seat, surrounded by a hundred pairs of hopeful eyes.

We were all there, gathered in that multipurpose room (which was doubling as a conference center for the day), for the same reason: to pursue a dream. To find the thing our hearts had been searching for.

Some of us wanted to be novelists; others aspired to start our own ad agencies or travel to South America to make a documentary. Each dreamer represented a unique and beautiful dream, some special skill that the world needed.

The passion in that room was infectious, which only reinforced the feeling that I did not deserve to be there.

You already know what your dream is…

“What’s your dream?” was the opening obligatory question, and we all did our best to respond in kind.

It was even something we had to inscribe on our name tags. I think mine said something profound and nondescript like “creative catalyst.” In other words, I didn’t know.

I had no idea what my dream was or what I was doing there, no idea how I ought to be spending my life. I just knew I didn’t want to succeed at the wrong thing.

When people asked what I wanted to do with my life, I used big, fancy words and phrases that meant little to me but caused people’s eyes to glaze over just enough to prevent them from asking any follow-up questions, which was precisely my intent.

“I want to be a storytelling sherpa,” I told a guy carrying an iPad. He nodded, the fear of following up obvious in his eyes. Mission accomplished.

A few times during the conference, I talked about my day job, but that felt boring. I was sure my dream was something new and interesting, something “out there” that I’d never done before but would recognize as soon as it appeared.

Every time I answered another question, I felt like I was betraying myself, that people were slowly seeing through the facade and beginning to feel sorry for me. Me, the hapless wanderer who was at a dream conference and didn’t have a dream. The guy with no vision for the future, just a fancy name tag.

And then, just as I was getting ready to excuse myself from my table and sneak out the back exit, the opening speaker stepped up to the podium. With a few short words, he shattered my illusion: “Some of you here don’t know what your dream is,” he said. “In fact, most of you don’t.”

I looked around to see dozens of heads nodding slowly in unison. Apprehensively, I did the same, a little worried who was watching but eventually letting go and feeling the freedom that came with admitting I didn’t know what I was doing.

“But the truth is,” he continued…

You do know what your dream is. You’re just afraid to admit it.

My heart sank. As soon as he said those words, one word popped into my mind and immediately made its way onto my notebook: writer.

Your calling can surprise you

That surprised me. I didn’t know that urge was in there, in me. So when I wrote that word, when I admitted I already knew what my dream was, it scared me.

Why? Because suddenly, I was without excuse. I was no longer afraid of failing. Instead, I was afraid of not trying.

Most people waste the best years of their life waiting for their purpose to come to them instead of going out and finding it. They succumb to the status quo and dream of life being different some day. They wait, unsure of the right path to follow. And as they wait, they miss an opportunity.

We often think of success as something that happens to us or as something we plan. But I’ve found the opposite to be true. When it came to discovering my true vocation, it was a process that surprised me.

The thing that I had been searching for had been there all along. It wasn’t a grand epiphany, just a gradual awareness of what I was supposed to do with my life. I was just afraid to admit it.

Discovery comes with dedication

We all want to “just know” what we’re supposed to do with our lives, for our purpose to be spelled out, but that’s not how life works. We have to do the work, but we also have to pay attention to the lessons life is teaching us.

I used to think your vocation was something you discovered, but now I know it’s something that’s been there all along. [Tweet that]

Recently, I collaborated with 14 other authors, bloggers, and thinkers on a project about the surprises of success. My experience in finding my life’s work was not what I thought it would be, and it turns out I’m not alone.

In this free eBook, you’re going to find short personal stories and pieces of wisdom from some of the smartest people I know, all surrounding this question: “What’s a surprising lesson you’ve learned about success?”

My hope is that as you read it, you take away some important points about what it mean to find meaningful work in this world. The process of finding my life’s work surprised me. Maybe the same will be true for you, too.

Download the book here.

What’s something about success that has surprised you? Share in the comments.

041: Creating in Chaos: Making Art Amidst a Mess [Podcast]

Building an environment you’re comfortable working in is important to the creative process but waiting for perfection is procrastination.

