It influences opportunities, partnerships, and how your expertise is perceived. But if you’re running a company or leading a team, finding the time to craft compelling content can feel impossible.
That’s where a ghostwriter comes in.
A strong personal brand requires consistent messaging, engaging stories, and a tone that reflects your leadership style. A ghostwriter helps shape and refine your ideas, creating content that feels authentic to you.
All without requiring you to stare at a blank page.
Why a Ghostwriter Makes Sense for Executives
Saves Time You already have a packed schedule. A ghostwriter turns your thoughts into well-structured content, allowing you to focus on what you do best.
Captures Your Voice A skilled writer will study how you speak and think, ensuring that every article, post, or speech sounds like it came directly from you.
Builds Authority Without Extra Work Your name stays at the forefront of your industry while someone else handles the writing. This means more visibility and influence with no extra effort.
Delivers Consistency Posting regularly helps build trust. A ghostwriter keeps your content schedule on track, making sure your audience stays engaged.
Transforms Ideas Into Impact Maybe you have thoughts scattered across emails, voice notes, or meeting transcripts. A ghostwriter organizes and refines them into content that resonates.
What a Ghostwriter Can Create for You
LinkedIn Articles & Posts – Position yourself as a thought leader with insightful, well-crafted pieces.
Speeches & Presentations – Make a lasting impression with polished, persuasive messaging.
Blog Content – Share your expertise through articles that connect with your audience.
Books & Whitepapers – Establish long-term credibility with deeper insights into your industry.
How to Get Started
You don’t have to do anything except bring your knowledge and perspective. A ghostwriter will handle the rest.
Start with a conversation. Share your vision, key messages, and any preferences.
Review drafts to ensure they align with your voice and expertise.
Publish content that strengthens your presence and influence.
Building a personal brand doesn’t have to mean adding more to your plate. If you’re ready to have your ideas communicated clearly and effectively, working with a ghostwriter is the best step forward.
Looking for an expert to craft your content? Let’s connect and make it happen.
If you’re anything like me, you’ve likely experienced that delightful mix of a looming deadline and a flood of conflicting feedback. It’s the kind of situation that can make even the calmest among us feel like we’re juggling flaming swords.
But over the years, as I’ve worked in various leadership roles—spanning HR, operations, and content creation—I’ve honed strategies to turn the chaos into something more manageable.
Here’s my approach to getting things done, even when everything feels like it’s pulling in different directions.
Before diving into action mode, it’s essential to take a step back. When deadlines are breathing down your neck, the impulse is to rush into solving the problem, but that’s where mistakes happen. Take a few moments (or minutes) to review the feedback and the deadline calmly.
Why? Because often the first glance at conflicting feedback can be deceiving. What looks like a giant mess is usually a few misaligned perspectives. By pausing, you give yourself a chance to identify the core issue.
Here’s a hard truth I’ve learned in my years of leading teams and managing projects: Not all feedback is created equal. Some come from key decision-makers, while other comments may be more subjective. As much as we’d like to incorporate every suggestion, time constraints simply don’t allow for it.
I categorize feedback into three tiers:
Must-haves: These are non-negotiables, usually coming from the client, executive, or lead stakeholders. These are directly tied to the core goals of the project and often influence whether the work is approved.
Nice-to-haves: Feedback in this category adds value but isn’t critical to the project’s success. If time permits, I’ll incorporate these suggestions, but they aren’t showstoppers.
Outliers: Sometimes, feedback is based on personal preferences or misunderstandings of the project’s goals. These are the comments I politely address but deprioritize unless they align with the overall vision.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned about conflicting feedback, it’s this: Ambiguity is the enemy. You can’t meet a deadline while second-guessing what someone meant in their comments.
This is where clear, concise communication comes into play.
When faced with conflicting feedback, don’t hesitate to seek clarification. This doesn’t have to be a drawn-out conversation—just a quick email or a short chat can clear things up. I might ask something like:
“I’ve noticed a few differing opinions on [specific aspect]. Can you clarify if [Option A] or [Option B] aligns best with the overall goals?”
Quick, clear, and to the point. Nine times out of ten, this helps move things forward faster than trying to guess.
Step 4: Time Management: Break It Down and Stay Realistic
In a time crunch, it’s easy to fall into the trap of overcommitting. I’ve learned (sometimes the hard way) that being realistic with time is key.