This week’s episode of The Portfolio Life was inspired by my messy office. Are artists inherently messy people? Can clutter and creativity co-exist? Or is our mess keeping us from creating our best work?

As Steven Pressfield says:

The hospital room may be spotless and sterile but birth itself will always take place amid chaos, pain, and blood.

I agree. And in this episode, Andy and I talk about the behind-the-scenes of the creative process and why it always involves making things amidst chaos.

Listen to the podcast

To listen to the show, click the player below. (If you’re reading this via email, click here).

You can also listen at iTunes or on Stitcher.

Takeaways from the show

Here are some takeaways from the show:

The perfect work environment will never come.
Creativity is always a process of pulling order out of chaos, even in your workspace.
Most people who are trying to create get caught up in the chaos. But there is a difference between order amidst chaos and chaos amidst chaos.
As a creative, your responsibility is to share the art with us, not the mess.

Resources mentioned in the show

Out of Print literary t-shirt company
Do the Work by Steven Pressfield (affiliate link)
Freedom App to turn off the internet for a time

I hope you enjoyed this week’s episode. If you know someone who would benefit from it, feel free to download and share. We’d also appreciate it if you’d leave a review on iTunes.

Special announcement: I’m giving away a limited number of copies of my upcoming book, The Art of Work (you just pay shipping). In addition to the book, you’ll also get some exclusive bonuses. I’d love for you to get a copy and tell your friends about it, too. Go your copy today!

What keeps you from creating art in your mess? Share in the comments.

Why Most Authors Get Book Launches Wrong & What We Can Learn

In the past week, I’ve had multiple conversations with authors about book launches. They’ve said things like, “How did you do that?” or “My publisher would never go for that.” And that, in the words of Yoda, is why you fail.

Photo Credit: Let Ideas Compete via Compfight cc

Launching something isn’t about satisfying the status quo. It’s about exceeding expectations. And most people refuse to do this because they’re afraid. Sadly, the fear leads to the very thing they’re trying to avoid.

If you’re going to get people to care about your book, your business, or even your blog, you’re going to have to do more than satisfy them. You’re going to have to wow them. Which means you must make them sit up in their chairs and say, “Really?!”

Just the other week, Jon Acuff did that when he broke the cardinal rule of book publishing and gave a free digital copy of his book to anyone who preordered the hard copy.

This isn’t supposed to happen. Books come out on their publishing dates, not months before. But it did. And Jon’s readers rushed to order the book so that they could start reading now. That’s the kind of thing that gets people talking.

Another example was when Bob Goff announced at the end of his bestselling book, Love Does, that every penny spent on the book was given to charity (including the publisher’s cut). When did Bob announce this? On the very last page of the book. It was an added delight, not something you expected going into it.

How to know you’re on track

For my upcoming book launch, I’m doing something super crazy that almost feels too risky. In fact, I’m a little bit scared it won’t work or that it’ll blow up in my face. But this, friends, is when you know you’re on to something.

When it feels like you’re about to be too generous, it’s time to lean in and give even more. Because nobody talks about normal. People talk about stuff that wows them. And the best way to stand out is do something unexpected.

So what does that look like?

First, you have to realize that you don’t get to decide what remarkable looks like. Your audience does. They will tell you when you’ve really done something incredible.

Second, you have to identify what normal looks like. In other words, what is expected? You can’t hit “wow” until you know what people want.

Third, you’ve got to go for broke. Meet expectations, then do something that totally blows them away. And find ways to keep doing that as you go.

To see what big thing I’m doing for my next book launch stay tuned! Tomorrow I will send you an email with some huge news. Make sure you’re on the list.

What have you done that feels too risky? Share in the comments.

Why Most Authors Get Book Launches Wrong & What We Can Learn from This

In the past week, I’ve had multiple conversations with authors about book launches. They’ve said things like, “How did you do that?” or “My publisher would never go for that.” And that, in the words of Yoda, is why you fail.

Photo Credit: Let Ideas Compete via Compfight cc

Launching something isn’t about satisfying the status quo. It’s about exceeding expectations. And most people refuse to do this because they’re afraid. Sadly, the fear leads to the very thing they’re trying to avoid.