First, map out exactly how much time you have left and then break down the remaining tasks. Estimate how long each one will take and assign priorities based on what’s truly critical to delivering a solid final product. If something isn’t going to fit within the time frame, communicate that early—transparency helps manage expectations.
For example, if you’re working on a marketing project, hitting the launch date might be more important than polishing every minor detail. Focus on getting the core deliverables across the finish line.
Navigating tight deadlines and conflicting feedback means flexibility is your best friend. There will be moments when you have to pivot—sometimes right in the middle of what feels like a solid plan.
Stay nimble by making “micro adjustments.” Don’t tear apart a draft or strategy every time new feedback comes in, Look for ways to make small changes that keep the project on track without derailing your timeline.
Sometimes, a quick re-word or subtle design tweak can resolve a conflict without sending the entire project into a tailspin. Look for these opportunities for minor changes that yield big improvements.
As the clock winds down, don’t skimp on communication. Keeping stakeholders updated on progress, roadblocks, and decisions is critical when time is tight.
When conflicting feedback throws a wrench into your plans, letting everyone know where things stand can help prevent last-minute surprises. For example:
“We’re incorporating Feedback A to align with the project’s core goals, but based on timing, Feedback B will have to wait for Phase 2 or further refinement post-launch.”
This keeps people in the loop and reassures them that things are still under control—even when it feels like chaos behind the scenes.
Balancing conflicting feedback with a tight deadline isn’t just about managing the project—it’s about managing yourself. With a clear, prioritized approach, open communication, and flexibility, you can deliver great work without sacrificing your sanity.
Trust me, I’ve been there—more times than I can count.
Ultimately, the key is to remember that deadlines are a part of the process, not the enemy. Embrace them, adapt to feedback smartly, and you’ll not only meet your deadlines—you’ll exceed expectations.
The ability to cultivate meaningful relationships often differentiates success from stagnation in professional networking. Opportunistic networking can open doors, but the key to sustained success lies in transforming those chance encounters into lasting connections. Let’s explore the art of converting opportunistic networking into relationship cultivation by skillfully shifting the conversation to others.
Effective relationship-building begins with active listening. Instead of dominating conversations with your achievements and goals, make a conscious effort to understand the aspirations and experiences of those around you. By tuning in to others, you not only demonstrate genuine interest, but also create a foundation for deeper, more meaningful connections.
Elevate Others Through Compliments
Shifting the focus of a conversation to others involves recognizing and appreciating their strengths. Complimenting someone on their achievements, skills, or unique perspectives not only fosters a positive atmosphere, but also establishes you as someone who values and acknowledges the efforts of those in your professional network.
Engaging in meaningful conversations requires more than just surface-level inquiries. Instead of asking generic questions, delve deeper into the experiences and passions of your networking counterparts. Thoughtful questions not only reveal more about the person you’re conversing with, but also convey your genuine interest in understanding their journey.
Share the Spotlight
A common mistake in networking is the tendency to monopolize conversations. To truly convert opportunistic encounters into relationship cultivation, practice the art of sharing the spotlight. Encourage others to share their insights, experiences, and expertise. By doing so, you not only create a collaborative environment, but also position yourself as someone who values collective success.
A digitally connected world means that the conversation doesn’t have to end with face-to-face interactions. Use social media platforms to extend and reinforce your connections. Share relevant content, comment on others’ achievements, and engage in discussions to demonstrate your ongoing interest and support.
Build a Reputation as a Connector
Become known not only for your individual achievements, but also for your ability to connect people. Actively seek opportunities to introduce individuals within your network who can benefit from each other’s expertise. By playing the role of a connector, you position yourself as someone who adds value not only to your own endeavors but to the broader professional community.
Converting opportunistic networking into relationship cultivation is a strategic move that requires a genuine interest in others. By embracing active listening, complimenting, asking thoughtful questions, sharing the spotlight, leveraging social media, and building a reputation as a connector, you’ll transform chance encounters into lasting connections. Remember, in the world of professional relationships, the true power lies not just in what you know, but in who you know and how well you can collaborate.
Maintaining focus and productivity is a challenge amid the constant barrage of notifications, emails, and other distractions. However, carving out distraction-free time in your day is crucial for accomplishing tasks efficiently and maintaining overall well-being.
Let’s explore some practical strategies to help you build distraction-free time into your daily routine and supercharge your productivity.
Set Clear Goals
Begin your day by outlining specific, achievable goals. Clear objectives provide a roadmap for your tasks, helping you stay focused and organized. Prioritize these goals based on urgency and importance, allowing you to allocate dedicated time for each task.
Establish a Routine
Creating a daily routine can be a powerful tool for minimizing distractions. Set specific time blocks for different activities, including work, breaks, and personal tasks. Stick to this routine as much as possible to condition your mind to focus during dedicated work periods.
Designate a specific area for work or focused tasks. This could be a home office, a quiet corner, or even a designated desk at a coffee shop. A consistent and clutter-free workspace signals to your brain that it’s time to concentrate.
Prioritize and Batch Tasks
Group similar tasks together and tackle them during specific time slots. Batching tasks reduces the cognitive load associated with switching between different activities and allows you to immerse yourself fully in one type of work at a time.
The Pomodoro Technique involves working in short, focused bursts (typically 25 minutes) followed by a short break. After completing four cycles, take a more extended break. This method helps maintain high levels of concentration and prevents burnout.
Use Technology Wisely
While technology can be a source of distraction, it can also be a valuable tool for managing your time. Consider using productivity apps, such as focus timers or website blockers, to limit your access to distracting websites and social media during work periods.
Incorporate mindfulness practices into your routine to enhance focus and reduce stress. Short meditation sessions or mindful breathing exercises can help clear your mind and create a conducive environment for deep work.
Set Boundaries
Communicate your need for distraction-free time to friends, family, and colleagues. Establish clear boundaries during your focused work periods to minimize interruptions. Let others know when you’ll be available for non-urgent matters.
Scheduled breaks are essential for maintaining sustained focus. Use this time to stretch, walk, or engage in activities that refresh your mind. Stepping away from your work periodically can actually boost overall productivity.
Reflect and Adjust
Regularly evaluate the effectiveness of your distraction-free strategies. Identify any challenges or areas for improvement and adjust your approach accordingly. Building distraction-free time into your day is an ongoing process that may require experimentation to find what works best for you.
Building distraction-free time into your day is a skill that, once mastered, can significantly enhance your productivity and overall well-being. By implementing these practical strategies and making a conscious effort to prioritize focus, you’ll find yourself accomplishing more in less time and enjoying a greater sense of balance in your daily life.
We are bombarded by constant stimuli and distractions. The concept of mindfulness can be a beacon of solace, guiding individuals toward a more purposeful and intentional way of living.
At the core of mindfulness lies a simple yet profound question: Why do we participate in the activities that fill our lives?
Modern life is characterized by a relentless pace, with many of us caught up in a whirlwind of responsibilities, obligations, and endless to-do lists. In the pursuit of success, happiness, and fulfillment, we often find ourselves engaged in a myriad of activities without stopping to ponder the underlying motivations. This autopilot mode of existence can lead to a sense of detachment from our actions, causing us to drift through life without a true connection to our experiences.
Mindfulness, rooted in ancient contemplative practices, is a state of active, open attention to the present moment. It involves observing thoughts and feelings without judgment, allowing us to fully engage with our experiences. At its essence, mindfulness encourages us to be fully present in each moment, fostering a deep understanding of our thoughts and actions.
One of the key tenets of mindfulness is the practice of questioning our motives.
Why do we engage in certain activities?
What drives our decisions?
Asking these questions is not about self-criticism, but rather an invitation to explore the deeper layers of our consciousness. By understanding the why behind our actions, we gain insight into our values, desires, and fears, paving the way for a more authentic and purposeful life.
Breaking the Cycle of Unconscious Living
Mindfulness serves as a powerful antidote to the habit of living on autopilot. When we pause to ask why, we interrupt the cycle of unconscious living and create space for self-reflection.
This simple act of inquiry allows us to become more aware of our thoughts and emotions, enabling us to make choices that align with our truest selves.
Cultivating Self-Awareness
The practice of mindfulness cultivates self-awareness, a foundational element of personal growth and development. As we delve into the why behind our actions, we uncover layers of our identity that may have been obscured by the demands of daily life. This heightened self-awareness empowers us to make conscious choices, leading to a more intentional and fulfilling existence.
By understanding the motives that underpin our actions, we gain clarity on our values. This awareness is instrumental in aligning our actions with our core beliefs, fostering a sense of authenticity and integrity.
When our actions reflect our values, we experience a profound sense of purpose and satisfaction that transcends the superficial pursuits often driven by societal expectations.