If you’re going to get people to care about your book, your business, or even your blog, you’re going to have to do more than satisfy them. You’re going to have to wow them. Which means you must make them sit up in their chairs and say, “Really?!”

Just the other week, Jon Acuff did that when he broke the cardinal rule of book publishing and gave a free digital copy of his book to anyone who preordered the hard copy.

This isn’t supposed to happen. Books come out on their publishing dates, not months before. But it did. And Jon’s readers rushed to order the book so that they could start reading now. That’s the kind of thing that gets people talking.

Another example was when Bob Goff announced at the end of his bestselling book, Love Does, that every penny spent on the book was given to charity (including the publisher’s cut). When did Bob announce this? On the very last page of the book. It was an added delight, not something you expected going into it.

How to know you’re on track

For my upcoming book launch, I’m doing something super crazy that almost feels too risky. In fact, I’m a little bit scared it won’t work or that it’ll blow up in my face. But this, friends, is when you know you’re on to something.

When it feels like you’re about to be too generous, it’s time to lean in and give even more. Because nobody talks about normal. People talk about stuff that wows them. And the best way to stand out is do something unexpected.

So what does that look like?

First, you have to realize that you don’t get to decide what remarkable looks like. Your audience does. They will tell you when you’ve really done something incredible.

Second, you have to identify what normal looks like. In other words, what is expected? You can’t hit “wow” until you know what people want.

Third, you’ve got to go for broke. Meet expectations, then do something that totally blows them away. And find ways to keep doing that as you go.

To see what big thing I’m doing for my next book launch stay tuned! Tomorrow I will send you an email with some huge news. Make sure you’re on the list.

What have you done that feels too risky? Share in the comments.

040: Pursuing Your Passion Through Podcasting [Podcast]

We all have our dreams. Those things that make us come alive when we do them. The things we wish we could do for a living and still afford to eat.

For me, it’s writing. For Cliff Ravenscraft it’s podcasting. For you, it may be something else. Cliff and I have both found ways to turn our passion into something we do full-time; the goal is not unreachable for you.

Listen to this week’s episode of The Portfolio Life, where Cliff Ravenscraft shares about how he made the scary leap from being a successful insurance agent to podcasting full-time.

For him — like for many others — it was not an easy transition. He, his wife, and their three children lived off of food stamps for a few months. They broke down in tears every month.

Yet still they claim the transition was worth it because he now makes a livable income doing something he loves.

Listen to the podcast

To listen to the show, click the player below (if viewing this in email, click here)

You can also listen at iTunes or on Stitcher.

Listen as we talk about turning your dream into reality.

If you dream of doing what you love and getting to call it your work, listen to Cliff’s thoughts on how to make that leap.

Tips from the podcast answer man

These days having a blog is like being a needle in a haystack, yet having a podcast is more like a needle in a mini wheat.

Hearing Cliff explain this at the Platform Conference is what convinced me to start a podcast myself. I’ve found it to be productive, and I’m sure you can too.

The First Steps

According to Cliff, setting up a podcast is easier than most people believe.

1. Find a way to capture your voice—even the Voice Memos free app on a iPhone provides decent audio quality

2. Set up an RSS feed—this is a one-time

3. Submit your podcast to podcast directories like iTunes and Stitcher

Resources mentioned in the show

LearnHowtoPodcast.com

Podcasting A-Z

If this episode was helpful to you, please share it with others who can benefit from it. Also, leave a review on iTunes.

What is preventing you from living out your dream full-time? Share in the comments.

You just finished reading 040: Pursuing Your Passion Through Podcasting [Podcast]! Consider leaving a comment!

Are you ready to embrace the "in-between" and experience all life has to offer? Check out my new book.

The Totally Boring Process of Writing a Book

This is the year you write a book. I believe that. But if you’re anything like me, that process won’t look like what you think.

I remember several years ago I had a personal coach who asked me what my dream was. Very reluctantly, I said I wanted to write a book… eventually. He asked what I was doing to accomplish that goal.

I explained to this coach that writing was very technical but at the same time mystical, and it required a lot of brainstorming and inspiration before you could sit down to do the work.