Mindfulness in Practice
Incorporating mindfulness into our daily lives doesn’t require a radical overhaul. Simple practices (such as mindful breathing, meditation, or conscious reflection) can serve as gateways to a more intentional way of living. These practices provide the mental space needed to ask why and unravel the intricacies of our motivations.
By asking why we participate in the activities that shape our lives, we embark on a journey of self-discovery and self-awareness. Through the lens of mindfulness, we unravel the threads of our motivations, gaining insight into the tapestry of our innermost desires and fears. In the pursuit of a more intentional and fulfilling life, let us embrace the transformative power of mindfulness and the profound significance of asking why.
Life is a journey filled with choices. And at various points, we find ourselves standing at a crossroads, pondering whether to quit certain behaviors or to sustain them. This decision-making process is a central part of personal growth and development.
Let’s discuss the factors that play a role in deciding whether to quit or sustain behaviors, and how this choice can shape our lives.
Self-Reflection: Before making any decision, it’s crucial to engage in self-reflection. Understanding the reasons behind wanting to quit a behavior is the first step. Are you dissatisfied, feeling unfulfilled, or is there a deeper issue that needs addressing? Take the time to analyze your feelings and motivations.
Assessing the Impact: Consider the impact of the behavior on your life. Is it contributing positively or negatively to your well-being, relationships, and overall happiness? Sometimes, quitting a behavior is necessary for personal growth and a healthier lifestyle.
Setting Boundaries: If the behavior in question involves relationships or work, it might be more about setting boundaries than quitting entirely. Establishing healthy boundaries can lead to a more balanced and fulfilling life without the need for complete cessation.
Identifying Core Values: Sustaining a behavior becomes meaningful when it aligns with your core values. Identify what truly matters to you and evaluate whether the behavior contributes positively to those values. If it does, sustaining it may lead to a more purposeful life.
Continuous Improvement: Instead of quitting, consider ways to improve the behavior. This approach involves a commitment to growth and learning. Whether it’s a skill, a habit, or a relationship, continuous improvement can lead to long-term satisfaction.
Seeking Support: Sustaining certain behaviors may require support from friends, family, or professionals. Building a support system can provide the encouragement and guidance needed to navigate challenges and stay committed.
Ultimately, the decision to quit or sustain behaviors is a personal journey. Both choices come with their own set of challenges and rewards.
It’s important to remember that quitting doesn’t equate to failure, and sustaining doesn’t mean stagnation. The key lies in self-awareness, understanding the impact of our choices, and making decisions that align with our values and aspirations.
As you ponder whether to quit or sustain, take the time to listen to your inner voice, weigh the pros and cons, and be open to the possibility that sometimes quitting is the bravest and most empowering choice, while sustaining can lead to lasting fulfillment and growth.
Long before the advent of the internet and the niche digital marketing that followed, content ruled from on top the mountain. A well-placed turn of phrase or the right kind of narrative that sparked a story in a consumer’s mind dominated the advertorial world. As the world advanced, so too did the marketing industry, along with a variety of new and varied marketing techniques.
Yet, content as a priority continued on––sometimes in darkness and sometimes front and center.
Brands face new challenges as we prepare to enter the third decade of the 21st century. Consumers spend the majority of their time online, and brands have to learn to keep their attention by any means necessary. Blog posts, guest posts, whitepapers, webinars, infographics, social messaging, and email marketing still all require a central component: content.
Content still connects the product to its consumer.
But how?
Answering Questions
Depending on your product or service, customers have a question they need answered, even if they aren’t aware of what that question might be. Perhaps they need to purchase a new car or determine which dentist is best for their family. Within these soft ideas is a hard question unspoken: How do I get this thing I need, but perhaps don’t know how to articulate?
The content that draws them to your funnel of choice should answer these covert and overt questions with simple, easy-to-digest answers. Doing so means that your content sits atop search results, which creates more traffic and customer leads.
Expertise
Thought leaders love to use new and varied terms to describe a much simpler concept: establishing expertise. Customers want to know that the product or service they select is trustworthy and the best possible option. Using content to establish expertise (or thought leadership, if you prefer) allows your brand to stand out amongst your competitors. Content broaches the divide between the known and unknown in terms of trust assessment on the part of customers.
Consumer Loyalty
If answering questions through quality content brings in leads, and expertise provides a base of trust, then continued content ensures consumer loyalty. The regularity of content that speaks to customers engenders the kind of trust necessary to have customers return to purchase more––or provide the vaunted referral that expands your customer base. That personal connection is established through content, by way of involvement and communication.