“So,” he said, “how much are you writing?”

I cleared my throat so I could make my point more clear. He must not have heard me.

“Well, you see, it’s a very complicated process. I’m currently in the research phase, so I’ve been reading a lot of blogs and listening to podcasts to make sure I’m prepared for the Muse.”

He very gently prodded, “Well, I’m no expert, Jeff, but I think what it takes to write a book is to actually start writing. Right?”

I hung up the phone.

The truth hurts

Turns out, my coach was right.

What makes a writer is the writing. Sure, market research and platform building and networking with other people in your industry can prove helpful. But books get written in the most boring way possible: you have to sit down and write them.

The trouble is most of us don’t know where to start. I sure didn’t. In fact, I still don’t know what to do most of the time. At times, writing is a process that feels spiritually-charged, full of inspiration and epiphany. Other times, most of the time, it feels completely mundane.

But there is beauty in the boredom.

Some of the most useful life lessons I’ve learned have been amidst mundane circumstances — while waiting for something to happen, holding out for the next best thing, looking forward to the future. In those subtler, in-between times, I learned something was happening. I was growing.

Life is like that, and so is writing.

Here’s how it works

So what does this “boring” process actually look like? When I was working on The Art of Work, I learned that it takes three things to write a book:

You need to schedule time to write. The bottom line is the book won’t write itself, and the universe won’t conspire to make it easy for you. In fact, it’ll most likely be the opposite. You will have to carve out time to write.
You need someone to support you in the process. Ideally, this is a community of people who can encourage you when you get stuck. For me that was the My 500 Words group, an online writing group I started.
You need a target to aim for. Since I wrote my book in Scrivener, I set a due date of March 1 and a total word count of 55,000 words (which is about the length of a 200-page book). Each day, this app told me how many words I needed to write (which was about 500). This gave me something to shoot for and a sense of how on track I was.

So that’s how it works, or maybe I should say, that’s how you work. Because writing is something that often feels like a job. But if you get up and do it enough, you discover a joy that surpasses temporary thrills and short-term excitement.

That’s how you write a book. You write.

If this is going to be your year, the year in which your words come to life, you’re going to need time to write, a community to support you, and a system to keeping you on track.

And one resource I recommend for this is Author Launch. This is a brand-new online course that will hold you accountable to not only writing, but launching, your book — with 46 lessons taught by a bunch of smart people and me. I’m a proud contributor to and affiliate of this resource.

Check it out here.

What’s one thing you’ve learned from doing something boring? Share in the comments.

You just finished reading The Totally Boring Process of Writing a Book! Consider leaving a comment!

Are you ready to embrace the "in-between" and experience all life has to offer? Check out my new book.

039: Why Joining a Mastermind Group Will Benefit You [Podcast]

It happens to all of us: we want to grow and succeed, but on our own, we are often left frustrated and disappointed. Being involved in a mastermind group may be the perfect solution.

In this episode of The Portfolio Life, my co-host Andy Traub and I talk about the benefits of mastermind groups and how they have the potential to shape who we are.

When encouraging people to grow, I have often suggested finding a mentor. Turns out that wasn’t the best advice to be doling out. While having a mentor isn’t a bad thing, it’s not necessarily the best use of our time. It often leads to high expectations followed by frustration.

Instead of finding a mentor, becoming involved in a mastermind group is a better first step to help you develop personally.

You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with. –Jim Rohn
Listen to the podcast

To listen to the show, click the player below. (If you’re reading this via email, click here).

You can also listen at iTunes or on Stitcher.

Show highlights

In this episode we discuss:

What a mastermind is and what it is not
The benefits of a mastermind group
Healthy parameters for starting a group
The growing popularity of online mastermind groups

Resources mentioned in the show

How to Start a Mastermind Group by Tyler Ward
Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (affiliate link)

The Secret Behind Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Success

Photo Credit: cliff1066™ via Compfight cc

Without Coretta Scott King, there would have been no MLK, at least not the way we remember him today.

Dr. King was full of his foibles and idiosyncrasies: he smoked, cheated on his wife, had socialist political views, and was struggling both mentally and physically at the time of his death (one account said he had the heart of a sixty year-old man).