Accessibility through Conversations
Content is an opportunity to have a conversation with your customers. Whether they are sharing the content or commenting on it, the accessibility of the information they need, and the subsequent conversation that addresses that need through content, is integral to more sales (which, after all, is the bottom line).
If you treat content as a way to drive engagement, in lieu of re-targeting ads or other ad-driven marketing behavior, then you increase overall consumer engagement. Customers want to be heard, but, more importantly, they want to hear from you, the product or service they are considering. A dynamic content marketing strategy not only sells what needs to be sold, but also creates a narrative and community of which prospective customers want to be a part.
When handled properly, your content gives you the opportunity to start a conversation with your customers. They may comment on your blog posts or share your social media posts. In addition to letting you answer customer complaints or questions, you can also gain valuable insights from these comments. When customers begin to see that you take their feedback seriously, they’ll be more likely to continue to buy from you.
So, if content is king, how do you use it to reach the most customers?
Choose writers carefully. The voice of your content matters. Goodness of fit is more than just understanding the topic; it also means understanding the voice of the brand. Since the goal is more customers, make sure that prospective writers grasp what you are trying to do: generate more leads. A grasp of language is important as well, but equally as important is a writer who understands their own voice; otherwise, you end up with a discordant narrative or copy that requires more editing than is cost effective.
Have a content plan. More often than not, businesses don’t have a content plan. If you outsource writing, then those writers could be from disparate time zones. Having a plan in place that does not require synchronicity of writers being in the same time zone, but rather a calendar of when content posts and in what orders serves the most important person: the customer. They see a smooth narrative, regardless of your writing staff.
Consistency is the name of the game. Perhaps nothing is more important than consistency. If you’re fortunate, you have a dedicated team of writers upon whom you can depend. Even if that is not the case, consistency of voice, format, and posting is important from the customer’s perspective. They want to see the finalized product, not the uneven machinations that creates it. Maintain the relationship with your readers by establishing a consistent narrative and content schedule.
Evaluate: rinse, wash, and repeat. One of the many ways that a content strategy becomes stale is by resting on what you have already done. Evaluating the social metrics of your content allows you to adjust, and adjust you should if you wish to keep readers coming back for more. If something doesn’t pique the interest of readers, then all the content in the world is meaningless. For content to be king, the contents needs to resonate with readers. Become an advocate of evaluation and setting new content goals, even if that means adjusting your plan and stable of writers.
Life as a writer can be hard sometimes. Success is elusive; fans shift as often as a summer wind. Yet, we persevere––writing into the late hours of the night and waking in the early hours of the morning to enter, for a time, the worlds we create. When I first started writing, more than a decade ago, it was because I loved the idea of immersing myself in a place where I could construct the narrative: walk through dense forests and to the tops of mountains. Over time, the process became more about writing as a tool to move through emotions and languishing memories that required catharsis.
Writing takes on many forms, for many different writers, over the course of our lives. For me, the process is the reward.
I love to write.
When I ask myself that silly question of what I would do if I had all the money in the world, the answer is always quite simple: write. More than a decade later, I have a renewed sense of purpose and have become quite adept at balancing the spinning plates of responsibility.
Working at a magazine was a wonderful experience.
There are so many moving parts that enliven your day. Sometimes I spent the day sorting through fiction and poetry submissions, searching for that piece of prose, or a stanza, which ensnared my imagination. Other days I edited, constantly referring to the Chicago Manual of Style to ascertain the correct usage of an archaic sentence structure. As a writer, the prospect of editing and rummaging through the work of others might not sound exciting, but there are some wonderful consequences:
You learn to become a better editor of your own work.
You begin to recognize redundant sentence structures and overused phrases.
Your grasp of language grows exponentially.
However, the most critical component for me is:
You get to help others bring their work into a public forum.
For many writers, and certainly for me early in my writing career, the notion of being picked up by a magazine or a small press was foremost in my mind. It was that distant promise of publication, and everything that goes with it, that pushed me forward. When I got rejection letters, most of which lacked an individualized touch, I would question my writing and denigrate my ability.
The years passed, during which thousands of rejection letters amassed, and I realized that the pursuit of writing for a purely extrinsic reward was dooming myself to Vegas-style odds. It became clear to me that I needed to write because I loved it, and then find a way to share it with others––even if it was not through traditional routes. I was more comfortable with my writing when I did it for the pure joy of it.
Now that I am on the other side of the fence, I have noticed a few myths about submitting to paying publications that otherwise mystified and frustrated me prior to becoming an editor and being responsible for interacting with first-time and established authors.
I have decided to provide a humorous, but serious, collection of things you should do and things you should not do when submitting and entering a discourse with a publication––sprinkled, of course, with some anecdotes. And without further ado (or slight ado if you count this sentence here):
Things You Should Do
Read the publication you are submitting to before sending an email. This one sounds obvious, I know. However, it happens so often that it warrants mentioning. If you have written a brilliant piece of prose that is about zombies, it is quite likely that Popular Mechanics will not be that interested in it. Pick up an issue of the magazine or publication you are interested in submitting to and familiarize yourself with the kinds of stories they publish. The next part is the hardest part: Be honest. Does your piece fit with what they publish?
Read and follow the submission instructions. Again, a no-brainer. If you are thinking that you do not know where to find the submission instructions and you just have an email address, be prepared for disappointment. Your email might go to submission purgatory with a one-liner response about having received your correspondence––if you are lucky.
Address your submission to the appropriate person. If you are thinking that I am giving you the obvious pointers, then you are quite right. With that in mind, imagine that I still receive hundreds of emails a month that manage to ignore these simple suggestions. If you are writing a stunning exposé on corporate greed, the poetry editor is not the best destination for your work.
Edit your work. I tell this to students a lot, so I will mention it here as well: Spell check in Microsoft Word is not sufficient. I am not saying that you need to be a copyeditor to submit to a magazine but do yourself a favor and read it aloud. If something sounds funny when you read it, you can only imagine how it will sound to an editor who is choosing among thousands of articles and stories to determine what goes to print.
Be cognizant of turnarounds. By this I mean the amount of time between when you sent in the work until you hear back from an editor about the status of your submission. Nothing will send your work to the bottom of a slush pile quicker than sending a follow-up email the day after you submit, wondering whether you are going to be in the magazine. Most publications will post how long it takes to hear back from them about the status of a submission, and the amount of time after which you should contact them if you have not heard anything.
Things You Should Not Do
Send an email implying a publication would be stupid not to publish your work. It always surprises me when I get an email telling me that I need to publish a story, poem, or piece of nonfiction because it is the next best thing. Top this off with letting me know that I would be a fool not to accept it almost guarantees a trip to the trash can.
Send a photocopy of your story by registered mail. If you want to have your story in a magazine, start by giving it to the editors in a format they can use. By sending a faded and blurry photocopy of your forty-word poem and declaring that it is a soul-searching masterpiece does not inspire as much confidence as you would think.
Contact an editor on a frequent basis about the status of your submission. I must sort through hundreds of emails a day, edit for the current issue, and edit an anthology––not to mention a thousand other intangibles. We posted a timetable about getting back to you for a reason.
Be discouraged by a form rejection letter. This is a bitter pill to swallow for many writers. They think the form rejection letter means that the editor did not read their work, or simply had things already planned and was stringing writers along. The reality is, in any given month, I send out hundreds upon hundreds of rejection letters. There is simply not enough time in the day to offer feedback to every single person. This is not to say that I do not offer feedback, or that editors do not offer feedback in general, but instead the process is streamlined so writers can be responded to in a reasonable amount of time.
Call to find out about your submission. This is subsumed by not contacting an editor about the status of your submission before enough time has passed, but I thought it warranted a special mention considering it is really going the extra mile in terms of being an irritation. If we have not gotten back to you yet, calling us is not going to suddenly make us more accessible.
Send another submission email with corrections. Read twice, send once. If you do not think what you sent is ready for publication, then please do not send it. You get one chance at a first impression, and nothing speaks to being unprepared and unprofessional than sending a draft and immediately following up with another draft. If your piece needs work, note that in your submission, but do not send a series of emails chronicling the various stages of the edits for that story.
Contact the publication to air your frustrations about not being selected. I say this with all seriousness. It is highly likely that you got rejected because the piece was not a good fit and not that the magazine has decided to order a hit on your writing career. Please do not treat it that way. Lashing out at a publication for sending a form rejection letter, or passing on a piece you have written, reeks of a lack of professionalism and could impact your ability to publish elsewhere. Many editors are friends, especially in the digital age, and word spreads fast.
I could keep listing things you should not do, but I will wrap it up there. I encourage you to keep trying and keep writing. Things only get better with time, and time is all we really have.