I have no interest in tainting the legacy of this man, but understanding these weaknesses helps us see the whole picture a little more clearly.

It’s easy to look at famous individuals, people who have achieved incredible feats, and see them as just that: individuals. But the truth is always a little more complex. Behind every great man, they say, is an even greater woman. In the case of Martin Luther King, Jr., his legacy is greatly indebted to his wife.

Dr. King was just a man. And like any man, the stresses of travel and public pressure wore on him. When we see certain individuals as saints, as heroic figures who transcend humanity, we tend to put them on a pedestal, making their accomplishments inaccessible to the rest of us. Which is a nice-sounding way of letting ourselves of the hook.

But when you begin to appreciate how much of a supporter Mrs. King was to Dr. King, you have a much deeper appreciation of how movements are built. They never happen in isolation, due to the efforts of one man or woman. They always occur in the context of community. Here are a few things Mrs. King did for her husband:

She didn’t leave him, even after learning of his cheating. Due to suspected communist sympathies, the FBI had King under surveillance and in an effort to discredit him sent photographs documenting his infidelity to his wife. But she didn’t publicly act on the photos, nor did she complain about the family’s financial struggles (King gave away his Nobel Prize money and was careful to appear as though he had never profited from the Civil Rights cause).
She established the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Action, which started in her basement a year after her husband’s death.
She helped establish the holiday that bears her husband’s namesake and is now commemorated as a symbolic holiday for civil rights and racial reconciliation.

Coretta didn’t complain, at least not publicly, about how much her husband traveled or how difficult it must have been to raise their four children practically alone, with limited resources. After King’s death, she became his greatest champion, completing the work that he set out to do.

As a man, I know I would not be where I am without the support and encouragement of my wife. And it’s nice to know that’s probably more the rule than the exception. Maybe we should have a Coretta Scott King Day, as well. Or maybe we should simply reassess how we think of success.

Individual achievement is always about the people behind the person. And the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King is no exception.

How can you credit successes in your own life to someone else? Share in the comments.

You just finished reading The Secret Behind Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Success! Consider leaving a comment!

Are you ready to embrace the "in-between" and experience all life has to offer? Check out my new book.

038: Tips for Making a Good Decision: Interview with Jeff Shinabarger [Podcast]

Part of being a creative person is dealing with all of the opportunities that come your way. Some invitations seem good while others are great.

The challenge comes in learning to differentiate between the two. How do you learn to say no to the decent opportunities so that you can say yes to the best opportunities?

In this episode of the Portfolio Life, Jeff Shinabarger walks us through his process of making decisions and teaches us his two steps to making better decisions.

Listen to the podcast

Listen to the show in the player below (if you’re view this in email, click here)

You can also download it at iTunes or Stitcher

Listen as Jeff gives us suggestions on making good decisions and learning from bad ones.

Interview highlights

It is the intersection of the moments of tension and the moments of transition that change lives
The best way to make decisions is to identify all of your options and invite those you trust into the process
What is the most important decision you can make today to promote your personal life or move your business forward in some way?

About my guest

Jeff Shinabarger refers to himself as just some guy in East Atlanta Village who’s trying to be a good husband and a good dad. Yet in that process he’s introducing social entrepreneurship and changing his entire community.

Jeff (who’s got a great name) likes to solve problems. He notices things that are broken and feels a responsibility to fix them. This passion is allowing him be the change he wants to see by being involved in community and learning to love his neighbors–even the neighbors who didn’t have homes.

He wakes up every morning and asks himself: What is the most important decision I can make today to promote my personal life or move my business or this vision forward in some way?

If this episode was helpful to you, feel free to share it. We would appreciate your decision to leave a review on iTunes as well.

My book, You Are A Writer, is available as an audiobook. You can get it free when you sign up for a free trial of Audible.

What is one step you can do today to move your project forward? Share in the comments.

You just finished reading 038: Tips for Making a Good Decision: Interview with Jeff Shinabarger [Podcast]! Consider leaving a comment!

Are you ready to embrace the "in-between" and experience all life has to offer? Check out my new book.