What bearing does a single half hour have on us when there are so many hours, days, weeks, and years in our lifetime? Thirty minutes, eighteen hundred seconds, one forty-eighth of a day, one sixteen-thousand-five-hundred-twentieth of a year. Time is something that is both misused and misunderstood simultaneously. That is not to say that time is unimportant or unfair. There are many of us who have a slanted perception of how time affects us. There are many things that can and cannot be accomplished in a half hour. You are not going to enact social policy, but you could enjoy nature for a moment; admire the forests and streams that may soon be gone. You might not be able to watch the great plays, but you could finish a chapter in a novel.
So why do some experiences such a lack of time?
As if some were given more time than others?
The answer is simple. Perception is the key to life.
Some see only what they cannot have, and others see what they already do have. That perception leads us to see that the responsibility of our own choices is what frames our lives. Let us think of our elders. This cohort of people has experienced and can reflect on their years of worry and realize that there was more around them than they believed. They once saw life as a race in which you could never beat the clock. They experience life anew, returning to places and participating in things long forgotten. As we move through this life, we are often faced with the overwhelming certainty that we will not finish what we have started. We barrel through life as if each precious second were wasted if we stopped for a moment. But it is this life that we race through that we are truly missing. The elderly see life as it was: the simplicities that make it great and the complexities that often leave those still seeking purpose confused and bewildered.
It is in the two extremes of life that we see beings understand the world for what it is, our elders and our children. Children are beset with such wonder for the world that they are fundamentally unburdened with a need to categorize time. They are free of this because they wonder about experiencing the world around them. Even things that are already known can be experienced anew.
Their choices and their consequences are simple to them because they are seeing them for the first time. They will not slant them and pervert them as purpose-finding beings often do. A child will not be heard saying that they don’t have enough time to finish playing in the woods. They understand the simplicities that we often take for granted.
So, what can be done to make use of your time?
Different people at different points in their lives perceive time differently. Most waste time, but there are those who find a focus for their lives: a purpose. You, and the choices that you have made, have created the foundation for whatever walls stand in your way. Time is not the culprit of your ills, but human action, or inaction for that matter. Habit and repetition can help you to make beneficial use of your time because once it passes you by, it is gone. All you can do is make the best of the time you have left. Focus on what you want and stop complaining because everyone else is too preoccupied to listen.
If you are like most writers, the excitement of writing a book can very nearly be everything you need to finish and publish, to reach your goal. In many ways, this is true of all goal-setting behavior. I was lamenting the other day that I really wanted to be done with Sixth Prime (seriously, click and give it a read) because I think it will resonate with readers. Even though there is still another draft to go before several rounds of edits, and then design, I wanted it now.
Why is that I wonder?
The impatience paradox. I talk a lot about starting goals and setting goals, but very little about completing a goal when you have stalled in the middle. I like to call this the impatience paradox. This is the overwhelming feeling that creeps in mid-goal, which is usually accompanied by fatigue with the process and a burning, irrational desire that people should already be supportive of the finished product (or goal). For writers, this is often the moment when you think this book could be “the one,” and you really just want everyone to be sharing and reading and writing and freaking out over it. As normal as that sounds (impatience happens to everyone in pursuit of a goal, especially if that goal is within reach), it can be a productivity and discipline killer. It can make you switch your focus or collapse beneath the weight of wanting it to be done. So what can you do?
Overcoming impatience. Don’t let impatience keep you from reaching your goals. In order to get past impatience, you need to recognize it for what it is: fear. More than likely, you are having anxiety about the outcome of your goal, or how achieving your goal will affect you. Once you publish that book, people will react to it. What if they hate it? What if they love it? What if it doesn’t sell? What if people want more? Regardless of how it makes you feel, you need to remember that you started down this path for a very good reason. You had a goal; don’t give up now.
Reaching your goals. So, how do you get back on track? Simple: remember why you started down this path in the first place. Return to both the long-term goal you set in the beginning and the smaller goals in support of it. Rebuild those behavior-reward dyads once more and trend toward discipline; make the goal more important than the smaller roadblocks you put in your way. Use the simple formula of pairing the behavior that needs to be completed (writing every day) in order to reach your goal (finishing your novel) with a reward you only get when you perform that behavior (writing every day, just in case you forgot).
Being able to embrace that you are impatient, and can still reach your goals, sets you up for success in the future. The real enemy is giving up.
Dan O'Brien | Author & Consultant 